Tuesday 4 June

After completing my month of blogging challenge, I felt at a bit of a loss as to where to go from there. I'd actually got quite used to thinking about what to write about each day, and now there was no subject supplied, I couldn't think what to write about even though I wanted to keep posting more regularly. I've had a few ideas though, so let's see if I can bring them to fruition!

Last weekend I managed to fit quite a bit of exercise in. On Friday night after work I cycled up to the ski club from B's house. After the very long, grey, drizzly and miserable spell (can a spell be long?), we finally had a taste of summer and it was lovely to be out on the bike in the early evening sunshine. I got to the ski club a little before the end of the race session so cycled along the river that I normally only see in winter time. It was glorious - lots of birds, many of them with young. The goslings were so cute! No photos, apart from this one, which was my treat after cycling 17 miles:

On Saturday we had to get a few things done so it wasn't till mid afternoon that I got on the bike. Earlier in the week I had been back to the Bike It! website run by South Norfolk council, where you can find 8 or 9 bike routes of varying lengths. I have done quite a few of them in the past and very much enjoyed them, so decided to tackle one which I hadn't done before. It was a 5 or 6 mile ride to the start point though, plus 23 miles without detours (or getting lost!), and another 5 or 6 miles back - which would take me several hours. I really lacked motivation as I got on the bike and during the first mile or so I almost turned around to go back home. But I ignored the 'negative voice in my head' (best fitness advice I've ever read!) and carried on, and when I returned just before 7pm with 32 miles under my belt, I was glad I had made the effort. A few photos:

 Shimpling Church, just north of Diss

 Burston Church

 Burston Strike School

 A hedgerow find! No, I didn't bring it home...

 Frenze Church - no longer in use but still beautiful

On Sunday, B. had a ski race in Milton Keynes and left at 4.30 in the morning. After catching up on a little sleep I returned home and fetched parttime dog for a decent walk out. I'd printed off a walk that started off in Hartest, a pretty little village a little south of me. It didn't disappoint - hills, painted Suffolk houses, history, a lovely church and glorious sunshine - what more can a walker and a dog ask for?

 Hartest Green

 Sheep and lambs at Giffords Vineyard

 That white blur is parttime dog wondering why I'm not following close behind

 Rape fields - almost past their best

 A neglected little house in a farm yard

 Holy Trinity at Boxted

 There'd been a wedding the day before, the flowers were still up

 Stunning roof

 Try and work that one out... (someone said it was brother and sister who married sister and brother)

 The church is full of history about a local family, the Poleys and the Weller-Poleys. Allegedly, they were the inspiration for the nursery rhyme A frog he would a-wooing go.

 Boxted Hall, a private hotel

 A scratch dial - an early form of sundial which would indicate the times of services

The village sign at Hartest

A lovely walk, just over 6 miles long due to getting lost a little trying to find the church - even my legs were getting tired by now, and parttime dog was struggling a little on the hills. I've given him a couple of days' rest to recover...