Week 50 24/12/2014 - Christmas Eve In The Park

Photo Blog Week 50 - Wed 24 December 2014

Christmas Eve plus a bright morning brought people flooding into the Park and by 11:00 there was some concern over a filling car park. All the overflow areas were waterlogged so closure may have become an option. However, as the day progressed it became duller and eventually fine cold rain put an end to the ingress of people.
It was nice to see so many families out in the open with Cage Hill being a popular immediate climb from the car park. A group of Red Deer stags on The Knott provided opportunity for many children to be told that they were seeing reindeer. It's funny, we encourage our children to only tell the truth but at Christmas time we tell all sorts of tales and everyone joins in the conspiracy.

Because it was so busy and volunteer availability was very low I stuck to popular routes litter picking and being available, including chats to several people and taking a group photo for a lovely family who's mother is never in their photos.

Toward the end of my day, I noticed the Fallow Deer, which are rather fragile, running in a terrified herd inside their enclosure and as I approached closer I spotted the problem. A loose dog had been allowed to squeeze under a wire fence and was chasing them. I found the unapologetic owner lower down the track, calling out to the uninterested dog but there was nowhere for it to get out even if it had returned. Gary the Duty Ranger responded to my radio call and  appeared with a gate key allowing the owner to retrieve his dog after some difficulty.

route: The House; Main Car Park and Picnic areas; Fours Winds; The Knott

North Face of the house

Stags on The Knott - and a kite flying above

Groups on track near Four Winds enjoying the view over Manchester

Lantern Wood and Park Moor over Drinkwater Meadow and Knightslow Wood

Park Moor above Drinkwater Meadow

route: The Knott; Westparkgate Lodge; u-turn; Pursefield; Paddock ridge and Cottage

 

Buttercup in flower late December

Water courses very full leading to a rare sight of 'White Water'

Sun hitting the trees on Haze Bank

That garden of West Lodge in the process of being recovered after many years of neglect

Poynton Brook descending from Deer Clough

Path meandering through dried bracken below Pursefield

Animal tracks criss-cross the bracken on steep slope far side of the brook at head of Deer Clough

Sun lighting up Manchester city centre

Park Moor looks pale in the cold light and low temperature

Handsome door on Paddock Cottage

route: Paddock Cottage; Cluse Hey top path; Knightslow Wood; Drinkwaterr Meadow; Mill Pond; Crow Wood; Main Car Park & Picnic areas; North Face of House (finish)

The 'Impossible Oak'

Fungi fest'

Fungi fest'

Fungi fest' - cluster of 'Puff Balls' on a stump

  Blue, White and Grey over the House

Today's track and profile

7.3 miles  4 hr 0 min

This Time Last Year

Have a look at This Time Last Year  25 Dec 2013 (Not attended - Christmas Day)