Warnings of gales

I think there is something special about being deep inside a large tract of ancient English woodland during a summer storm. In the canopy above the leaves and branches thrash around noisily but at ground level it remains still and calm apart from the occasional small branch crashing down. So it was today with the wind gusting at 50-60mph I headed off to my favourite woodland. Inside the woods are a number of ponds. This one is known as the Shallow Pond and is one of a number of medieval pits that were dug to extract clay for the local brick workings. The pits normally fill with rainwater during the winter, leaving some of the trees isolated on tiny islands, and then dry out over the summer. This year its been the other way round. The Shallow Pond had all but dried up when I took a photograph at the same spot in April, now its flooded again with dark black water.