Once you're wet you can always get wetter!

Natural learning: the outdoor classroom at Foundry Wood, Leamington.

IF there’s one word to describe the weather recently – as if it needs saying – it’s ‘Wet!’ I tested out a theory a few days ago. It was pouring but I reckoned that once I’d reached ‘saturation point’ I couldn’t get any wetter. So, what the heck? Brave the rain and go on the walk!

Have you noticed how water has the knack of finding its way into places you never even knew existed? To cut a long story short, my theory was (perhaps unsurprisingly) rubbish! I reached saturation point and beyond. It was more swim than stroll!

But it wasn’t cold and, oddly, quite enjoyable. Refreshing, in fact!

Field and woodland tracks have become overgrown as plants thrive in the rain and relatively mild
weather, and now it's a case of wading through almost 

Going green (and white): Not too bad, 

but the cow parsley is slowly taking over!

shoulder high nettles, cow parsley and the like; which, actually, all contribute to giving you a soaking if they’ve been rained on!

Yesterday, the sun was out and the walking was far more leisurely as I ran a photo day attended by  two lovely photo enthusiasts, Janet and David, at the Foundry Wood community woodland in Leamington Spa, 
Warwickshire. Volunteers have worked hard to make the site accessible by creating paths and facilities for all to use.

Now the woodland is open for workshops, conservation and educational activities. Pizza-making using a real stone oven is popular, the first ‘Gig in the Woods’ was held there last month (April), with acoustic folk singer Eleanor Brown, and yesterday’s event was the first of a series of photography workshops as part of the woods’ programme.

The outdoor classroom was great and although the woods are relatively small, there are plenty of  pictures to be taken. I like the sculptures and evidence of craftwork dotted among the trees.

We spent a day thinking, talking and doing photography!

Thankfully, the rain held off - so we didn't even need to worry about getting saturated!

Art in nature: Children's craft work in the trees.

All fuelled up: Wood store at Foundry Wood community woodland.

Log trio: On a wall of the open classroom. 

Al fresco treat: Stone oven used for
 making pizza.

Cool shade: Some walkers may find their 
way blocked, while for others (below)
the advancing plant life provides 
a comfortable resting spot!

Wood appeal:  Above and below, beautiful patterns, 
textures and colours in a weathered log.

How sitting ducks became a moving target!

Sunlight helped to brighten the normally shadowy river.

YOU'D think sitting ducks would be an easy target. And so they are – unless you just can’t get your camera out quick enough! Yesterday four male mallards had congregated lazily on the river I walk alongside. A ‘pretty picture,’ I thought, and a change from snaps of plant life. I had my camera in a rucksack, but I’m afraid it was a case of more haste, less speed. By the time I’d fumbled with the fastenings, faffed with the zips, and tangled with the camera strap, the ducks had gently disappeared from view.

In my defence, they were ‘floating’ rather than ‘sitting!’ and so were actually moving . . .Well, that’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

I did manage to get a couple of shots of the (duckless) river though. Normally the water’s rather dark and grey because of overhanging trees and bushes, but on this occasion sunlight was hitting the surface, creating a bright patch in shadows. I actually tip-toed out on some stones in the river to get the pictures. I must admit, it induced a sense of vertigo. The water rushing past your feet makes it feel as if you’re moving, which meant balancing on a rock around a foot square was a weeny bit difficult.

If the picture at the top of the page looks as if it was taken from the middle of the river, that’s because it was!

Missed the ducks - so snapped
the nearby bridge instead!

Incidentally, getting back to the bank again was another ‘challenge’ – but a hop, skip (sort of) and quick jump across the swirling water did the trick! Safety note: please don’t try this unless you take your life in your own hands! I don’t want to be responsible for someone floating off because they read in a walking blog that it’s fun to balance on a little stone island in a fast-flowing river!

This morning I avoided the river and my usual field because it was raining. I don’t mind walking in wet fields, but the tracks were quite muddy yesterday after a previous downpour. They’d have been even more like a quagmire today, and I didn’t fancy following up wobbly river stones with slippery mud-tracks!

