Recreational Masochism

There is a hill on Dartmoor that I have named the Green Death. I regularly walk down it, as it's on one of my pet routes. Once, long ago, I walked up it. It was a cold day and while I felt it in my legs, I got up with little more than an 'aaaargh'.

A very unfit Tom in blazing sunshine recently* tried the same thing, and has named said hill in response. Looking up [and up and up...], I was reminded of that bit in 'The Perfect Storm'; you know, at the end. Imagine that wave turned into green tussocky grass....

Now add a sadistic false crest and a very un-Dartmoor way of getting steeper the higher up you get.


But there were two good points.

1; I did not die.
[You can tell by how I'm typing this]

2; There were baby Wheatears. LOADS of them!

[You can tell by these!;]

CuteIckleBabyWheatearAWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW..........

Ahem.

Love those Wheatears

At least ten fledglings on one wall line. Not bad :D


Let's see some non-Wheatear pictures;

Looking across Shovel Down

Teign

At the Pole Bridge

Wild Tor

[Sky by The Orb]

Robber Fly

lots present

June Bug

sparkly in the sunshine

Small Heath

Huge numbers present - every few steps seemed to flush another one!

Dung Roundhead

Blackening Waxcap

[Quite early]

Skylark

This was my second 10 miler in as many days, so perhaps my inability to climb steep hills in a respectable manner may have something to do with that, but it didn't make me feel any better. The walk - once I'd recovered the ability to actually do so - was very nice, as Wild Tor loops invariably are.

There were a lot of people about - more than I'd expect for a weekday still in the school year - but there you go. I'm trying not to mutter something like 'roll on winter', but the year has peaked and the dark is rising, so it is true.
Happy thoughts, eh? ;)


Be Seeing You...

[[*For a given value of 'recently'...]]