An exciting wildflower walk

It was grey and cold this morning, then it rained again. I delayed my walk until about 3pm and it stayed fine. The nicest weather of the day was after I came home.

I arrived home on Cloud 9. I had been to the riverside at Barrasford and climbed up into the woods. The path is very steep and someone has kindly put ropes along one section. It was there that I found these Early Purple Orchids. They were in a very dark spot so they look rather supersaturated in the image.

Nearby was a cluster of Herb Paris, see extra. This may be common in parts of the UK, but not here, so I was delighted to spot it.

I clambered up to the old railway line where there is a profusion of Jack by the Hedge. These were covered with St Mark's flies. These are the flies that trail their legs as they fly. They emerge around April 25th which is St Mark's day. See extra for a male of the species.

As if all that was not enough, I entered a section of beech woodland and the garlic had all opened. I was transfixed by the beauty.

For someone who is not keen on adding many extras, I just want to share these with you, especially if you can't go far during lockdown.

Life in the time of Covid 19
I contacted our MP when I was feeling frustrated about the difficulty in obtaining supermarket deliveries when you are self isolating. One of his assistants has been on the case and contacted me yesterday to tell me what to do next. Then I had a phone call today from a lovely lady at Waitrose and we will soon be on their priority list.