A wet afternoon

A gusty wind buffeting and tugging in an irritating way, sprinkles of rain and soggy ground oozing water at every step:  not a great prospect for a dog walk. I headed for the woods. She loves to run off following her nose while I am happy using my eyes. We bumble around doing our own thing, occasionally checking in on each other.

Beech tree trunks have a never-ending fascination.Their smooth grey surface acts like a canvas for stretch marks, creases, patches of lichen and these curious nodules that contain a bead of wood, attached only to the bark. Although I've been intrigued by them since childhood it's only recently I've discovered that, technically, they are known as sphaeroblasts, created by adventitous buds that never developed.

I also spotted, among other things, the remnants of an earth ball mushroom peeled back like the empty rind of an orange and some gelatinous  crystal brain fungus coating a twig, then finally as I was about to head home the sun came out and illuminated the wood as if a floodlight had been switched on. All in extras (for now)