The Best-Laid Plans...

Earlier in the week my brother Les and I visited Lynford Hall and its arboretum. We've been there before, of course, but we were tempted by the forecast of better weather in that part of Norfolk.

The Hall, which is now a hotel, is set in the Breckland, an area of sandy soils that is largely given over to forestry these days, though the area around the Hall has a variety of habitats - a small lake, the mixed trees in the arboretum and the gardens, a few meadows, a bit of surviving heathland. The sandy soils mean a lot less mud to tramp through at this time of year.

The beautiful, untouched landscape above looks a true haven for wildlife. You can't go there however; it's a military training area and the sound of gunfire rattled away in the distance. Despite this - and the rumble of tanks and low-flying helicopters - nature much prefers this area to what would seem more peaceful places.

These Mallards were as wary of slipping on the ice as I am these days. They were not the birds we had come to see however.

Those Hawfinches are back again this year (allegedly) but we failed to find them this time. We've seen them a couple of times before, which is a reasonable strike-rate for this elusive species. (Incidentally, I've recently begun putting links on birds I mention, for those of you who want to know what they look like - remind me if I forget).

Luckily neither Les or I are the kind of bird-watchers who get upset if we fail to make contact with the birds we seek. There are always things to enjoy about even quite familiar birds like Yellowhammers, Marsh Tits and Siskins, which were all much easier to locate.

The weather did not play fair with us this time and, although we had occasional splashes of sunshine, showers became increasingly heavy and frequent. As we sat in the car eating our sandwiches the rain lashed down on the windscreen, we could only reminisce about the times we'd visited in the past:

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When swans cruised among the lily-pads....

....sunlight beat down on the forest tracks.....

....baby Highland cows grazed in the meadow....

....and flowers bloomed.

In Autumn the Arboretum is so colourful....

....fungi appear beneath the trees....

....the low sun angles through the branches...

....and a Nuthatch grabs some of the food left on the parapet of the old bridge.

Till we start to approach winter once more.

Take care.