High winds gusted and steady rain fell throughout the morning, only lifting at 2 p.m. when we set off to South Sway Lane in order visit our equine friend with the striking eyes.
Unbeknown to each other we both carried a carrot. Now we have a spare in the car.
First Jackie photographed a pheasant, because our friend was a long way down her field.
As soon as the nameless pony spotted us she made straight for our feeding station.
Stretching over the fence, she was most eager to relieve me of whatever I might have about my person. I held up my finger and enjoined her to wait until the Assistant Photographer was ready.
On Jackie’s say so I handed over the carrot, which between us we managed to
drop on the ground. “Now What?” neighed the pony.
“Have no fear,” I replied.picking it up. “I am here”. By this time I was confident I would not lose any fingers, and made a better fist of the process.
Perhaps I was getting a bit excited here.
The vegetable was gratefully received and rapidly consumed. Jackie produced this whole set of pictures, including those in which I do not feature.
We then proceeded to Woodpeckers to visit Mum who was on good form and very proud to display the Amaryllis which we had given her as a bulb for Christmas. It is apparently a talking point among the staff. Three blooms ar shown here, There are four more in bud.
The pencil drawing on the wall is one I made of Elizabeth when she was about 4 and I would have been 16.
By the late afternoon when we left the clouds had dissipated and we were treated to clear sunshine. Without the cloud cover the temperature dropped from 10 to 5 degrees.
The woodland along Balmer Lawn Road out of Brockenhurst was burnished by the sun; lichen glowed; shadows stretched fingers across the soggy ground, embracing the wide oak trunks;
numerous pools reflected trees and skies.
Jackie photographed me once more as I ventured across the muddy terrain.
In particular she was keen to catch me hoisting my trouser legs as I prepared to negotiate a watery ditch. Our blogging friend Quercus had recently suggested that she should produce a picture of such an event for his amusement. This one is for Quercus.
Such temporary lakes such as this at East Boldre are appearing all over the forest.
Further along the same road, as woodland gives way to moorland, grazing ponies do not have far to go for a drink.
This evening we dined on spicy pizza with fresh salad with which Jackie drank Hoegaarden and I finished the El Zumbido, Garnacha, Syrah.
