Making the most of the weather

Today’s guest picture is another from my brother Andrew. He was much struck by this fine floral display on a recent walk

Our spell of good weather here continued today. It is supposed to go back to being cooler and wetter next week, so we are enjoying the dry and warm days as much as we can in the meantime.

I filled the bird feeder after breakfast, and there was fairly steady traffic. Bird behaviour is a mystery to me. Not so long ago, we had dozens of chaffinches, both at the feeder and scurrying about picking up seed underneath it. It was not unusual to see thirty or forty of them. Today, I saw none. I don’t know where they have gone. The greenfinches have departed as well, and we are now seeing mostly siskins, though there are goldfinches and some sparrows too. No redpolls today.

Dropscone came round for coffee in the morning, and in a mark of his progress, he was confident enough to walk across town carrying his scones with him for the first time since he came out of hospital. He was very cheerful, possibly because he is not able to play golf at the moment.

After he went on his way, I went out into the garden with Mrs Tootlepedal, and we did a lot of work between us. In between mowing the vegetable garden paths, sieving compost, and doing some shredding, strimming and dead heading, I found time to look at a few flowers too. The astrantia, ribwort and pink strawberry are new arrivals.

Mrs Tootlepedal was impressed by the staying power of our last daffodils.

After lunch, Mrs Tootlepedal went back out into the garden, and I took advantage of the good weather to go for a cycle ride on my push bike while wearing shorts.

I had another look at the fine blackthorn at Westwater on my way up to Callister. It was glowing in the sunshine.

Rather disappointingly, when I got to the top of Callister, I found that the longer views were very misty again, and this was made even more annoying by the blue sky that was very evident if I looked straight upwards.

Ironically, the poor visibility seems to arrive with the better weather, so perhaps it is dust in the air, either brought in from the continent or created by our local traffic. It didn’t spoil the immediate views as far as my cycling went though.

The little cottage is testing the view that a house divided cannot stand.

My route took me past the Korean pines at Half Morton, so I combined a stop for refreshment with a check on the cones. It is definitely a good year for cones, unlike last year when there were very few. Each tree seems to be at a different stage of development as far as colour goes.

Just as I was getting back on my bike, I saw a deer run across the road. It leapt a fence and bounded across a field.

I see deer from time to time on my rides, but I think that this is the first time that I have managed to record one in action.

The sun stayed out for the whole of the 27 mile ride, and I passed the first silage cutting as I got near Canonbie. The team were hard at work on one side of the road, and the grass had already been cut and removed on the other.

Rather than cycle back along the Canonbie bypass when I came to it, I took the narrow road to the Hollows that runs just below the main road. It provided a magnificent beech hedge, and a good if rather misty view up Eskdale when I got near to the Hollows.

I was going to spend some time looking for wild flowers in the verges over the last five miles of my trip, but I inadvertently looked at my bike computer just as I completed two hours. Finding that I done 22 miles, I became so obsessed with keeping my average speed above 11 mph until I got home that I completely forgot about the flowers.

Mrs Tootlepedal was still in the garden when I got back, but she told me that she had taken some time out to watch the finish of today’s stage of the Giro.

We walked round the garden before I went in to make a cup of tea.

A second helping of her excellent fish pie rounded off a very satisfactory day.

The flying bird of the day is a goldfinch.