Into the Woods

10 things to do to combat the January blues?
1.Find somewhere pretty, new, adventurous or exciting to explore, even if just for an hour or so.
2.  Breathe fresh air, straight from the trees
3.  Find a tea room after going for a walk....

On Saturday, following our Maldon sojourn the other week, CBC and I decided that we would try to take a walk in Danbury, the following Saturday. Admittedly, we set out later than hoped, but we did so.  Wrapped up in warm clothes, we parked the car and set off Into the Woods (cue Stephen Sondheim music. By the way, are you going to go and see Into the Woods? I saw it at the Royal Academy of Music when I worked there. It was the end of year production by the Musical Theatre postgraduate students and H (Ian Watkins) from Steps was on the course at that time. He played The Baker, and very well he did it too.  Credit to him for going back to study)

It was, luckily, a dry day, though there had been snow/rain earlier in the morning.
We headed off along the winter-ravaged, cracked path, trees on either side. Bare, bristly or taken over by holly.

The trees have ears.

Seeing this tree with its smooth limbs but many in number- what curiosities we did see.

The palette of colours was of winter hues but there was a tiny peek of bright gorse.

 The ground became boggy. Perhaps a trap? We took a detour off the main path.  "Do not stray from the path Red Riding Hood," said her Granny. Who listened to their Granny?


Curiouser and curiouser. What are these strange ladders?

Just occasionally, a blast of brilliant sunlight illuminated everything and made it glow.

Is it a dragon eye?

Deeper and deeper, they wandered into the forest.  Little trail of bread crumbs  are no more! Were eaten by gluttonous,mischevious birds.


Hark Gretel! What shall we do?

A carpet of brown leaves upon the ground may be the only place we can rest our weary heads.  Lucky it is still daylight!

In circles they walked. but the holly reigned supreme and they had to turn back as the path was blocked  on all sides by prickly holly.

A set of stepping stones beckoned a way forward over the sticky mud


Walking off the path to avoid the boggy. churned up paths from mountain bikes in profusion.

Seeing this branch, it was almost a transfigured being. Is it the huntsman, turned to wood by a vengeful queen?

The sun broke through the trees.

We saw a clearing...



And strangely, as if by some strange miracle,we found ourselves back at the point where we had left the path.


Yet neither of us remembered these strange markings.





I climbed aloft a branch in my little red riding cap.

We headed onwards

Oh NO! Is that a wolf?




All safe, away from fairy tale villains and back to the car, ready to live happily ever after. (and eat cake)


xxx