nature – My London+

National Gallery visit and a short walk

I gave my friend a list of art exhibitions on in London and asked her to choose. With the prospect of dodgy weather, being indoors sounded like a good option. As it turned out, the day wasn’t too bad at all weather-wise, and the exhibition she chose was excellent.

Winslow Homer (1836-1910) was an American Realist painter of landscapes and best known for his marine paintings. The exhibition at The National Gallery is called Forces of Nature. The paintings here include scenes from the American civil war and life after slavery for black people (not such a good life with all the restrictions about what they could and could not do). There was a lot in this exhibition that made us think that sadly, not a lot has changed in the world.

It is always helpful to know what is behind a particular artwork, but I got the feeling that Winslow Homer didn’t like explaining. So, do art critiques guess?! Homer used a lot of symbolism in his art, which is common with artists, and has been for hundreds of years. Homer worked in oil and watercolour, but it was his oil paintings that we were drawn to the most.

Winslow Homer’s depiction of light is well done. His use of white against dark backgrounds really brings his work to life. His sea paintings are stunning. He loves stormy seas and has a knack with the brush of creating the waves and splash against rocks. We both enjoyed this exhibition and learning about this artist who neither of us had really come across before.

In Trafalgar Square we got to see the new art work on the fourth plinth. It rather fitted in with the exhibition we had just seen. Entitled Antelope, the work is by Samson Kabalu, and you can read about it here.

One cannot write a blog without a photo of the River Thames! Always a delight whatever time and season.

A short walk in the October sunshine

Yesterday morning dawned with blue sky that said ‘come and walk under me’! So I did. Just a local walk in places I know well and frequented many times during Covid lockdown.

I love to photograph leaves against sunlight and the changing seasons. Autumn is a great time for photographers with so many wonderful colours. Even the road where I live is alive with vibrant tones of gold, yellow and red.

Doesn’t this make you think of Christmas?

Like by dog walkers, joggers and there is a cycle lane (right)

This is actually a footpath leading to the busy A3 bypass but it could be in the countryside.

All photos were taken with my trusty mobile.

Clapham Common

This isn’t a part of London I know really (SW4), yet I pass through it on the tube sometimes, and often through the main line station of Clapham Junction. However, I’d heard of a shop in Clapham called The Hive Honey Shop and I thought it was about time I visited. Unfortunately, the shop has moved its business online, but I didn’t know that when I set off from Clapham Junction station.

The shop used to be in Northcote Road, a long road leading from St John’s Hill, Clapham. The road boasts lots of independent shops and was quite a surprise to me.

My second destination was Clapham Common. I was hoping by then for a cafe as it was a warm day and all the walking was making me thirsty.

We have had some rain at last, and the grass is beginning to recover with a few patches of green. Unfortunately, the trees are suffering from stress and we are now in what is known as a false autumn. Trees are shedding their leaves early. They are brown and brittle.

Clapham itself is quite spread out and boasts three tube stations on the Northern Line. The common has a Victorian bandstand and a modern cafe with those all important toilets! You can read the history of the common here where J M W Turner painted a view across the common between 1800 and 1805.

The cafe made a good stopping place for a cup of tea and a sit down. In fact, I sat on the bench in memory of Jeremy Brett, the actor best known for his portrayal of Sherlock Homes.

In this photo you can see that smaller trees have been packed with green bags filled with earth to help support them during the dry conditions. Small trees don’t possess the deep root system of the larger ones, and without this help, they may not survive.

I wandered in the direction of the pond, and this was my favourite spot.

Walking in the other direction, I was heading towards the town and here there was another pond.

Temperance Fountain – woman giving water to a beggar

A busy main road with some nice old buildings

Time to leave. I’ve enjoyed Clapham. I must explore this part of London more.

Looking down on the platforms at Clapham Common station

RSPB Big Garden Watch and a walk through Richmond Park

For the second year running I took part in the RSPB Big Garden Watch, which means counting the birds visiting your garden during one hour during the weekend just gone.

Somehow, I always choose the wrong hour! Normally, we have lots of birds in the garden. I bought them a super-duper bird feeding station earlier this month. I thought this one might deter the pigeons and squirrels. Hah! they soon sussed it out. One pigeon alights on the feeder, and as long as it keeps flapping, it can get the seed. His mates gather round the bottom to catch any seed that falls. They do the same when the starlings raid the suet feeder. The squirrel also does some acrobatics to get at the suet block. However, on Saturday, when I did my one hour count, the garden was mostly devoid of birds!

In my hour I counted four pigeons, one wood pigeon, two robins and two great tits. Other wildlife included the squirrel and a domestic cat. However, I did observe the great tits checking out the bird box in the garden next door. They went in to give it the once over. I wonder if they will be moving in soon.

