Shy snowdrops & elusive dog

Well, we still haven't had a snow event in Wincham but we had another powdering on Wednesday night and in case that was it for us this winter I decided to go in search of snowdrops in snow. Rode Hall near Congleton was resplendent with snowdrops and daffodils at this time last year and it's slightly higher than Wincham, so could have more of a snow event than here. And although we weren't exactly knee deep in snow drifts at Rode Hall, there was quite a lot of the white stuff, almost too much, as many of the snow drops were a) struggling to push their heads through the surface and b) foiled by their natural camouflage (i.e. white on white). These factors combined with the cold weather kept all but the most foolhardy visitors away - we were the first to leave our mark on the pristine white footpaths, a good hour after opening time. But it was far from being a wasted journey. It was magical to explore the gardens in such wintry conditions, snow creaking under foot (isn't that a great and unique sound?!) and I did come away with some lovely images. Little groups of snowdrops in sheltered nooks and crannies (I really must ask a gardener why crab and mussel shells were used as mulch around their base - other than offering some great contrasting colour), and early blossom flowers and daffodils wearing white bonnets of snow.

And I've enjoyed some wintry walks with Daisy. I've made it my mission this last week to try to get some shots which really show her character out on our walks - this is much harder than it sounds. She moves at the speed of light, has no particular destination in mind (in fact a previous dog trainer concluded "that dog lacks focus") and is either camera shy or is getting her own back on me for all the times I've tied her to a fence. The net result is a lot of shots of dog just going off camera (cursed shutter delay on compact cameras), blurred dog or dog's hind quarters. Never mind actually going for a well composed shot with background interest! I lined up one perfect shot of her looking back at me, standing on a narrow, snowy pathway lined with tall, golden grasses and low, raking sunlight and shadows, only to find a huge splodge of mud smeared across the lens from her last mad dash past me. Anyway, here's the best of the bunch but must try harder.

Oh - and the young swans were back, posing at the lake-side whilst keeping a wary eye on Daisy - very wise.

By Jane Burkinshaw. Share this post by clicking on one of the Share buttons on the right hand side. I'd love to hear your comments too!