Cow, calf and woman on Minchinhampton Common

I was on skylark watch on the common above Brimscombe when I spotted this cow walking slowly with an obviously newly born calf. The calf was gambolling like a lamb which made me think of the excitement of newly learnt experiences.

Normally the cow would be in one of the herds that roam the extensive commons, but this one was totally alone with its calf. This makes me think it had only just been born and the cow was making its way back to the herd. I've noticed this happening before where the cow would find a secluded spot to give birth. The licking of the calf also suggests the cow is cleaning it.

I took this picture after the pair had just passed Tom Long's Post, the name for the signpost at the five way crossroads at the centre of the common. The presence of this woman walking in the opposite direction is unusual there. 

Lying in between the distant woodlands and this common is the River Frome which flows westwards down through its Golden Valley which was cut down through the Cotswold uplands. It eventually joins the River Severn about eight miles away, before then flowing the short distance to the sea.