A few days before the count I observed a parakeet on our bird feeder. That was a first. They do sometimes spend time in a nearby tree, but this gave me a chance to photograph it up close. All the photos were taken through the window, which isn’t ideal, but the best I could do. Next year I will choose a different time and see if I get a better bird count.

Well, it was there and was a photo oppoortunity

_________

Yesterday was a blue sky day, cold but beautiful. I don’t normally go walking or visiting places at the weekend because (a) it tends to be busier (I don’t like crowds) and (b) the trains and tubes are often disrupted due to engineering works on the lines. Even buses are less frequent. Sunday was really my last oportunity for a walk last week, and the day was too nice to ignore. So I set off by bus to Richmond Park, entering through the Kingston Gate. My aim was to walk to Ham or Richmond gate on the opposite side of the park than I have been walking before.

It was, as I knew it would be, busy. People out walking with dogs and family, joggers and cyclists. I couldn’t blame them. It was an ideal day. I arrived at the Ham Gate faster than I tthought I would, so I took a detour outside of the park and walked part of Ham Common. The common was quite muddy and I had walk round the edges of the worst parts. Once I accidentally set foot in a very muddy patch and heard the squealch. As I pulled my shoe away I felt the pull of mud dragging my shoe back in! It was also colder here as it was more shaded and wet. I eventually came out on the road that one way leads back to Richmond Park, and in the other direction to the main road where I could pick up the bus. I headed back towards the park on the other side of the road where the rest of the common lies.

There is a toilet block inside Ham Gate, but it was shut. I thought I must be close to Pembroke Lodge where there is a cafe and toilets. I used Google Maps to locate Pembroke Lodge and headed up the hill towards it. The car park was packed, and the queue for the refreshment hut was long. Luckily there wasn’t a queue for the loos. Afterwards, I decided rather than wait in the long queue for a cuppa, I would go into the Pembroke Lodge cafe. What a great decision that was. No queque here and I was able to find a table outside in the sunshine and drink my tea and eat a declicious slice of vegan carrot cake.

The lake just inside Ham Gate (next to the closed toilet block!)

Busy, busy. The queue is for the refreshment hut

Pembroke House where I had a much more civilised refreshment break!

Parakeets are everywhere in the park, but they are difficult to photograph

View from Kingston Hill towards the River Thames

Suitably refreshed, I set off back down the hill to pick up the path again. It wasn’t too long before I reached the Petersham Gate, but I turned right and back up the hill to eventually come to the Richmond Gate. From here there are the spectacular views from Richmond Hill. Drawn by the sight of the river, I took the steps down to the Thames Path. I had a short stop in a riverside garden before walking the short distance to Richmond Bridge. It was time to leave, so a quick double back to some steps up to road where I caught a bus. The walk was approximately seven miles.

Two walks – two different days

It was the least cold day of the week! Not sunny, but I was determined to do some walking last week. As it happened, I did two walks. The second one was on a bitterly cold day. I’ll come to that in a moment.

The first walk was in Richmond Park. I managed to drag my son along and we entered by Robin Hood Gate. My idea was to walk a different part than last time, and the aim was to exit at Richmond Gate. We walked to Roehampton Gate where we stopped for lunch in the cafe. Something hot before we ventured out again. From there we edged along the side of the park, finding all sorts of pedestrian gates I knew nothing about (I know mainly the main gates where cars and pedestrians have access). There was a trundle up a hill (I’m not good on hills!) for a nice view back towards Roehampton before the last push towards Richmond.

The first thing you see when you exit Richmond Gate is The Royal Star & Garter Home. Now dedicated at World Heritage Site, the home is accommodation and nursing for up to 180 ex-servicemen. Nearby is the RSPCA memorial.

Walking down Richmond Hill, you come to some magnificent views across the River Thames and towards London. We then caught a bus outside the Poppy Factory to go home.

View across The Thames from Richmond Hill

On the second walk, I retraced the steps of my old ‘lockdown’ route towards The Hamptons Wetlands and across the ‘horse field’. I left early, and the day was all blue sky and freezing! I wanted to photograph birds and, of course, horses. There were not as many birds at the wetlands that day. The heron and the Egyptian Geese weren’t there, but I did manage to photograph a Robin, Swan and gulls.

Robin – rather poor lighting and it wouldn’t keep still!

Not sure if this is heavy frost or light dusting of snow

Coming across the horse field, I was fascinated by a horse and foal. I spent rather too long taking photos and my poor fingers froze. But it was worth it.

On the way home I spotted a little Christmas tree (Conifer) outside a newsagents. I’d been looking for one for my writing/hobby room, so I bought it.

