Tuesday 23rd May 2023

So, the first week day orchiding.

And it was a packed day. The plan was to pick up a fellow orchidist, and we go round to some new sights for him.

Jon is the author of a rather good orchid book, and I am rather pleased to call him a friend. Not because of the book, but because he's a top bloke too.

We only have one car, so the first issue was to get Jools to work, so after coffee we drive off towards Dover, past the docks then up the A20 and M20 to Folkestone, before turning off to go over the downs into Hythe.

I drop Jools off in the centre of town, program Jon's address in Herne Bay, and set off with a pod cast going, up through the Elham Valley to the A2 and then along the A2 and Thanet Way.

Jon was waiting, so he loads his camera bag in the back, and we are off on a jolly boy's outing, stopping first at Pegwell Bay.

Hidden away on the old hoverport is a small colony of yellow Man Orchid, though this year numbers are well down, and still no sign of any Bee Orchids.

We climb the steps beside the Viking ship, then along the long-abandoned roads to the place where the orchids should be. One year there was 180 spikes here, but this year, maybe 30.

Jon hadn't seen them before, so even with just the one densely populated yellow spikes, so he gets close ups, and we move on to the reserve next door to check on the Southern Marsh Orchids and maybe a hybrid.

After parking at Ebbsfleet (the other one), cross the main road, and through the style.

It was early, but still a handful of SMO and a weedy Common Spotted Orchid, and one partially open hybrid of the two.

The main task of the day was to visit a secret location where the hybrid of the two Butterfly Orchid species had been recorded.

We drove along the coast, and found the wood with no trouble, but there was no one there, and to be honest, we both felt uneasy about trespassing, even in the name of orchids.

But by then, something else had come up, and I had to get Jon back to Herne Bay ASAP, so we zoom back along Thanet Way to Herne Bay, drop him off, and for me, I had the afternoon to fill.

With orchids.

I drove over to Sandwich Bay to look at the emerging Lizards, and also, as a bonus the ultra-rare Bedstraw Broomrape.

This does involve walking across two fairways of the golf course, get a wave from the be-Pringled at the tee that it was safe to proceed, then out through the gate onto The Strand.

Just a few steps on, I found the first of the Broomrapes, and it was a perfect spike. I get down to snap it from all angles.

With no Lizards out, and the Broomrape snapped, I turned back to the car, over the golf course, though no Marsh Harriers seen at the nest near the observatory.

What now?

Late Spiders.

I put on podcast, a pair of sunglasses, engaged all gears and lurched off for Folkestone.

It was turning into a wonderful day, lots of sunshine, though the breeze was just too strong for macro work outside.

At Folkestone, I park the car and walk up the the site, where there were two spikes open, one near the fence was good to photograph, but with it not yet being two, I could go to Wye down to the colony there.

I agreed with myself that this was a good idea, so set off up Stone Street then through Hastingleigh to the down, where I nab the parking spot, climb the fence, and walk up the slope, where I see all cages were already in place, and each one covering a spike, and about six had flowering spikes in them.

Near one was a spike without a cage, and its sepals were of the darkest purple, a wonderful spike and one to snap over and over again.

I do most of the other spikes too, but having taken another half hour out of the afternoon, I had two hours to kill.

So I go to the pub.

The New Flying Horse in Wye. I have a pint of organic ale sitting in the beer garden, sitting in the shade of a parasol.

I could get used to living like this!

After that, I still had an hour to kill, so drove to the Devil's Kneading Trough, parked up and walked down the slope where I found a bench on the edge of a sheer drop.

That would do.

So, for half an hour of so, I watched the light play on the slopes of the down as the wind blew the clouds across the sky, whilst skylarks sang for the joy of flight high above.

That was my day, how was yours?

I drive to the facory to colled Jools, then drive home through the usual heavy traffic.

Once home we dine on Iberian ham and salad with fresh bread I had picked up.

We ate like kings and toasted our good luck and happy lives.

Cheers.