Windy Thursday

No, no, not a reference to any digestive process but rather the weather today.  Knowing that it would be windy all day, but at least be dry and windy this morning, we met up with Incredibish and Happy_Janwen (see the extra) for a mooch around the grounds of Dyrham Park.  

Unfortunately the high winds meant that a number of the walks were off limits, for fear that someone would get injured by a falling tree.  It sounds unnecessarily protective until you remember that every time there is a storm a number of people get injured or die when trees fall on them.

Walking down the hill towards the house I spotted a kestrel hunting, but none of us had brought a lens suitable for wildlife photography.  Of course, that meant the kestrel spent some time relatively close to us, hovering irritatingly within shot of that long lens I normally carry around with me :-)

I did try a couple of long exposure shots with a stopper, in the hope of nice blurred sky, but while the wind was strong enough to whip up the plants and branches, the clouds were hardly moving at all.  So instead, I've settled for this very traditional view of the house and garden during one of the patches of sunshine.  It does at least have the benefit of an interesting looking sky.  I took a couple of shots, with and without people in that gap between the hedges at the top of the gravel path, but the one I like the best is the people free shot so that's what you are getting!