So I stuck to one of my urban routes, and pounded the pavements instead.

And guess what? No ducks!

A single thread of spider's web looks as if it's holding up the leaves.

Sunlight illuminating nettles and creating interesting shadows,

The beauty of leaves picked out by the sun.

Low bridge? Will the snail shell follow the snail under the twig?

Glad I decided not to be a lettuce!

Hawthorn blossom brightens the scene

I MUST admit, it’s been quite a tussle this weekend between my ‘lazy bones’ and my ‘lively bones.’ My ‘lazy bones’ just wanted to roll over and have extra sleep, lounge around on the sofa, mooch about without having to do warm-up exercises, pound the pavements and generally exert myself.

Beautiful splashes of red and yellow
from the broom bushes

My ‘lively bones,’ however, were telling me to get up, get out, make the most of the sunshine and stop being such a lettuce. Well, the lettuce insult did it, and the ‘lively bones’ won the day.

I’m also reading iconic choreographer Twyla Tharp’s book The Creative Habit, in which she describes how she wakes at 5.30am and heads across town for a workout at the gym – every day! Well, I thought what’s good enough for Tharp is good enough for me; in a slightly modified form, of course, and certainly without the finesse!

I’ve recently discovered a route alongside a river bank and around a field near where I live that’s become my favourite walking ground, at least for the time being. I’d actually tried it some time ago, but it was so densely overgrown I had to turn back.

Even an 'ordinary' dandelion
has its appeal

Lately, however, it’s been clear enough to explore, and I’ve found myself following the river before taking to the criss-crossing tracks in the fairly ‘wasteland,’ and usually deserted field with, up to now, its dead and gnarly vegetation.

At this time of the year, bluebells, snowdrops, hawthorn, broom and other bright and colourful plants are beginning to splash gorgeous colour into the scene. I’ve popped some photos from the walk on here. Even just getting out and seeing these 'wonders of nature' is enough to give you a boost.

I think I did more picture-taking than calorie-burning today (I turned the cardio app off while 'snapping'), but thank goodness I didn’t just roll over this morning and become a lettuce!

• I notice that Good Housekeeping magazine (GH), who promoted walking in a feature recently, have followed it up with another double-page spread extolling the benefits of the activity and carry four case studies showing different ways in which walking has benefited people.
• GH supports Walk the Walk’s Moon Walks and Sun Walks, which help breast cancer causes.  There’s a Moon Walk in London next week ( May 10) on a Rockabilly theme. It’s sold out, but the organisers are still looking for volunteers, and other events are coming up.

Below, more pictures from my 'field' walk:

Delights of a random walk

Ladybird and butterfly enjoy a warm spot.

WELL, what a start to the day. The sun was shining, there was a gentle breeze and a leisurely calmness that made you feel all was well with the world. I felt like bursting into song. You know, something along the lines of ‘Oh, What a Beautiful Morning’ – but then remembered it had already been done! Just as well, really. Would hate to have upset anyone’s serene Sunday.

I adopted a more random ‘go where my legs took me’ approach at the weekend, so set off without having any clear plan. Knowing the distance, or how long it takes, can be helpful, especially if you’re pushed for time. But sometimes, leaving your walk to chance, rather than following a prescribed route, can be fun. You can surprise yourself. (I know, I know - so easily pleased!).

I love the marks on the fallen tree trunk -
like some kind of primeval art or writing.

I was not disappointed. I found myself making my way to a nearby village and back. There was a lovely spring feel to the morning and splashes of colour from the various blossoms en route. A real delight for the senses. Obviously, the daffs are still dazzling with their vibrant yellow, but there were also vivid tulips and numerous other flowers, especially eye-catching forget-me-nots clustered beneath the hedgerow, their beautiful pale blue piercing the shade.

On my return, I took a path through a small woods, partly because that’s where I ended up going, but also because I fancied the slightly uneven ground – adds variety after pounding the smooth surfaces of pavements and roadways.

