Sunday, May 08, 2016

Morris and Bells

My next post was going to be about the Glaslyn Osprey Project which is close to where we recently stayed in Wales but I'm holding that back for next time as I wanted to share with you some photos from yesterday's outing.

We drove up through the city towards Kidsgrove and Scholar Green to visit the lovely Rode Hall.  I've taken you there quite a few times before over the years but usually for the snowdrops in March or in the summer.

It was warm in the sunshine as we queued to find a parking space but it was all very well organised and we were soon wandering across the grass to the bustling Farmers' Market, where there was wonderful food, arts and crafts and plants and flowers for sale.

We watched the Morris Dancers entertain the crowds.  These are the local Black Dog Molly.
  
We paused in quiet and leafy corners with wonderful vistas.
Saw lots of interesting plants and flowers

 Found some willow friends - Heron and Fish

 Deer

Hares

But the real purpose of our visit was to see these

 beautiful bluebells

 a sea of blue

 glowing in the sunshine

 Under the trees in the old wood

and making your heart sing.

I'll be back later in the week with the Ospreys.

28 comments:

  1. Those bluebells woods are so achingly beautiful!

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  2. The market would have been enjoyable to wander around and the morris dancing entertaining, but the bluebells must have been the highlight of your day. Beautiful photos of them and the woodland looks so peaceful. I especially like the photo of the Heron and the Fish by the water.

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    1. There was some lovely stalls on the market and we went ome with Roasted Sweet potato, courgette and hummous pie to eat with salad for tea:)

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  3. What a wonderful place to visit, I love the willow sculptures and the bluebell woods are something else.

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    1. I've been waiting ages for the bluebells and they didn't disappoint. The sculptures are lovely aren't they?:)

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  4. How beautiful. I love bluebell woods. I also love willow sculptures and would like to have a go at making one. You can find classes in some areas, but they tend to be in places where the willow grows. Nice excuse for a trip to Somerset!

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    1. It would be wonderful to learn how to make them. I suspect I'd struggle with my sometimes sore knuckles whilst twisting the willow branches:)

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  5. What a superb day out - the bluebells are just beautiful. Love those willow sculptures too and I always enjoy wandering round markets and watching morris dancers. Looks another lovely place to visit :) Look forward to the osprey post :)

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    1. It was a lovely day out as there was lots to see around the market as well as the grounds and gardens. I'll try to write about the osprey centre tomorrow if I can, it is too hot to sit for very long at the computer today which is good really as we've been waiting so long for warmer weather:)

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  6. We use to come to England every year in May and loved seeing the bluebells. What a wonderful place for a day out.

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    1. It is a lovely pace to visit with its lakeside, woodlands and walled garden. The bluebells were wonderful this year:)

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  7. Lovely photos of the beautiful bluebells. The willow animals are very cleverly done. The morris men look fun. I always have to smile at the sight of them.

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    1. The Moris men and women were very enthusiastic! I too loved the animal sculptures and the bluebells were wonderful:)

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  8. Stunning. Good job you mentioned the fish as I couldn't see it to begin with. Such a fun day in the sun. :-)

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    1. Ha,Ha yes - we walked down the otherside of the stream and saw the fish first. It wasn't until we went over the little bridge that we saw the heron on the other side:)

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  9. Gorgeous, gorgeous bluebells. They seem to be having a very good year. Down here they're just coming to their peak, even the roadside banks are covered with them.

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    1. They are, aren't they? I don't think I've seen so many along the roadsides and verges before so I think it is a good year for them:)

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  10. This looks like such a fun day. Good for you, Rosie.
    Amalia
    xo

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    1. It was indeed, great fun and in the sun too:)

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  11. Is there anything as lovely as seeing a carpet of bluebells in the woods?

    love the willow sculptures too, some great photos you've taken for this post, thanks for sharing

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    1. Hello thanks for visiting, I think bluebell woods are one of the most beautiful things. I thought the sculptures were very good too:)

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  12. The bluebells are looking fantastic. This sounds like a great day out!

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    1. It was very busy Louise but we managed to find some quiet spots and it was worth it to see the bluebells:)

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  13. Don't you just love a bluebell wood - it just takes your breath away. Thank goodness there are still plenty of them around. sounds like a fun day.

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    1. Yes, bluebell woods are such magical places and the sea of blue does make you catch your breath. It was a fun day:)

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  14. The willow heron caught my eye immediately - beautifully done! Bluebell time seems to have been a long time ago here, so I enjoyed this visit to your bluebell woods.
    Morris Dancers brought their bells and skills here when they came to Canada, so there are dancers at many of the country fairs here all summer long.

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    1. Even though we had a warmer winter it was very wet and the bluebells did seem to be late flowering this year but when they did it was glorious, I've never seen so many along the roadsides as I have this year:)

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