A walk with Em in Belair National Park. Lots of golden wattle - after all, it is officially Wattle Day. Busy bees captured at work. A lovely day.
This morning when I woke up the sky was blue for the first time since I arrived in the UK. I had plans for another trek in the Cotswolds, so wasted no time getting to breakfast. As I was getting ready to leave I noticed that the soles of my boots had almost worn through! Too much walking. I will have to get some new ones but my other shoes would have to do today.
I needed to catch the 9:00am 853 bus to Burford. Well, technically I wanted to get off a little outside Burford near Little Barrington. My plan for the day was to follow two walking maps I found online.
My first challenge was to find the bus stop in Oxford. I found it online OK but when I got there it wasn't marked. After a little bit of concern I noticed the bus arriving. As I boarded and requested my stop the bus driver was also a bit confused. He doesn't drive this route often and wasn't familiar with the stop. Luckily the lady behind me was after the same stop and had additional information. So off we went.
The bus trip took just under an hour. Here's the map for the first walk. I got off the bus at #1.
I located the foot path and got on my way.
The walk took me through Little Barrington and then to Great Barrington. Both had typical cottages and buildings for the area.
It's been a long time since I saw milk delivered at all, let alone in bottles.
As with the other day, the walk took me through all sorts of terrain.
After my walk around the Barringtons the main part of the journey took me along a quiet country lane to Burford. The walk took about an hour and I only encountered one car. The lane way wound through hedges and occasionally opened out to beautiful views of the surrounding farmland and the River Windrush meandering along side it.
And I encountered quite a bit of wildlife.
Even though I only encountered one car, there were a number of bike riders enjoying the sensational weather. Speaking of which, by this time it was definitely t-shirt and sunscreen weather for me.
After a delightfully leisurely walk I arrived in Burford. Another picturesque town. Unfortunately, all the car traffic made it difficult to get a good photo to do the town justice.
After a quick wander down the main street I grabbed some lunch and headed off on my second walk.
Although this is intended to be a walk from point #1 to Burford via one of two alternative routes, I decided to walk it as a loop. I started at Burford and walked towards #2 then backtracked through #5-7.
Throughout the day I noticed a lot of airforce traffic. I assume there must be a base nearby.
This walk followed the River Windrush more closely.
Near Swinbrook there was a mill.
Shortly after leaving the mill I encountered a young chinese girl also looking for the way to Swinbrook. You can see her up ahead in this photo. We chatted for a while and walked together until we successfully made it to Swinbrook.
Swinbrook was another quaint village. I continued further to Asthall. On the way there the footpath went through a field with cows. A sign said to beware as the cows can be protective of their young. As I passed a herd, one was keeping a very close eye on me and started "tapping" a hoof. I passed by as quickly and calmly as I could.
Of course, Asthall was yet another quaint village.
From there I had to backtrack to Swinbrook before heading north. I was following the footpath described in my directions until I came across this field. The directions indicated to walk across it but it was fenced off. The fencing appeared recent and temporary. It also appeared electrified! I found another way instead.
Along my alternative route I encountered more beautiful cottages.
Before entering Widley Copse.
The other day and today I've recorded fragments of birdsong. It was particularly beautiful in these woods. I'll try to post some of the recordings when I get a chance.
Out the other side of the woods I needed to walk across field after field of crops. Luckily there was a very clearly marked path to follow. In the distance I noticed an animal on the path. When I zoomed in I discovered this guy.
The lines of crop were so regular.
A bit more walking got me to Fulbrook and then back to Burford. By this time my feet and legs were aching. Not as badly as the other day, but bad enough. I came across the Cotswold Arms and decided to rest my feet while enjoying a well earned pint.
From there I just needed to find the bus stop. I passed more of the beautiful streetscape.
When I got to where I thought the bus stop should be, it only mentioned the 233 bus. Confused I set out to find help. I asked a passerby who confirmed that the 853 stops there also. Phew! I double confirmed by asking the lady who was also now waiting at the stop. She was lovely and we had a chat up until the bus arrived.
I got back to the hotel shortly after 6:00pm and straight into a nice hot bath.
I had trouble deciding what to do today. I had a number of options but most had a downside I wanted to avoid. Yesterday I purchased a National Trust membership so I decided to consult their book for ideas. I settled on a visit to an estate known as Knole just outside Sevenoaks.