My wee Christmas tree. I’ve named her Mavis, and she is getting to know Basil!

Richmond Park – A Royal Park

The last time I was in Richmond Park we were in partial lockdown. This time I saved all my walking until I reached the park by taking the bus! I entered by the Kingston Gate and walked to the Isabella Plantation, exploring parts I hadn’t explored in years. I regularly used to come with mum and dad. This is, of course, a Royal park, and the biggest in London. The park is also the local haunt of Sir David Attenborough

Watch a short film about the park narrated by Sir David Attenborough.

The day I walked was sunny with blue sky and the autumn colours were beautiful. I took with me my bridge camera, which is better for zooming in on subjects. These photos are a combination of mobile and bridge camera shots. Choosing a weekday meant that the park was quiet (I’m a great getter-away-from-people person!). After leaving the Isabella Plantation, I walked towards the car park where there is a small takeaway cafe. Here I was surprised to find that I could buy a vegan sausage roll and a soya hot chocolate. Things have really improved for me these days! I’m not sure how long the takeaway cafe has been here, but it wasn’t here when I was a teenager. It is a great spot for it.

May be an image of tree and nature — Bridge

Autumn reflections – Isabella Plantation

After fueling up, I considered my options. To return the same way I had come, or walk to the Robin Hood Gate and catch a different bus home. The latter seemed a good option, and that is what I did.

Looking towards Roehampton from Richmond Park

The park is well known for deer, but I didn’t see any. There were plenty of parakeets!

I think next time I should explore a different part of the park. Years ago, I walked around the perimeter of the park on a sponsored walk for Wildlife Fund for Nature. That stretch is around ten miles. I remember how easy that seemed back then. Nowadays my legs really know it if I walk that far.

It is wonderful to have such a gorgeous park almost on my doorstep. I have grown up with it, and hope I will continue to enjoy it for many more years to come.

Mitcham Common

After spending a week at home it was wonderful to get out of the house for a walk. I have been past Mitcham Common too many times to mention, but had never walked through it. The common is much larger than I expected.

I met a friend at Mitcham Junction station and then we set off. The common is divided by a busy road, so there are two parts to walk. The first section we walked was close to the tram line in places. We found an ideal spot to sit to eat our lunch. The day was warm, and the humidity level high at times. Coming up a hill later, the humidity just hit us head on. The tree shade was a nice escape now and then.

While we ate lunch we spotted a rabbit nearby. As soon as it spotted us it dived into the undergrowth. There was not a sound to be heard (apart from the odd tram and some winey cutting machine somewhere far off), and nobody came by. I was surprised by how few people were here considering the school summer holidays have started. To be honest, everywhere was pretty empty. I’m guessing it’s hat first week family getaway syndrome. Every year, the first week of the summer holidays there is a mass exodus to warmer places with beaches and swimming pools. All the more for us to enjoy in peace!

The meadows were alive with wildflowers and various butterflies. There were even sweet peas growing here.

The common boasts three ponds, of which we saw two, and the view above seven islands pond is stunning.. We met a chap who said that he walked the common during lockdown as a way of escaping, and how peaceful it was. He spoke about the heron we had seen, which had now appeared at Seven Islands Pond. It is the only one, he said, as we wondered whether there were more herons here.

It was a lovely afternoon, and good to get out walking again. Luckily, considering the weather we have been having lately (lots of rain and flooding), we had one of those days between the wet stuff – just perfect.

It’s all about the nature

It has been a while since I wandered over to The Wetlands at The Hamptons, so one morning last week I took a stroll over and was lucky to find a Heron as well as a Canada Goose and two Egyptian Geese. The swans seem to have flown, but maybe they will come back later in the year.

The rats must have been around but were being allusive, except I did see one swimming in the pond. My son tells me that rats are good swimmers. His pet ones don’t particularly enjoy water, but wild ones have no problem with it.

How regal do I look in my coat of crowns?

The field belonging to the Lower Morden Equestrian Centre had occupants and they all seemed to have brand new coats. Work is still going on at the Centre but they are still functioning. The field (I call the horse field) is one my favourite parts of the walk.

I took a walk through the cemetery on my way back home where trees were in blossom. Along the path that runs alongside the cemetery, flowers and trees were bursting into life, but with the lack of rain, the little stream that runs long there was dry.

I’ve also been taking photos of birds and squirrels in my back garden. I find them amusing, and there is one pigeon who seems very bold and comes up quite close to me now. They have learned that this is the garden where food is put out. The Magpie and the Starlings love the pond. It needs a good clean out, but it doesn’t seem to stop them from bathing in it. Often there are four Starlings in it together. We have various containers of water in the garden, so there is no shortage of bathing pools.

