Sunlight Playing The Forest

Despite the forecast of sunny spells today we were treated to clear cerulean skies and full sunshine throughout the day.

As we set off early to Ferndene Farm shop I paused to admire Jackie’s planting of primulas and violas in front of the garage door trellis.

This was the view from the car as I waited for just a short time for the Shopping Lady to rejoin me.

Long shadows stretched across Beckley Road and the driveway to The Glen;

and knitted knotted skeins across the woodland verges beside the road to Burley, on which

Jackie parked the Modus enabling me to photograph the moorland landscape.

Joggers, cars, walkers, and cyclists competed for space. We had imagined that the rather slow driver of the red car was keeping her distance from the cyclists ahead. She was, however, no faster after those on bikes turned off.

Hightown Lane was my next point of embarkation. Again walkers, cyclists, and other vehicles vied for space on the narrow road. Voices carried some distance.

I began drinking in the delights of the clear, sparkling, stream, revealing glimpses of its bed among rippling reflections; clumps of golden daffodils; bright backlit leaves; and pendant overhanging catkins.

One of the field horses wearing a red rug revealed the need for warmth during the still very cold nights. It wasn’t that warm at 11 a.m. either.

Gnarled trees and sinuous wooden fences cast their own images beneath and beside them;

while those following the contours of mossy banks created concave and convex curves as penetrating light illuminated the soft green cushions and picked out russet autumn leaves.

During her vigil on the verge Jackie spent some time pondering who might live in a cave on the bank.

This evening we dined on further helpings of yesterday’s, with which Jackie drank Hoegaarden and I finished the Merlot Tannat.

87 comments

  8. Yes, I wonder who lives in the cave 😊

    The light is so beautiful at the moment. Here we are set to have sunshine a week – hopefully, you will, too!

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  10. Beautiful pictures.
    I love the primulas and violas, Jackie.
    Spring is definitely arriving while here we are beginning to see the first of the Autumn leaves falling to a very wet landscape.

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  11. Such beautiful images of spring, with all its light and watery warmth.
    Jackie’s primula and cheeky violas have wonderfully bright, happy faces.
    I love the horses standing back to back – clearly from the same household!
    Could it be a family of rabbits who live in the earthy ‘cave’?
    Your writing and descriptions are just magical. 🙂

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  12. Adored your description of the mossy banks Derrick .. “created concave and convex curves as penetrating light illuminated the soft green cushions and picked out russet autumn leaves.”

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  16. If you lived in my part of Australia, you might see a chunky wombat waddle out of Jackie’s mystery cave.

    I wonder what you will imbibe with your next meal? The suspense is killing me! 🙂

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      2. “Wombats excavate these burrows in well-drained soils, often near creeks and gullies. They dig soil with the long claws on their forelegs and push it out with their back legs. They then roll on their sides to dig the walls.”

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  19. Great post, Derrick
    I haven’t felt so motivated to write so I haven’t been so active on wp.
    But I will try harder as I miss my wp friends.
    How are you and Jackie doing?

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      1. We’re all doing ok, Derrick. We’re waiting our turn for the vaccine. I’m 61 and Mike is 59. I’m also happy to have an adult living in the White House once again. I feel like I can breathe again.

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  21. The entire neighbourhood seems to have erupted in celebration of abundant sunshine. The knitted knotted skeins across the woodland verges and the radiant moorlands have been accorded due justice by your camera. Your Modus appears to have a red competition. That cave looks alarming enough. Once while visiting a bird sanctuary I’d come across a similar opening in the earth that turned out to be the lair of a python who had gobbled a couple of goats and reportedly a derelict too who would prowl the area in search of fish and fowl on the pretext of grass-cutting. Yes, I did have a glimpse of the monster, which sent me sprinting across the dirt path like an Olympian. That is where I lost the cap of my lens too.

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  22. You and Jackie picked a lovely day for a drive! The air may be cold, but that sun is quite warm and inviting. Daffodils, mossy trees and embankments, ponies and wide vistas. I like those scenes where one can see off into the distance, giving a perspective of the area.

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  23. Lovely images of your outing in the forest. I liked Jackie’s picture of the cave, it sent my imagination into overdrive as I began to think about Roald Dhal’s tale of Fantastic Mr Fox.

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  24. Let the sun shine in… 🙂 What gorgeous photos of a sunshine-y day! I especially love the patterns the tree limb’s shadows create on the ground, pavement, water, and carpet of leaves! 🙂
    Oh, the flowers love turning their sweet fact to the sun!
    OOOH! Wonder who is in that cave!?! What came to your mind as you pondered, Jackie!?
    HUGS!!! 🙂

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  26. I’d say it was a fox’s earth, but I’m not 100% sure.

    I think butterflies will be next for you, Derrick. Traditionally, the first one is the all custard yellow “Brimstone” which gives us the word “Butterfly”

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  27. Lovely photos and prose, Derrick! It is so good to see sunshine. (It’s raining here again–to be cleared out with gusting winds later today.) The other day when I went out in the sunshine in-between rain systems, everyone here also seemed to be out–even though I also discovered it was colder than I thought. I think people are a bit giddy at the thought of spring.
    I like the Monet-like stream reflections that you drank up 😀, and the fence shadows, and always daffodils. Along with others, I’m curious who lives in the burrow.

    Reply

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