By midday today it was scorching hot. I had taken our labrador for a riverside walk early morning ( saw my first dragonfly of the year) and then decided to head out somewhere unaccompanied. I love Hugo but he gets a little impatient when I become distracted by butterflies. 🙂
Salthill Quarry Nature Reserve is one of two nature reserves in my home town. A mixture of limestone grassland and shady woodland, the reserve is a haven for wild flowers and birds such as black caps and bullfinches. Which I never see ! Haha. Today my nemesis bird ( a gloriously colourful jay) posed for several photographs, promptly flying off cackling before I could get him into focus.
I enjoyed my walk and intend to post a blog in June, when hopefully the bee orchids will be in flower. For now, enjoy these photos. 😘
Hawthorn.Yellow poppies.Blue sky.Cowslips.
Clock.Small white.Germander Speedwell.Robin red breast.Birds Foot Trefoil aka Bacon & Eggs.Dog Rose.Small white.Wood Aven.Bugles and Herb Robert.Bluetit flying in and out of a nesting box.Crinoid bench.Milkwort.Wild Strawberry.Common Blue.Chiffchaff.Common Blue on Buttercup.
I hope I have identified the above correctly, please let me know if I have mixed up my common blues with my holly blues. 😅
This morning we had a ramble up to Salthill Quarry which is one of two nature reserves in my hometown of Clitheroe. We also had a wander there last weekend and found a new route back, so here are a few pictures from both walks.
I always look at this sign and think ‘hmmm where are those bullfinches?’. I have in the past seen the Bee orchids though. 😁Wild Strawberry or maybe Barren Strawberry flower.Birds Foot Trefoil, I think.We always try our best to get a photo of Hugo on this fossil inspired seat, with little success.More cowslips.
I have seen a few photos recently on Facebook of what can only be described as a ‘ Blue Lagoon’. I told Wil I really wanted to see this local landmark/ quarry pit for myself. Apparently as a teenager him and his mates would go scrambling round it. Boys will be boys!
Anyway the aquamarine water is a result of the limestone, which is quarried. Clitheroe’s limestone is made into cement and there has been a cement works in Clitheroe since the 1930s. I remember the town being known as ‘Cement City’ on CB radio. Haha.
The lagoon can be seen from a field off the A59 Link road.There is no public access to the lagoon. I did see some mallards on it though.
After the blue lagoon excitement we walked back into town on a footpath we found last weekend, also off the A59 link road.
Beautiful Apple Blossom ❤️.Magic Mushroom Graffiti under a stone footbridge.Bluebells.Stitchwort.Stoney track. Spring flowers on both bankings here.Daisies.“I’m watching you “.Old unlived in farm house.Heading back through upbrooks, a part of Clitheroe that I didn’t really realise was here until recently.
One good thing about having to hang round home, is new walks found, and new parts of town explored.
Have you found any ‘new to you’ footpaths in your local area?
To ease my England V Sweden viewing angst, I thought I would write this post at the same time. Ha! I am a very nervy audience…
This morning I had a wander round one of my local town’s two Nature Reserves. Salthill Quarry has appeared on my blog a couple times, but as I haven’t visited for over twelve months, I thought I would drop by for a nosy. The Quarry is a designated SSSI because of its geological formations…but I was there for the flowers…and the butterflies. 🙂
The 7.00 hectare Nature Reserve has grassland and woodland habitats. I was certainly glad of a little shade. The sun beat down as I looked for betony, orchids and scabious. Some of the land was dry and parched. Still no sign of approaching rain here in the North West.
Roses on the way to the reserve.And a Painted Lady on Buddleia.Into the Woods.A Swallow-Tailed Moth ~ I think..Speckled Wood.Feeling parched.Hmmm Spray painter, if your going to do this , at least do a neat job! This is the Crinoid Seat that looks across to Pendle Hill.Lady’s Bedstraw.Orchids.Almost hidden ~ a blue damselfly.Marjoram.Scabious.Under the Umbels.Brown Ringlet.Harebell.Green Damselfly , maybe?Six-spotted Burnett Moth.
Here are my ‘Wild’ moments from the last few days of June. 🙂
Day 26 ~ Pressed Flowers make memories. After resurrecting my old Travel journal ( it went by the wayside after I started blogging), I thought pressing a couple of local flowers from our Yorkshire Dales camping trip, would be a nice way of remembering our time there. I must get myself a flower press though. I just squished a field scabious and a common vetch ( both are numerous along the river Wharfe) between two pages of a book, I was reading at the time. Not very professional!
