When the darkness brightened into day, I pulled back the curtains to discover clear blue skies. It was just too perfect a day to spend much of it indoors. I had slept awkwardly and my lower back is killing me (it's the same old problem). I decided that a walk would be the best way of freeing things up . . . With the benefit of hindsight I have now come to realize that this decision was possibly wrong as instead of just my left hip hurting, the entire lower back is agony. Hmmm. Perhaps I need an alcohol rub . . . the sort that comes in a large glass marked CIDER!
Where my walk started after my husband had dropped me off. This is such an inviting little lane.
An idyllic little cottage. Just out of sight to the left is a well-tended vegetable plot.
Sumachs showing their autumn fire.
Looking across to the Carmarthen Fans.
The road ahead.
The glare of the sun made photography difficult.
All that remains of the former Italianate Mansion at Pantglas. Its grounds have now been transformed into a holiday complex with log cabins . . .
The old stable block and carriage buildings - very grand.
The landscaped gardens include a lake which is home to a number of ducks.
On the very top of the hillside, one bank of an Iron Age enclosure.
Looking across towards Horeb.
Unripe seeds/spores on the underside of the fern leaves.
A Carmarthenshire hillside.
The downhill stretch, looking across our valley.
Truly the last Foxglove of summer . . .
Polka-dot sycamore leaves - I guess they had some freezing dew on them recently.
The road home. My darling Fahly-horse always did his bestest "Overdrive" trot up here!
I miss little dirt roads for walks. Here there is one main route. Once you head into the side roads you are very quickly in the middle of nowhere--and the nowhere is home to wild animals that we don't necessarily care to meet on foot. So, I tramp round and round the perimeter of the property.
ReplyDeleteSumacs really come into their glory in autumn--they are considered a worthy decorative shrub in Wyoming, while they were an invasive nuisance in New England.
You've a fine eye for detail--the spores on the undersides of the fern are very absorbing.
After a rough night and a chilly morning, I dozed on the porch with a book--the sun was very warm and welcome. If only autumn could stretch to at least January!
I am glad to report that my back responded to a Syndol and a can of cider, I slept well and it have just awoken to a little "echo" of discomfort compared to yesterday's yelp-out-loud agony.
ReplyDeleteWhat a shame you can't go "off piste" with your walks. What nasties do you have to avoid? Grizzleys I assume?
If I walk right up the dirt road to the end there are only antelope, deer and neighborhood dogs--the later probably the most uncomfortable confrontation. People drive to nearby Sinks Canyon to take the hiking trails, but not advisable to go alone. There are mountain lions in the area, probably not bears until one gets up in the mountains. Trails are rocky and every year someone falls to their death. A far cry from winding dirt roads and paths through meadow and woods that were my habitat for most of my life. I should concede that in the interest of exercise I might trudge up and down this road--a not too interesting route through bleak sagebrush and with the prospect of being covered with dust or mud each time a pickup lumbered by. You can see I'm not enthused!
ReplyDeleteHullo MM,
ReplyDeleteBeen in bed for best part of a couple of days but back to normal now.
Your photos always say as much as your words. Its clearly a bonny part o the world and one you love.
Like you I love plants and flowers, although you would never think of it to look at our garden. Strangely your fern photo is almost identicle to my screen saver just now, a photo taken on a walk last year. Foxgloves are one of my most favourite flowers too.
I think the photo of the rutted track heading down into the valley herded by the fence is a beauty. Well done.
regards.....Al.
Al - I love the countryside, but it is now time to move on. Our reasons for being here have changed so utterly and we now want to live a bit nearer amenities. Nearer "work" for G when she returns from Uni, and D who is still at home with us. I will miss the scenery, but hope to swop it for Devon scenery. K on the other hand, still hankers for a bastle in Northumberland . . .
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