A July Weekend in Corscombe

We live in the village of Corscombe in West Dorset, a very rural area and an AONB. On Friday and Sunday (of the w-e 16-18 July) we took 2 early morning walks, leaving the house just after 5am. Both days it was warm, still and virtually cloudless. The birds were singing and the lambs and cattle were saying good morning to each other. The local cockerel was saying hello to the sun – PERSISTENTLY!!

We soon walked out of earshot and our first sighting was a female Roe Deer having breakfast in the middle of a misty field belonging to Corscombe Farm.

Walking through one of the wooded areas a Chiffchaff was singing its heart out from the top of the trees and clearly visible to us.

We soon arrived at the Dorset Wild Life reserve ‘Brackets Coppice’, which is a mix of ancient wildflower meadows and woodland with a stream running through. In fact the stream’s source is about 400 meters from our house and borders our garden and the Reserves stretch is about a mile down stream.

The following picture was taken last Summer and shows the richness of the meadows.

Ryewater Farm that borders the reserve has a herd of Highland Cattle and they are used to ‘manage’ the meadows and they love it!

Towards the crest of Ocean Hill on Common Lane we peaked over the gate to one of the more remote fields and in the distance was another Roe Deer AND a Brown Hare resting in its form.

The early morning sunrise from the top of Ocean Hill is stunning in the early morning light.

From Ocean Hill the main branch of Common Lane takes us back towards the village via the highest point on the walk, Woodfold Hill. Just before the top, an old badger set is showing signs of new diggings, so a visit back there  at dusk is in order. Down the other side the land is lined with Meadow Sweet, whose scent is quite overpowering at the moment.

At the bottom of the hill we turn right up towards the village. The lane here is always damp with run off from one of the many springs in the area. On the Sunday walk I came across a parent Grey Wagtail feeding its chick. 

The last picture is one of the gardeners’ most hated enemy, feeding on Cow Parsnip.

I’m very happy for it to be here!

All of these pictures were taken with my new Olympus 150-400 f4.6 paired with the E-M1 mk3, total weight with battery and cards and LensCoat camo on the lens is 2.83KG (6.25lbs). From close up to distant landscapes it is an impressive piece of kit that can be carried slung over my shoulder.

Thanks for reading and I hope you haven’t been too bored!