Frogs

Next door have a pond. The pond is full of frogs. It’s riveting.

Mossy beech trunk

With November’s gales and rain firmly established over the west coast of Scotland, I feel the need to remind myself of spring half a year ago. They say the beech is the queen of trees.

Lochan an Torrnalaich

Out for a very pleasant walk this afternoon in warm spring sunshine. This is Lochan an Torrnalaich, viewed from the south and through a polarising filter. Plenty of deer, including a 12-point red stag, and lesser celandines and primroses peeking out here and there.

[Correct name of lochan applied.]

Daffodils

Outside our house, which is in the centre of the village, is a picnic table dedicated to a former resident of the village, Janet Stone, who died a few years ago at an early age. This jug has been kept full of flowers for over a year now in her memory.

I took a couple of different photographs of the jug and flowers the other day, the one at the head of the post is a higher-tone version than the one below. I like the retro feel of the colours in the first one, and the saturation of the colours in the second one.

Reaching out to the light

Fresh young horse chestnut leaves growing over the river that runs through the village.

Candle and corona

Another from this brief series of photos of horse chestnut buds bursting into leaf. The flower “candle” can be seen growing out of the centre of the bud.

Bursting leaf bud

I liked the symmetry of this horse chestnut bud breaking into leaf.

Two buds

 

Two horse chestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum) leaf buds breaking in the early spring. This particular tree reaches out over the river that runs through the village and this, and similar photos to follow, were taken from the road bridge.