I popped in to London a few days ago. Well, if you can call a journey which involved four trains and two tubes ‘popping in’ then I popped in. And two of the trains were cancelled and the other two were late so it was quite a slow ‘pop’.
The 07:38 from Wellingborough was cancelled because of slippery rails. Presumably this means ‘leaves on the line and it is a bit wet too’? But luckily the 07:14 arrived at 07:39 so I got on that one. On the journey I saw some Red Kites and enjoyed the autumn colours. The trees were beautiful – quite stunning. Well worth a few train delays, I’d say.
I was heading in to southwest London on another secret mission – obviously I’m keen to tell you about my secret missions but this is not the time.
Yesterday I had another, local, secret mission meeting … nearly gave something away then! But on my short journey I saw some Red Kites and enjoyed the autumn colours some more. What a fabulous show they are making!
On the way back from the secret mission my car started making a loud clanging noise above the offside rear wheel – I guessed it was a shock absorber no longer absorbing any shocks. And my diagnosis was right but my local garage accepted my clanging car at 08:00 this morning and brought it back unclanged by lunchtime. What service!
As I strolled home I took these images of the autumn colours.
Here in Mid Wales the autumn colours have been and still are pretty good even if the red leaves on our Liquidamber have been victims of strong wind. The mixed woodland around the house are a great mixture, the yellows of the birch, poplars and larch mixed with the various burnt oranges of the oaks and beech with the dark green counterpoints of the spruces and pines. I have always liked autumn even though it heralds the dark and these days dank days of winter.
The local raptors have finished moult and are often up in the wind so each time I go out, often with the dog we are serenaded by soaring Buzzards, drifted over by elegant Red Kites that nearly always have a good look at us. Whilst the tumbling Ravens and cruising Goshawks and Peregrines are more careful keeping well beyond gunshot, sensible birds there are some bad people about.