Day 27 ~ A Nature Inspired Poem. So here’s my attempt at writing a poem! I have took inspiration from my recent trip to the Norfolk coast. We stayed in the seaside town of Hunstanton and visited nearby Holme, Wells and Blakeney Point.
Busy Bee , Stop! Look up….. and rest.
Rust striped cliffs, where fulmars nest.
In rocky pools limpets cling.
Oyster Catchers peck them clean.
Cinnabars and fluttering Blues.
Sea Holly amongst the dunes.
Bursts of pink wave in the breeze.
Seals play in blustery seas.
So stop…. and look….. and take in
the wild living amongst us.
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Day 28 ~ Feeling Blue. Today was another dreary damp day, but instead of feeling blue, I made a slideshow of the colour blue in nature. These pictures are all from the past couple of months. They include Scabious, Meadow Cranesbill, Viper’s Bugloss ( aka Sea Thistle), Blue Sky, Small Blue butterfly, Bluebells, Violet and blue in a Peacock Butterflies wing.
Day 29. Update. Has #30dayswild been a success in our little back yard? Well , it’s a work in progress! The wildflower seeds I planted at the beginning of the month are definitely seedlings.Still waiting to find out what they will become. I have not counted any butterflies, though I have seen bees. It has rained every day since I put out the bee water dish. 😦 Most successful is our little bird feeding station. We now have bluetits and a Tree sparrow, as restaurant regulars. 🙂
Day 30. Visit a Nature Reserve. My last day of ‘Wild’ has been a success! This morning I took myself off to one of Clitheroe’s two Nature Reserves, on the edge of town. You can find them both by using The Wildlife Trust’s Nature Finder App. Salthill Quarry is half woodland and half disused quarry. The limestone grassland is a haven for wildflowers, and even on a drizzly day like today. it did not disappoint. Prepare for about a million photos….
Any ideas? A ground spreading purple flower in the woodland.A snail amongst the bramble.Trees Canopy.Not sure of this birdie either.Agrimony. Used in Herbal medicine.How cute is this squirrel. 🙂Self-Heal. Used by Medieval first- aiders for binding up wounds.Rosebay Willowherb. Also known as Fireweed.Vetch.There were lots of orchids. 🙂Ringlet Butterfly. One of the few butterflies that are active in light showers.Goldfinch.A type of grass.Despite the weather,I did see quite a few bees.Creeping Cinquefoil.Pignut. Has edible roots.Scabious.Marjoram. A striking culinary herb.Hawkweed and Betony in the background.Another Ringlet.Thrush.Ladybird on Meadow Sweet.
My favourite spots of the day. But are they Six spotted Burnet Moths or Cinnabar Moths? They did not move from their blades of grass.
So there you have it! Another #30dayswild ends. It has been a challenge this year, but also a lovely experience. I have taken more notice of insects. I have visited new places, as well as returned to some old favourites. I have tried to make the garden area more wild and will continue to do so. As usual The Wildlife Trusts have inspired me to stop, step back and take in , all the beautiful nature that surrounds me. 🙂
This afternoon I went for a wander up to Salthill Quarry in Clitheroe. Even though I have lived here for years, there are still some places I have yet to discover in this town. Salthill Nature Reserve was one of them ! I was really surprised at all the wildlife I spied along the way and I had it all to myself. Didn’t come across another soul. 🙂
Common Knapweed.Elderflowers. The blooms of this sweet smelling shrub can be gathered and made into a refreshing summer cordial or wine.Tiny wild strawberries. 🙂Not sure what butterfly this is. Maybe a skipper?Fossil wall.I was so excited to see the rare Bee orchids that grow in the reserve. Don’t the flowers look like bees. 🙂
Pretty blue Meadow cranesbill.Dandelion Clock.Didn’t get a very good shot of this Heron.But it was fab to see him. 🙂Love these. I call them cornflake flowers !Dragonfly.What a gorgeous colour. 🙂Yellow Flag Irises.Sweet smelling Honeysuckle.Cute Bunny () ()I spy Pendle Hill.Wild Rose aka Dog Rose.Paper white Bindweed.Brown Ringlet Butterfly.A cottage on the way home.
sunshine and celandines 