Fresh as a daisy

One of the longest, hottest days of fieldwork I've ever had to endure! We were working in a railway sidings with very little shade. Despite starting early, the temperature climbed rapidly, peaking at about 27C with hardly a breath of wind. And we had to wear bright orange polyester trousers, orange nylon waistcoats and hard hats!!

After lunch I felt sick and dizzy, and wondered whether I was suffering from heatstroke. Fortunately I managed to find a bit of shade from a goat willow and lay down underneath it for a while, which helped. The site was large and we were walking round it for the best part of ten hours. The last area we visited was actually a road verge outside the perimeter fence, which is where I spotted these flowers, a combination of germander speedwell and daisies, looking fresh and cool, despite the heat. Irresistible!

We drove home through a cracking thunderstorm - the rain was absolutely torrential and at one point it wasn't actually possible to see the road surface at all! But it did help to clear the air a bit - thank goodness.