Showing posts with label Autumn; Woodland Walk. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Autumn; Woodland Walk. Show all posts

Sunday, 30 November 2014

12 months on...

This afternoon we returned to a walk we last did twelve months ago. It covers  two areas of woodland between Braslou and Marigny Marmande: Bois de la Couarde and Le Bois Millet.

We know thanks to the fantastic recording tool which is our blog! It allows us to look back and see how things have changed... If they have changed... The Etang and paths remain the same...


so too the ferns and braken...

The gorse was out in abundance...

and so was the lichen

We noticed some new signs...

and some unseasonal things...

The fungi were still about in abundance...

And although the sun wasn't shining as it was last year, it was drier underfoot and the pleasure we got from the walk was just as good!

Last years walk can be seen here.

Thursday, 21 November 2013

Walk Puzzle.

After our Jigsaw puzzle we have another puzzle that we would like solving...

On our Sunday walk, in the Gueule Noire above Panzoult, (more about that in another blog) we came across several dugouts at the side of this main woodland path.

Below are just three of many, sited adjacent to the main path (above). Each dugout is about 45cm deep and you can get an idea of the scale of the other dimensions from the photo of Elizabeth standing in the middle of one.

We wondered if they were to drain water from the woodland track, but they seem unnecessarily wide for that purpose.  A narrower channel would surely suffice? Or are they something military?

Other than this we have no ideas? Have you??

Sunday, 17 November 2013

Bois de la Couarde

Last Sunday (we have got behind with our posts) we went for our usual afternoon walk. We'd decided to explore two areas of woodland between Braslou and Marigny Marmande, Bois de la Couarde and Le Bois Millet.

There are marked routes into the wood and we chose the clearly marked (!) CR65... *or was it CR85...?

The rest of the walk was well maintained with paths running forever through the woodland. A couple of minutes walking and we came upon a picturesque Etang.

It was particularly photogenic in the sunshine which made the waterlily leaves resemble a Dulux colour chart from the "Shades of Etang" collection. (other brands of paint are available)

The paths running around the etang and off into the woods were lit by shafts of autumn sunlight...

It's on days like these that everything is at it's best..
The ferns and bracken were just wonderful!

We met an elderly couple out foraging for mushrooms, their paniers full of a mix fit for a banquet. We were happy to just photograph these colourful specimens...
Turning left at the edge of the wood our walk took us along a hedgerow laden with blackberries - long past the picking stage. Note to self: next year come a month or two earlier!

The circular walk took us just over an hour and a half but we were stopping to take photographs so frequently that this is no indication of distance. As we approached the end the sun was getting low in the sky

But it had been a glorious afternoon and we enjoyed every minute.

** It was actually the CR85

Monday, 28 October 2013

Woodland Wander Part Two

Continuing the theme from yesterday's post, we look at some of the fungi, lichens and oddities we saw on our walk through the woods.

First the fungi....
 
 
Now the lichens..
And an oddity...

Lastly a treat; a mass of eating chestnuts....

So guess what we'll be roasting by the fire tonight!

Sunday, 27 October 2013

Woodland Wander, Part One

We had intended to go to the Fungi Foray in the forest at Preuilly today but the weather this morning put us off. Instead we took advantage of a brief dry spell this afternoon to go to an area of our local woods which we've not visited for just over three years.

These particular woodland tracks can be accessed from just outside the village but we chose to drive round to the Braslou side of the wood and approach from the D20 to the West of Braslou.

The area is mixed woodland criss crossed by wide CR trails.

Despite the weather there was plenty to see. So for Part One, here are some of the flowers we saw this afternoon....
 And counting the spindleberry as a flower....

And then a promise of what's to come next year...

Orchids! Susan we could do with your expert identification skills please?!

Part Two to follow tomorrow!