Fly Agaric hunting

There is nothing quite like the red and white of the Fly agaric toadstool for a great photo. The mushroom of fairy stories and Brownie promises never fails to raise a smile when you see it poking out from the leaf litter. West Stow Country Park around half term has provided me with great specimens so we walked there today in the hope of finding some more but, whether it's not a great year or maybe we were too late and they were over, the only ones we came across were mostly fully open, faded and spoiled.  I managed to find one that after a bit of tidying gave me the images below but otherwise I guess I'll have to wait until next year.

Kestrel

It's half-term here which means I'm on holiday. My husband has also booked the week off and hopefully we will get out and about a little bit. The leaves are now a beautiful blanket of golds, oranges and reds and when the early or late sunshine highlights them through the trees the world glows. We actually had a busy weekend and only managed a quick walk round the local woods and fields, the highlight of which was this kestrel watching us with one eye and the ground with the other. We managed to walk right underneath the tree it was sitting high on.

The fungi in the woods were mostly ones I have already photographed (lots!) but this yellow one stood out in the meadow.

Foggy sunday

It has started foggy and dank in my part of Cambridgeshire. Dank - such a dismal word! My husband went off early to play golf. He was thinking he would be teeing off in the dark but dark and foggy? Madness!  I was hoping for a nice autumnal walk first thing but the fog we have isn't even that pretty orange mistiness photographers love. It's just thick, grey and well... dank!

Deer stalking (sort of)

A few years ago we discovered Hatfield Forest in Essex, acres of ancient forest and parkland to walk in. We thought we'd go back this morning in the hope of finding more fungi and maybe even spotting some deer as it is now rutting season. There were a few fungi but nothing special (no fly agaric which is what I had been hoping for) and despite seeing lots of evidence we only saw one fallow deer! Always a privilege to see though and I did manage a photo at the blurry end of my zoom. The rut is between October and November and next time I think we need to be about an hour earlier in the morning or go later in the evening.

Urban nature

I think my home town of Cambridge is beautiful at any time but on a misty autumnal morning it is stunning. We walked along the river this morning, through the commons and into town.  The highlight had to be this kingfisher. I've seen one once before (fleetingly) on the River Lark but this one flew down quite a busy part of the river before landing in a willow on the opposite bank.

'Blood' moon

Last Monday we had a so called 'Blood' moon and a lunar eclipse - the technical stuff is here. I was awake in the early hours anyway so checked out the window - foggy! Still awake an hour later I had another peep out the curtains and although slightly misty it was clearing quick. I watched for a while, taking photos every now and then, before the cloud began to thicken again. It was definitely reddish with the naked eye but through the camera it was fabulous! I didn't really sleep the rest of the night - just laid there feeling incredibly insignificant in the grand scheme of space!

More fungi!

Plenty of fungi around at West Stow last weekend. No sign of the classic red and white Fly Agaric yet though.

Dewy morning walk

We walked around West Stow last weekend. It's a regular walking place and has one of my favourite stretches of river (The Lark). I am yet to see an otter there, although the nearby fishing lake has been elaborately fenced off to keep them out so they are there - somewhere!  Sunday morning was bright, but chilly and there was a heavy dew on the grasses and cobwebs, making the most mundane old weeds look structural and sparkly.

The river was quiet and peaceful and looked stunning in the low morning sun

Dragons and toadstools

Our walk today was much like the post below. A bright dry day in the first official week of autumn. The spots of sunlight were still drawing in a few dragonflies, although some of them were looking a little ragged now.  I also kept an eye out on the floor for the fungi. There has definitely been a little surge over the past week or so and I found a lovely patch of fairy ink caps on an old log. It took a bit of nettle dodging (not entirely successful!) to get into a position where I could photograph them but I managed to get a few decent shots.

All about the dragonflies

Our walk in the local woodland this afternoon was beautifully warm. Rose hips, sloes, and hawthorn berries brightened up the hedgerows and we did think to take a bag to collect some blackberries on the way round.  There weren't tons available, some had already been picked and some were not not ripe or even formed, but we gathered enough for an apple and blackberry pie.  Walking through the wood, in the patches of sunlight there were quite a few dragonflies flitting about, a few resting long enough for me to get some photos.