Away with the fairies...

Fairy Glen in Appley Bridge, West Lancashire is designated as a Biological Heritage Site for its ancient woodland of oak, birch, ash and alder, the woodland floor may be covered with bluebells, wild garlic, marsh marigolds, ferns, and red campion.

Birch

Marsh Marigold

Ferns , Celandines and Bluebells

Sprodley Brook

The waters of Sprodley Brook have, over time, cut down through the underlying sandstone to create the steep Fairy Glen valley, which has spectacular waterfalls and cliff faces.

Sandstone Cliff

Spectacular waterfalls

A carpet of bluebells

Tree patterns in the Spring sunshine

The scent of bluebells and wild garlic conjure up an ancient place of magic and mystery.

And there is always the possibility of a fairy passing by....

"And as the seasons come and go, here's something you might like to know. There are fairies everywhere: under bushes, in the air, playing games just like you play, singing through their busy day. So listen, touch, and look around - in the air and on the ground. And if you watch all nature's things, you might just see a fairy's wing."

 ~Author Unknown ~

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Scarisbrick Marina, Lancashire....

This bustling community of riverboats and barges

 is nestled next to the Leeds - Liverpool canal at Scarisbrick, Lancashire.

Lazy B

Potty Harry

The Bees Knees

Peace and Quiet

The walk in my week....

This little area is alive with birds and in the summer this tree will form a green canopy over the stream

Today I saw Robins, Chaffinches, Pied Wagtails

And a cat stuck up a tree !

It will be interesting to see these fields in a few weeks and see what has started to grow !

This stone is all that remains of one of the old farm buildings

I wonder what stories it could tell. !

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Floating on a flood plain...

The nature reserve of Brockholes in central Lancashire floats dramatically on the the remains of a flood plain on what was once a huge quarrying site.

The achingly beautiful visitor complex floats ethereally on the water and is reminiscent of an ancient

 Anglo-Saxon settlement.

Not too many birds around today. 

Just this

mallard and its mate and a friendly Canada goose.

And a few swans basking in the Spring sunshine

The rushes and the grasses were blowing in the wind

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A walk in the wild, wild wood....

Awake! arise! and come away!

To the wild woods and the plains;

And the pools where winter rains

Image all their roof of leaves;

Where the pine its garland weaves

Of sapless green and ivy dun

Round stems that never kiss the sun

Away, away, from men and towns,
To the wild wood and the downs-
To the silent wilderness
Where the soul need not repress
Its music lest it should not find
An echo in another's mind,
While the touch of Nature's art
Harmonizes heart to heart

Poem taken from

 The Invitation by Percy Bysshe Shelley

1792-1882

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Pictures Haigh Plantations
Wigan
Lancashire

The walk in my week....

Into the

Douglas Valley

The River Douglas, also known as the River Asland or Astland, is a river that flows through Lancashire and Greater Manchester in the Northwest of England. It is a tributary of the River Ribble and has itself two tributaries, the River Tawd and the River Yarrow.

River Douglas

Steps leading nowhere

The long and winding path

In Memoriam...

November is the month of Remembrance

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These Gothic memorial photographs were taken during

a visit to a WW1 grave of a family member.

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The Victorians had a special affinity with the angelic

This lovely lady is guarding the graves of children..

The youngest was Florence aged two

The dappled sunlight shining through the alder

caught my eye

This secluded corner could almost be a scene from

a Charles Dickens novel

Just shows that there is beauty to be found in the ordinary

"And to live on in the hearts of others is never to die"

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