Saturday 18th April 2018

And the weekend again.

And because of the traffic on Friday, and if I'm honest, we couldn't be arsed, we had shopping to do.

Tesco is a chore, but with beer, crisps and party food to buy, it can be fin. I say party food, but a selection of eight mini snacks from the deli counter can be bought for eight quid, and that is good enough for us for a simple Saturday night dinner.

Back home for croissants and coffee and put the shopping away. And then....

Friday night a friend messaged me on FB saying he was in the county, could I show him a Fly Orchid? So, a series messages went back and forth when ended up with me agreeing to meet Henry and his wfe at a garage on Stone Street at eleven.

I had planned to check on the Man Orchids at Lydden, so now had to do that on the way to the meeting. Volunteers had put up a new fence round the roadside reserve on the hill, a new, more robust stile to clamber over, and then the hunt for rosettes.

There are maybe a hundred Man orchids here, but the rosettes can be easily covered by other vegetation, so it took a few minutes to get my eye in, and then I spotted a rosette with a spike. This was the most advanced, maybe will be in flower in a week or so, if the weather warms up, of course.

From there, via narrower and narrower lanes crossing the two lines of downs to Stone Street, past other rich orchid site, that are not showing much as yet, but I will return in a week or so.

I arrive at the garage ten minutes early, fill the car up and ponder whether to get an ice cream, but decide against it.

Henry arrives at then past, blaming it on the hotel's slow service at breakfast. Anyway, we're all set, set off in convoy up Stone Street, turning off down a side lane, and then again down an overgrown lane with tumbled down the escarpment to the valley below. Halfway down was the reserve, we reverse into the small parking area, just large enough for our two cars.

Would they see Herb Paris? Chances were 100% on that.

I know the site so well now, but for my friends this was just their second visit, so they are entranced by the thich spring vegetation growing along the path leading up to the clearing. We pass Twayblades beyond number, a few Early Purples and thousands of bluebells. I hoped to see butterflies at the meadow, but the heavy low cloud meant that they were hunkered down somewhere.

I find the first Fly in flower, a single bloom, in the muck of a woodland clearing. It had emerged just that morning, still not fully out of its wrappings, but vibrant in colour. It would have looked fabulous in sunshine. But none of that on this day.

We were to find two more Fly in flower, still early for them, to see one open in April is pretty unusual, but then with global warming, who knows what to expect?

Up in the top meadow there are four Lady in different stages of opening. They look magnificent, even in the dull conditions. And on the way up we see the colony of Herb Paris, with just a couple of the plants having the regulation four leaves, most had five. But job done.

Time was slipping away, I had to make tracks to leave as Jools and I had been invited to a party, so we walk back along the bottom path of the reserve, back to the car where I bid them farewell.

I go back via Bridge and the A2, getting back in about half an hour, time for lunch I thought, but was told, firmly, there would be food there. So we made do with a brew. A quick change of clothes and it is time to go to Crabble Mill, where I used to go to the camera club, and just along the river from our old flat.

Gary was 50, and so this was the opportunity to have a family get together, with brothers, sisters, cousins, aunts and uncles coming from all over the country. And a smattering of friends. Which is why we were there.

There was party food: finger sandwiches, sausage rolls, crisps, vol au vents, cake, cake and more cake. And birthday cake.

I took some family shots, and one of Gary cutting the cake; so, happy birthday again, Gary.

By the time we left, it was four, and the second half kicking off all over the country, City were playing Leeds, 1-1 at half time, and with longest serving player, Wes, scoring the goal. It was also his last game for the club, so the script was kept to as he set up the winning goal mid-way through the 2nd half. Suddenly we are nearly at the end of the season, with just one league game left, but bad news, two more weekends of the Prem, then the FA Cup, Champions League, play offs and then the World Cup.

We have our party food, mini sausage rolls, pasties and so on, then take up position on the sofa to watch Mad Max, which was OK. Long and mad, but watchable.