Here there was even more delight. I have a favourite log in the woods (actually, the trunk of a felled tree – told you I was easily pleased!), where all sorts of things happen. There’s the pattern and texture of the trunk itself, the character of which is gradually changing through the seasons; the insects that inhabit the many crevices in this mini metropolis, and the plant life that invades and retreats at various times of the year.

On this occasion, there were various insects out for their ‘early morning stroll,’ but also a variety of butterflies in the vicinity, including Peacocks with their distinctive eyespots; Orange Tips, with the male displaying its colourful wings like flames flickering through the greenery; a Tortoiseshell, making a brief visit and a yellow-winged butterfly that flitted through the airspace and into the distance. 

The robin chirping its heart
out on a warm Sunday morning.

Nearby, a robin filled the air with melodious chirping.

So, all in all, a satisfying ‘random’ wander – and four oranges worth of energy burnt off in the process!

Below: Pictures from the walk.

Ladybird, leaves and pattern on tree trunk.

Ladybirds explore the fallen tree.

Natural sculpture - a clock
marking time?

Ladybird and orange tape
on a sapling.

Peacock butterflies bask in the morning warmth.

Lots of colour filled the walk, including (below) the
beautiful yellow flowers on nettles.

Good Housekeeping puts a spring in your step – one per cent at a time!

Familiar sight of daffodils heralding the arrival of spring!

CAN’T believe it’s been so long since I posted an entry. Where does the time go? I’ve done plenty of walking, mind you. Had to, really, after my car was written off in, ahem, a slight bump! Pounding the pavements has certainly burned up a few plums’ worth of energy, according to my app!

I now have four wheels again, but having to get everywhere by Shanks’s pony (oh, and the occasional bus or two!) has been interesting!

I can take comfort from the fact that I've been getting my 'exercise' in, though, and this month there’s been even more support for the activity with the enthusiastic promotion of walking by a popular glossy mag.

Open the pages of Good Housekeeping (March edition, pictured right) and you'll find an inspirational feature on why it’s good to walk. After a front page plug on 'How to walk yourself fitter, younger and calmer' (I like the ‘younger’ bit – can live in hope!) two double-page spreads highlight the benefits of the easy physical exercise that's free.

The benefits of walking are well known, of course, but what Good Housekeeping does - in what it refers to as a 'Health breakthrough' - is come up with a 'brilliant, easy way to make walking even more effective.'

In the eye-catching pages, the magazine applies the approach adopted by the record-breaking Olympic Team GB cycling team – that is: ‘Small changes, big gain.’ In the words of Team GB Performance director David Brailsford, this means: 'If you broke everything down that you could think of . . . and then improved it by 1%, you will get significant increase when you put them all together.'

The beauty of thinking of it in terms of 1% is that it’s such a small amount – and so ‘do-able.’ Think of that one single tiny penny. By itself, not much at all. But put 10 of them together, or 20 or 30 or more – and they make up a much larger and more useful sum.

Good Housekeeping points to how ‘little things’ like wearing the right shoes or varying your speed can make all the difference. Tips include:

      ·         Making a basic walking plan (there’s a useful link to a two-week plan
      by Nina Barough on the magazine’s website)

      ·        Good Posture

      ·         Mindful walking

      ·         Eating the right foods and even, wait for it . . .

      ·         Walking like a crab! (Though you may want to do this in the privacy
      of your own garden!)

There’s even a suggestion for Nordic walking, where you use poles to help propel yourself along and build upper body strength.

The recent weather hasn’t exactly been ideal for walking – you’re more likely to have been blown along - but spring is in the air. You can tell by the daffodils!.

Why not follow up Good Housekeeping’s useful tips? Flick through the pages and give yourself a health boost at the same time!

As for me? Well, continue with walking that I've actually chosen to do, rather than have thrust upon me! In an odd sort of way, I've enjoyed having to get around on foot - but it'll be a relief not having to allow that extra time for everything, including hanging around for buses that may or may not turn up!

PS: The magazine’s editor Lindsay Nicholson puts her action where her words are – and is currently limbering up for the London Moon Walk in May to raise funds for breast cancer charities!

Good Housekeeping is out now, price £3.99

Daffodil 'gallery' taken this morning (22/03/14)