Saturday 27th March 2021

The weekend, and first day of the unexpected holiday.

Ahem.

Anyway, was going to be sunny and pretty windless in the morning, so we may as well go and do some tampling round woods, looking for orchids.

It was the last morning of winter time, as the clocks "spring" forward in the morning, or something, which will make it lighter in the evenings, but darker in the mornings. For a while.

We are up and about quite late, due to the gammy shoulder I lay awake for a time during the night, but fell back to sleep at dawn, and did not stir until twenty past seven, by which time the sun was high in the south and the chill of the early morning was burning off.

We have coffee. Second coffee and criossants, and were ready to go out by half eight, to drive back to Petham for a walk round the wood to look at Early Purple rosettes.

As always, its a quiet run along the A2 to Bridge, down through the village and over the bridge in Bridge, again, and out to Hardres to Petham.

It looked warm, so I refused to pack a jacket, meaning I was cold when we got out the car, but soon were walking through the quickly drying muddy tracks, where Jools spotted a butterfly: a Comma. With the new lens, I got get clear shots without getting too near, so it didn't fly away.

Species number 2 for the year.

Later we would see at least three Brimstones, but after an hour of chasing them, I still hadn't got a shot. I gave up.

Between then, we walked to the path, and down, checking the orchid rosettes, which were more advanced, but not open or putting forth a spike, that was still sheathed.

But the Primroses and Lesser celandines pined the path both in and out of the woods, and in the woods, a few more bluebells were in flower, and beginning to droop with the weight of the bells, which were blue in colour.

We walk back to the track, and investigate firther along the track and came to another path, so we followed that, and managed to get a few shots of a Dark Edged Bee Fly as it hummed between flowers in a clearing.

On the way back we came to another, larger colony of orchids, but again none flowering, but probably will be the first to flower, maybe next week. I learned later that the first ten Early Spiders were open in Dorset.

The madness has begun.

We make it back to the car and drive back home, stopping nowhere else on the way, getting back before midday, but hungry after our walking.

The day before I had bought a giant pasty from the butcher. And I mean giant, this is me with it:

I warm it in the oven, cut it down near the middle and we have it as our main meal.

We barely finish it.

That gave us the afternoon to sleep it off, though neither of us actually sleeps, we also don't do much.

I listen to football, listen to Huey on the i player, but after 11 years, his Radio 2 show i ending in a month, where will we be able to get our weekly dose of "Get Your Led Out"?

Everything changes.

We have some cheese for supper, with the last of the loaf I made. Smoked tomato and garlic cheddar. Which went well with the bread and a glass of red wine.

I watch Czech Republic play Belgium in the evening, ends 1-1 with Belgium hanging on for the point.

Still odd with no fans.