No running today as ice and snow have returned to make things too hazardous out here on the bit that God forgot. I can't even begin to catch up with the digging in our big veg garden as that too is frozen. Just a matter of digging a bit of the Jerusalem Artichoke bed over to uncover some food for us and for the birds. Nothing else for it but to listen to the wind and look to the future.
Karen and I are looking to enter the Shrewsbury and Market Drayton 10k events next year so will concentrate on regular, steady distances up to that. I have some interesting and scenic runs planned once The Ice Queen chuffs off to wherever she spends the warmer months.
The absurdity of the weather hit me yesterday. While taking the dogs on their daily 5 mile tramp across the Mosses my wife and I were staggered to see two swallows zooming around, close to the ground, near the edge of Wem Moss. I can't remember swallows being back here so early or in such bad weather.
There are no insects flying here in these temperatures and I am sure those poor birds are now dead: all that way from Africa to die in an atypical snowstorm and sub-zero temperatures on a bleak and frozen bog. It saddens me; Nature is hard. The only positive is the constant presence of the Hen Harrier that has wintered down here, brightened our lives, but will shortly be off back to the uplands to take her place as one of the handful left alive in England. I hope she survives, breeds and comes back to Winter with us next year. We'll see.
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Pm3eak
Graduate10
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The weather has been harsh in Shropshire. I had a hedgehog and frogs in the garden the other day. Don’t know how how they’ll fair after having yet more snow. 😕
beautiful and sad piece of writing. A Facebook friend just told of how a nest of baby birds in her clematis montana has been killed by the return of the snow. As for your swallows, I've never seen them in March, that's quite staggering. they do fly long distances without fuel, so they may just outlive the current snow. we have insects flying here (well not the last two days with the snow) and I saw a butterfly yesterday driven against the side of the house by the blizzard. i guess wintered in a shed or whatever.
Nature balances though doesn't it? While I pity the birds (I'm hoping my favourite Robin who follows me around the garden has survived) and small animals I'm also thinking that this cold spell will kill off the nasties (slugs, snails, etc). I know they too have a role to play in the cycle but not necessarily on my plants 😏
I am hoping my frogs and toads are ok in my greenhouse. I think they moved into there from the log store
I was chuffed to see the old lad, resident fox is using his usual trail over my garden. He never reveals himself except forhis tell-tale trail through the snow. He did get my hens once though, but we rub along.
We have a sparrow hawk too and a few bits of his last kill had bloodied the pure white snow
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week3run1 ✅. 3 x 17 mins with 1 min walks. 
How did your parkrun or (not)parkrun go?
