Call of the Wild...

On Friday we returned from the wilderness.. the most wonderful wilderness.. in fact no amount of superlatives or adjectives could ever do justice to this very special place.. so I will let the photos do most of the talking.. As we trundled along the private lane to our little house deep in the woods.. I had a good feeling about our final destination.. nestled in the heart of the wooded valley..The first night under the thatched roof of our cottage rental was just a wee bit fraught as I wrestled with a bad attack of arachnophobia on being met by possibly the largest spider I have ever met in close quarters... Lying in bed under a pitch black sky did little to allay my fears as I imagined an army of these furry friends marching towards me ... I did however manage to surrender to sleep after what can only be described as a marathon week...
In my usual style I awoke at the crack of dawn regardless of holiday hours..as a muted light filled the bedroom .. I began to focus on the view outside.. not the normal patchwork of rooftops that I am used to..All the rushing and fretting prior to our arrival had already begun to evaporate and eager to explore the local flora and fauna we donned our boots and set off to one of my favourite haunts..
A place that fills my heart and cleanses my mind...It is simply.. beautiful!
We awoke early each morning eager to see the subtle changes of scenery.. from frosty crisp mornings to rain sodden trees but not being deterred by a bit of rain we set forth early.. long before the world had truly woken to catch the best of the day and witness some of the magical wildlife that surrounded us...Our daily treks took us.. along babbling river.. Up dappled hillsides...
Eventually climbing above the tree canopy to gaze upon the most glorious views...
This was just one of my favourites.. Over an ancient wooded gorge to the lush green fields and moor beyond.These huge granite boulders littered the landscape ..upholstered in the finest emerald green velvet moss..I wouldn't have been surprised to see wood nymphs or fairies dancing around this enchanted forest..
Most mornings we didn't see another soul for the entire journey but the distant battle cry of rutting deer that echoed around the hills was proof that we were not alone.
The deer that live in this ancient woodland have learnt to share their habitat with man and dog but keep a low profile most of the day.. retreating into the dense tree lined hillside.. but occasionally appearing when you least expect them..giving me such a thrill. We knew that the best time to see the deer was as the light was fading in the early evening or first thing in the morning as they would wander down the hillside to forage for acorns ...I felt truly privileged to see these gentle creaturesI managed to catch this one on camera with shaking hands just as we said our farewells to our favourite corner of England and prepared to leave behind our little house in the woods..
I love this place it is always hard to leave.. but hopefully we will return again one day and maybe for good.. who knows!
It isn't until you stop and take stock of the world around you and slow down the pace that you realise there is so much more than the daily grind and it's good to step off the carousel now and again to appreciate life..
We came home with pink cheeks... rested souls and pockets full of memories and images of our brief acquaintance with nature..happy in the knowledge that our home in Bath had been filled with good friends and Mr Pickles had been well looked after.

Another highlight of our holiday was meeting Mr & Mrs Snippet who made the journey across the moor to share a few hours of laughter and chat over coffee and burnt hot cross buns... It was lovely to meet you Sal and I look forward to continuing our chat when we meet again at the fair..

Thank you so much for your good wishes..It was such a treat to arrive home to all your lovely comments especially as I had been deprived of Internet access for the week...
I have so much to catch up with.. laundry.. school preparations..oh.. and a fair to organise.. so it will be a while before I get around to replying to you all.. but I do appreciate every one of your comments.. so good to know you are always there!