The Starlings love the suet we put in the feeder and get very narky when we put seed in! They give a disgruntled squark and fly off.

I have spent a long time trying to get the garden going this year. Lockdown finally tried to make a gardener of me last year! I am nowhere near being the gardener my mum and grandparents were, but I like to think they would be amusingly proud of me. The bulbs I put in early April have surprised me are seem to be coming up. I have Lily of the Valley poking up their stems and I can’t wait to see them in flower again. I will probably lose some of the plants I have grown from seed, but I hope there will be enough for a fair show. My tomatoes are still small, but if they all make it, I shall have some to give away. My peas are doing grand. If you grow no other vegetable, grow peas. They are so easy and come up every time. By now it should be okay to plant seed directly into the ground. I grew mine in pots as I wanted to start some off early, and I planted them out in March.

I am keeping an eye on the weather for a good day to walk. At the moment it looks like Friday. Here in the UK we have a Bank Holiday today. Over this weekend I have been painting the kitchen and today it is time to put the shelving back. How many cookery books does one need? Now is the time to have a look through and make a few decisions.

Kingston to Hampton Court

It has been almost a year since I last walked this stretch of the Thames and the walk appears shorter each time I do it. This time it was stroll with two stops. Having set out late morning, the first stop was early on to each lunch bought locally. Then when nearly at Hampton Court there was another stop to discard the thin jacket I was wearing. The weather was indeed warm, but not hot, perfect for walking.

At Hampton Court it was treat time – an ice cream! Over the Hampton Court bridge next to the train station there is a small park I’d never been into before. This is where I sat and had a great view across the river towards Hampton Court Palace. This side of the river is also where the River Ember feeds into the Thames – something else I did no know!

Hampton Court bridge from the small park

View across to the Palace. Seems there is some roof work going on

One last view across the Thames to Hampton Court Palace

I am planning another Thames walk, a part I have not walked before. With any luck (and of course it is down to the weather) I may attempt that next week.

Before I sign off this week I just wanted to highlight a walk I know well which came up on a guest blog post of The London Wildlife Trust. The writer Jini Reddy, author of the book Wanderland (which I have just bought) has walked what I call ‘the horse field’ near me, and The Hamptons Wetlands, as well as Richmond Park, Wimbledon Common and Cannizaro Park. Do check it out here. There are some great photos too.

Finally, last evening I watched the most spellbinding concert from the Natural History Museum. A mixture of music, poetry and art based on the words of Robert Macfarlane (writer) and Jackie Morris (artist). It was a magical and moving tribute to wildlife. I had tears in my eyes during the song where the tree talks to the woodcutter. I highly recommend this. The recording made last night is on YouTube for a short while only. Catch it while you can.

Sunrises and flowers

I’ve started jogging again, after saying ‘never again’! I’d been thinking about it for a few days before I took my first jog in six months. Once out, I realised how much I’d missed the early mornings. There’s hardly anyone around but a few dog walkers in the park. Sounds seem magnified, so the birds seem to sing louder. Being close to nature works for me, and there’s always the possibility of seeing a great sunrise.

Yesterday our clocks went forward one hour. It meant I was late up. I try to jog every other day, and yesterday was a jog day. However, I felt tired and decided to run in the smaller park nearer me instead of Beverley Park where I usually run. It was an overcast morning and blowy. No lovely sunrise, but you can’t get it every day! One day I ran in rain. There was the sun and rain, so there was a rainbow. And then there are the flowers in the park. It gets more colourful each time I go. This will be the second year I have seen spring flourish in Beverley Park. I ran through half the seasons last year, only stopping in September. I did continue to visit the park, though I wasn’t jogging. So I have been through the year there with all the colour changes, as well as the rain, the sun, the snow, mist and wind. Is there somewhere you go regularly to get away from everyday stress and to keep sane in this pandemic?

Now to the photos.

Waiting for the wind to disperse the seeds

The tennis courts (to the left) can re-open today. Fully booked all week!

A quick run through Blagdon Park on Sunday morning

Nature in winter

It was a bitterly cold day when I took these photos. I even thought about wearing my face mask to stop my nose from freezing! My fingers ached with cold and got worse each time I took off my glove to take photos. Was it worth it? Yes!

On this walk I retraced my steps to a favourite place – the wetlands at The Hamptons, stopping off at Morden cemetery. Snow and ice clung to shadier parts. There was even ice on the water at the wetlands. The horses in the field wore coats and were being called in one by one to go return to their stables. Along the bank behind the Equestrian Centre is where the wild rats live. I watched them flitting across the path and into holes by trees and vegetation. As my son keeps pet rats, I have become fascinated by wild ones too, and this is the place to see them. Hope you like my photos.