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Gallery: a bouquet of purple flowers
According to Alice Walker, 'it annoys God if you walk by the color purple in a field somewhere and don't notice it.' Purple is my favourite colour so there is little risk of my annoying God in that manner at least!
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Gallery: a selection of summer bugs
Anyone who enjoys flower photography will know the special joy of suddenly spotting a little bee or other bug in the flower you are about to photograph. Over the years I seem to have amassed quite a number of these ‘bonus bug’ shots.
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Gallery: is it wild if we plant it?
A wildflower is usually defined as a flower that grows in the wild, that is, it was not deliberately seeded or planted. Springing up wherever there is a spot in which to grow and thrive, they brighten our walks and provide nectar for bees, butterflies and other insects. In return those insects distribute their pollen and cause more wildflowers to spring up.
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King John was not a good man: Runnymede
The barons of early 13th century England would have agreed with A. A. Milne (the creator of Winnie the Pooh) that 'King John was not a good man'. In 1215 England was in political turmoil. King John had become vastly unpopular; his disagreements with the Pope over the appointment of a new Archbishop of Canterbury led to a papal interdict against the country and the king’s excommunication, while the imposition of high taxes to fund the war with France led to mounting anger.
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What a difference a day makes
It is well known that mountain climates can be unpredictable, and Mount Rainier in the US North West is no different. After a perfect day in Paradise we had fallen asleep under clear skies; but we woke to thick fog obscuring all the surrounding mountains and indeed everything apart from the trees closest to the lodge. A perfect demonstration for us of the way that the mountain creates its own micro climate, although not an especially welcome one.
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Gallery: a snowy walk in Paradise
If you call a place ‘Paradise’ it had better be somewhere special! Luckily this area of Mount Rainier National Park really does live up to the name bestowed on it by Virinda Longmire in 1885. When she first saw this spot, carpeted with wildflowers, she is said to have exclaimed, ‘Oh, what a paradise!’
