Sunday 27th May 2018

Mum's birthday

Whitsun

Day of rest.

For the past three days I have walked up and down and back on Lydden down, and although my calves were not so achey the third time, they were still letting me know how unhappy they were about the amount of down action this past week.

The plan was to have a quiet day, but then I realised I had promised a friend living the other side of the Dip that I would take him to see the Lesser Butterfly. At least with Facebook, it is easy to message someone and arrange a time when he would call round. Meaning that once agreed, I have 90 minutes in which to wake up, make breakfast and get ready before Tony came round.

We feast on warmed up croissants and fresh coffees, and so was ready.

Driving around on a Bank Holiday is not usually a good idea, but traffic was light enough meaning we got to Barham without serious incident, I was directing him down the narrow lanes to the parking place. And again the weather was defying the forecast, as the sun shone down from a clear blue sky, and hopefully that meant that those delights on the woodland floor would be showing well.

It di mean tackling the sheer face of the bridleway again, and my calves were getting their excuses in early, so we had to stop a couple of times on the way up until we came to the right place, but of the flattened spike of the lesser Butterfly there was no trace, but further in the single spike was showing well, almost fully in flower and looking majestic.

From there we went over the other side of the road to look in wonder at the white lady orchids. Everyone's reaction to the wood is the same, they expect a few spikes, not the hundreds that come into view as you enter the semi-darkness. Spikes everywhere, and of impressive size and great variation. Half an hour is not long enough to do the site justice, really.

Final call is on the Birds Nest just up the hill, parking a way away, we enter the wood and straight away I make for the var chlorantha White Helleborine, to find it had been partly stood on, but was also in flowr, with the flower's lips partly open too! Nearby a very tall spike had a flower fully open, revealing to me for the first time, it's helleborine family heritage.

Over the other side of the wood, just three spikes of Birds Nest were showing, but two were in sunlight, making photography really rewarding, and again showing that it is a true orchid, albeit one with a different food source from others.

And that was it, apart from a slight detour to show me another tiny colony of man Orchids, we headed home as lunch called.

Whilst I had been out ochiding again, Jools had been busy painting the shed, the 4th side facing towards the hedge, and when I said I was thinking of going to go to look at the Greater Butterflies near Ashford, she bailed as she correctly pointed out, it would be too hot.

But I am focussed, obsessed, and after wolfing down some left over aubergine from last week, I am back in the car and driving along the M20, swearing under my breath about my obsession and photography in general.

And Jools was right, hot and humid as heck, but at least walking down from the pub, where I parked, no drink consumed, it was fine. Over the field and into the wood, down the slope into the dell and along the bottom, where recent rain had made the path be like a helter skelter track. I get down safe, walk through or around mud pools and clamber over the style into the meadow.

Before me I could see the partially open spikes of dozens of Butterfly orchids, not totally open, that would take another week, but an incredible sight for what are rare orchids in Kent. I snap a few, then just wander from spike to spike marvelling at their diversity.

I walk to the far side of the meadow, climb to the next level and walk through the husks of the EPO looking for Fly, and I find a few of those too. Common Spotted are beginning to show as well as what looked like a Southern Marsh x CSO hybrid. Will be keeping an eye on that one!

By now I was hot, and had the long steep climb back to the car ahead, so I sigh and climb back over the style, and go up the side of the dell, slithering and swearing as I go.

I want to go for a beer. I really did, and I had money, but I decide to have some water from a bottle in the back and drive home. I open both side windows so that there is a gale blowing in when I drive at 70 once back on the motorway.

I get back home and Joos presents me with a pint of iced squash, which goes down a treat. And after a shower we have pizza and a beer seeing as we have an evening of card actions planned.

We collect John at seven, then once at Jen's settle down for some serious gambling, and late in the eving, Jools and I scoop both pots in the same hand of Queenie, nearly clearing Jen and John out.

It was nearly midnight, the nearly full moon hung in the sky, and for a change I was sober enough to drive us back home. Jools usually has that task!