May 24th - Burghley Park to Stamford

 May 24th 2025 

After lunch we drove to Burghley to park and walk into Stamford.  There’s a lot of activity in the grounds preparing for tomorrow’s “Game and Country Fair”, but we can park as usual and walk as usual, apart from having to dodge a few more vehicles than normal. 

In Stamford we look at Oakham artists’ exhibition. On the way to the main street we notice swifts flying over the town, then go to buy a few cards.

Afterwards we browse without buying in the upmarket and very well-presented cheese shop, Rennet and Rind, then indulge in coffee at the Cafe Black, which is serendipitously dog-free today.

A brisk warm walk back through the park, where the trees are in full lush leaf, and then home, where the resident blackbird lands on the car bonnet waiting for raisins.

After dinner we walked round the village, where quite a number of swifts were flying high up. It had got windier, and the air was damp.

May 20th - Geddington to Bull Pen

Tuesday 20th May

Drove to Marta’s to do walk over to the Bull Pen cafe, through Weekley Hall Wood.

A lovely sunny morning, which warmed up nicely.  Quite a few butterflies in the woods - brimstone, a couple of blues and possibly a speckled wood, though it looked slightly more orange.

An over-exuberant Alsatian type of dog jumped up and scraped my arm with its claws - just being over friendly…

Used first aid kit at the Bull Pen, and ended up with a bright blue plaster.  In the cafe there was also a woman with a tiny ‘lap dog’, sitting on her knee the whole time. Some places are a little too ‘dog friendly’.

Back to Marta’s for a cold drink before returning home. 

May 19th - Gretton - Thorpe by Water, Lyddington

 Monday 19th May 2025, with Norma and Harry.

Contacted Norma and arranged to meet at her house. With Harry, we walked over to Thorpe by Water where we saw a few swifts.

Our next stretch was along the small road as far as the bench near Lyddington, where we had a longish break (and coffee) before returning along the same route, apart from the Thorpe by Water village section. No cuckoos. A few swifts on Gretton High Street. 5 and a half miles.

May 18th Uppingham, Stoke Dry, Lyddington

 Sunday 18th May 2025m

Slightly grey morning. Brightened later.

Coffee and lunch, then out - we went to Uppingham

and did the walk above Eyebrook Reservoir

, and back via Lyddington,

a break for coffee at the White Hart,

and we followed the pavement next to the road from there.- around 7 miles in all.

Some of the cows were lying down, but so far no rain.

May 2025 - Short local strolls, Northamptonshire

 

Friday 16th May

In the afternoon we  walked down West Hill and along the track

to the Community Orchard with its new table.

an interesting beastie

A walk round the village after dinner  - we saw a few swifts today, and Harry heard a distant cuckoo.

Saturday 17th May

After lunch we decided to walk down behind Church Gap, in search of the cuckoo that Harry heard last night.

The sun came out and the temperature rose. We met our neighbour and her daughter returning from a walk with their two dogs, Henry and Hugo.   

No joy on the cuckoo front, but a lovely walk of around 3 miles as far as the bridge over the Welland just before Thorpe by Water. We returned to have tea in the garden.

Later walk to see swifts - no cuckoo heard.

May 13th 2025 - East Carlton to Wilbarston and back

 Tuesday 13th May, with Marta, around 3.6 miles.

We met at East Carlton Park at about 10. 

We walked the usual Jurassic Way route to Wilbarston.

Protection from flies..

In the field just before the wood we saw a hare on the path coming towards us.  No time to take a photo before it ran off.

As the cafe isn’t open on Tuesdays, we chanced our luck and were able to get aa coffee at the pub before it opened.

We retraced our steps to East Carlton and indulged in another coffee. 

Arainn Mhor - again

 Thursday 8th May 2025

 A second visit to Arainn Mhor island. We enjoyed it a lot last time, and wanted to complete the ‘round-the-island’ walk.  About  7 miles, and still hot.

A special treat was seeing dolphins as we approached Leabgarrow harbour. 

We had a brief chat to a woman on boat. She’s from Dumfries but lives in the ‘last house on the island’, as it happened, on the road we walked on today. 

We started the day out with coffee in a lovely sheltered cafe (The Dock) near the harbour. Delicious scones, made by the owner’s sister.  She also told us about steps down to the sea at the lighthouse - we didn’t visit them today. https://thedockarranmore.com/arranmore-steps (Always save something for the next time!)

A lifeboat training exercise was in progress on the shore.

We did the rest of the round island walk, in a clockwise direction this time.

All great apart from the unfortunate incident of the little white dog on a lead…

Lovely walk though, great views, mediterranean colours. 

Back to Leabgarrow harbour in very good time for our 6pm boat -

we were the only passengers, though there were a few waiting in Burtonport for their return trip!

Back at the house there were very striking, beautiful sunset colours again.