Being the weekend, it was busy at breakfast but I managed to get through fairly quickly and head to the train station to catch the 10:02 direct to Sevenoaks. From the Sevenoaks train station it was a 20 min walk up a hill to the estate.
As soon as I arrived I came across a number of herds of deer. Luckily with my telephoto lens I could get some good pictures while keeping my distance.
The grounds were expansive. Over 1,000 acres. I only covered a tiny fraction of them but the terrain was still varied.
The "house" itself was suitably grand. My membership allowed me free entry.
And there was (another) tower to climb with great views from the top.
In the middle of the building were a couple of courtyards. As you can see from the photos, the sky momentarily cleared from the overcast it had been most of the morning.
Inside, a number of the rooms had been restored so I had a wander around. Unfortunately, photography inside was not allowed. The interior was very ornate with massive works of art everywhere.
After a light lunch I headed back to Ashford. I wanted to buy some wet weather over pants for Singing With Nightingales tonight. The forecast is a bit ambiguous but we have been advised to be prepared.
On the train back to Ashford I managed to take some more photos of the Kent countryside. This is typical of the farm houses I saw today.
When I got back to Ashford I figured my best bet for the wet weather gear was the local "designer" outlet. It's a massive oval shaped collection of stores.
Luckily, among the label stores there was an outdoor shop with what I was looking for.
So now I'm all prepared. All we need now are the nightingales to show up!
I awoke with a bit more energy this morning after the first solid sleep in a few days. I had intended to take my time this morning but the weather looked a little ominous so I decided to get up and take advantage of the light while it lasted. Of course, I needn't have bothered as the weather improved as the day progressed.
When I stepped onto the balcony to take an early morning photo I noticed thousands of people streaming along one of the roadways. I was later to discover it was a marathon. Unfortunately that meant that a lot of the city was blocked off to traffic and I suspect many things were closed as a result.
I wasn't sure what I felt like doing so I set off first in search of autumn colours. There are parks along the foreshore and I felt certain I'd see something there. I came across these bushes I noticed on the approach to Toronto. I'm not sure if they're this colour all the year, but they're very striking.
And I did manage to find a few red trees also.
These chairs were dotted in a small park; functional and sculptural at the same time.
From there I basically decided to do a loop of the city. I came to a park by the design collage. The architecture got my attention first. Then this little fella did.
I soon realised there were squirrels running all over the park. This one stopped to face me each time I pointed my camera; almost as if he was posing.
The architecture that had grabbed my attention was this building. I'd noticed it from the CN Tower.
In one small way, Toronto reminds me of Berlin, because it seems like every time you turn around you get a glimpse of the tower.
Toronto has streetcars. On one street the stops featured different metal artwork on poles.
I wandered around in a generally clockwise direction. Towards the east of the city, as the glass skyscrapers began to come to an end I noticed rows of older buildings wedged in between the modern.
And this solitary establishment that had somehow survived the demolition of its peers.
On another street I came across this curious fascade. I assume the buildings that necessitated the blocking up of the windows are no more, but it looked odd all the same.
As I was taking some photos of another building an old gentleman spoke to me. He was interested to know why I was taking photos. He was an amateur photographer too and showed me his more compact but still serious camera. We got to talking and walked a few blocks together. He's had major problems with the health system in Canada and didn't paint a very positive picture of they way he felt the old or disabled were being treated. We parted ways at what looked like a shelter.
Slightly dismayed by that sobering chat I continued my walking. I noticed this building with an ingenious fascade that was more than just painted. The trees are lovely but it's a pity they obscure this little masterpiece.
Before long I was back among the glass towers. While I was taking a picture of one with golden glass and steel a bird swooped past. Total fluke, but I really like it.
Looking up I was surrounded.
Then down the end of the street I noticed a tower from another era. I think it is the old town hall.
At the start of the day I wasn't sure what I wanted to do. And at a couple of times I seriously thought of just returning to the apartment to veg out. For some reason nothing was exciting me today (hence the post title). But as I looked through my pictures and put these words together I realise I had quite a decent day - despite myself!
By the end of the afternoon most of the cloud had dispersed so I decided to get another shot across the harbour to Toronto Islands. I had considered taking a ferry over there but ran out of time.
Tomorrow I leave Canada and head to Washington DC. I have a late flight but will see if I can change it to an earlier one at the airport.