Catching the end of the sunrise

I didn’t plan to post today, but since I shared my sundown stroll with you last week, it seems selfish not to share the delight of a bright sunrise walk this morning. I left the house at 6.20, going along the River Ure, up the hill to a neighbouring farm, and back through the grounds of Sleningford Hall.

Peaceful? Not at all. The rooks in the rookery were circling their home patch and gossiping loudly. Oyster catchers gathered in groups and screamed and called as they flew high above the river while others skimmed its surface. A single curlew called. The lark ascended. And though the dawn chorus was all but over, blackbirds on every other tree took up their posts to offer an unending programme of melody to the morning sun. Lambs bleated plaintively as I passed, while their mothers’ objections were even more assertive. Only the rabbits, off to bed for the day, were silent as they swished through the dewy grasses.

Bright Square

Jo’s Monday Walk

Author: margaret21

I'm retired and living in North Yorkshire, where I walk as often as I can, write, volunteer, and travel as often as I can.

56 thoughts on “Catching the end of the sunrise”

    1. It is, isn’t it? It records my daily sorties with my Virtual Dog and calculates how near I am to my walking target for the year, which has just become 1500 miles. And yes … I wish I’d worn a hat.

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  3. oh this is just wonderful, what a wonderful way to start the day. I am so envious you have this on your doorstep – I really really hope this is the year that MrB and I find a house to move to

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      3. The north is off the drawing board sadly. We both love it, and have many friends up north but family is in the west so west it is. Probably is lots of Londoners moving west too at the moment, however I am confident we will find it. Just need to explore a few more places

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      4. PS and you should. Mornings are such a great time for exploring. I often go out in Portugal. Here though it is just too suburban, and getting into a car to go somewhere takes the spontaneity out of it for me

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  6. Gorgeous. Don’t you think that dawns at the moment are beating sunsets as they have the extra charm of the early morning mists.

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  11. Sunrise here have been prettily pink in recent days as I glimpse it from my visit to the bathroom. I really should force myself outside as I am sure it must be quite beautiful at that time of day. Thank you for the walk and the sounds of the early morning. Poetry in motion 😁

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  14. You are an early bird! I’m often up but never out at that time of day. As Becky says, you do have to live in the right place! Though I have lovely surroundings it’s a good half hour walk to get to the shoreline from here, and I don’t particularly enjoy walking from our estate to the countryside either. By the time I got where I wanted to be it would be time to head back, and I’d probably wake a certain person who rather likes his bed. 🤣💕 So l’m very grateful to you for sharing. I missed this earlier as I was heading out to croquet.

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    1. I don’t often actually leave the house that early. But I hope to make a habit of it now. We may have had this conversation before, but I didn’t realise that croquet was a Portuguese thing. In fact I’ve just Googled it, and it’s not in! Did you introduce it to them? 😉

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      1. Sorry- been a busy day! Ongoing health troubles for the neighbour and housing discussions with the young master 🙂 And I admit it- I sat on the roof till late before starting supper. Love this time of year! The croquet saga is long, and no, I’d never played till I came here. It’s an expat activity, but I don’t hold that against it 🙂

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  15. That was one of the coolest apps I’ve ever seen, not to mention that the photos are fabulous. It looks like a fairly long walk, and are those roads? I am usually up very late and very early – way before sunrise waiting on the cats like a gourmet restaurant server. If I go back to bed, which I usually do, I miss sunrise. If I did go out, it would be very chilly here in the Prescott mountains.

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    1. Thanks Marsha. Even I was cold – I should have worn a hat! No, apart from a tiny bit at the end, the walk – which wasn’t long, only three miles – was all on country paths. What lucky cats – you sound like a devoted servant of their needs!

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      1. Hi Margaret, Three miles is long enough. It’s an hour for me at least. Country paths sounds as lovely as it looks. My cats have two devoted servants. They are lucky. 🙂

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  20. Your description of the sounds of the dawn chorus and the lambs and sheep complemented the lovely photos. I particularly like how the trees are so clearly silhouetted in the featured photo. You have such a lovely area to walk in but I still admire your dedication and discipline even with the inspiration of such a beautiful environment.

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  21. Pingback: Jo’s Monday walk : a fresh, green Algarve | restlessjo

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