Ledsham Vale flower walk

There’s nothing better than a walk with friends on a sunny morning and Ledsham Vale was looking fresh and beautiful with plenty of flowers and birdcall and a shiny new YWT sign by the entrance.  Coming along the narrow top path we saw pignut, greater celandine, crosswort, mouse-ear, thyme-leaved sandwort and a bright yellow patch of bulbous buttercup interspersed with rock rose and hawkweed.  The best flowers though are on the steep banking which I’m sure has got steeper as we’ve got older.  Southern marsh orchids were tucked into the grass alongside large patches of milkwort, scrambling up to the second hillock we found what we hoped for, the pasque flower, only the seed heads but the 5 flower heads indicates it is still very much there. Down onto the bottom path twayblade blended into the vegetation and not easy to photograph.  We are hoping for a return visit in late summer early autumn to see the three types of scabious ubiquitous to this ridge of limestone.

A chance encounter with roe deer

Roger Gaynor was at Fairburn Ings recently and had a super close encounter with roe deer judging from his photo.

Roger says ” I called into Fairburn Ings early this morning before it was busy which paid off with good views of Roe deer in two separate groups of three.  They were between the first part of the Roy Walker trail on the left hand-side walking away from the visitor centre up the hill before the large bittern pond in amongst a young tree plantation towards the river path”.

Roe deer, Fairburn Ings

Roe deer, Fairburn Ings

A great image I’m sure you will all agree and one of which I am jealous!