Brief Encounter

I walked to Buckhurst Hill this afternoon to my hairdresser’s, where I had a cut and blow dry. On the way back I made a detour round to the edge of Knighton Wood to see if I could find some autumn colour in the foliage. 

Seconds after I took this photo a large, heavy-set dog came bounding towards me from the depths of the wood, with no owners in sight. It had a harness on its back but no lead. It shot across the minor road behind me and then started running around in circles on the pavement. 

I’m afraid I'm not a fan of dogs, especially when they are large and unaccompanied, so I walked briskly back to the road and continued on my way without looking at it, desperately hoping it wouldn't follow me. I think I heard voices in the forest but the owners didn’t appear while I was within sight of the place from where the dog had emerged, and I wasn’t best pleased that they would allow their dog to run free near a road. It rather spoiled my few minutes' worth of peace and quiet in such a beautiful spot.