Tag Archives: West Byfleet

May 8 2017
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Keeping Up Appearances

Grey Wagtail

Keeping Up Appearances

I love watching wildlife along the Basingstoke Canal near where I live. Last week I had a delightful encounter with one of the grey wagtails that live alongside the canal. It’s the perfect habitat for them and they thrive here! I always see them on my short outings but this time I was able to get much closer than usual, getting to watch my little friend preening his feathers and singing joyfully. They’re fabulous little birds, full of character with such pretty plumage. The experience brought me so much joy, I decided that he would be the star of my entry for this week’s Wex Mondays challenge!

Jan 9 2017
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Blue Monday: Messing About With Boats

The Blue BargeBlue Monday: Messing About With Boats

Sadly, Jeanne at Backyard Neighbor still has no internet access so we cannot share our Blue Monday posts as a group. I am still going to share these images, taken last week at the Basingstoke Canal, as part of the theme and to share my entry for Wex Mondays on Twitter. Included in the gallery is a particularly colourful blue houseboat that always makes me smile. There was a certain irony to its Hawaiian-styled design set against the frozen waters of the canal!Sunset and SmokeMany of the resident ducks were gathered near the houseboats this week as the warmth emanating from them was keeping this one stretch of water free of the ice. I have to admit that the sight of the smoke coming from the stove chimney with streamers of sunlight cutting through the tree branches gave me a rather warm feeling inside! It’s a shame that warmth did not spread to my extremities. We’ve not had any snowfall here yet but reports are looking vaguely hopeful!

Wex Monday: Creating a vintage effect

May 2 2016
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Blue Monday: Softly Sought Memories

Forget-Me-Nots

Blue Monday: Softly Sought Memories

Softly Sought Memories

Recall to me these
Softly sought memories
Of hazy spring meadows
Thick with flowers,
Alive with the buzz
Of bees, the gentle
Flutter of gossamer wings,
Bright pretty things
To delight the mind
Of an innocent child,
Of the forgetful youth,
Of the hasty adolescent,
Of this wishful woman.
Recall to me those
Lazy, gentle days,
That I may become
Lost in them.

The image is of the forget-me-nots in our front gardens, which inspired my poem on reminiscence. They always remind me of Spring as a child growing up in the countryside.

Part of Blue Monday, hosted by Jeanne at Backyard Neighbor, and Ailsa’s Travel Theme: Poetry

Smiling Sally

Apr 9 2016
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Unlocking The Landscape Part 6

Nuthatch

Unlocking The Landscape Part 6

Golden Hour

One of my favourite times of day on the Basingstoke Canal is just as the sun starts to go down. It bathes the landscape in a warm golden light, crowning the trees with a rich amber glow. I had the great pleasure of watching this chatty, little Nuthatch enjoying the last warm rays of the day, vocally announcing his territory and hunting out tasty morsels from the eroded canal banks.

Nutty about Nuthatches!

Later on along my way home, I caught some precious glimpses of our pipistrelle bats zipping through the skies above me, picking off midges and gnats for supper. I was lucky that there was just enough light left to be able to capture a few images that I’m afraid are heavily cropped but it was a thrill to watch them.

And Batty about Bats!

Part of the 7 Day Nature Photography Challenge and WPC: Landscape