Trees on the hill

Boxing Day morning was bright and sunny, a relief after days of gloom and rain, and before lunch I was glad to walk up the hill. It was very peaceful, I didn't meet other walkers, and although the route into the hilltop meadow (via a track, then a stile surrounded by a large area of very squelchy puddled mud) was too uninviting to be worth braving for the limited time I would be able to spend there. Instead, I took some photos over the fence from the lane of the old trees at the perimeter of the hillside wood. I have been photographing the hilltop trees for much of the past year with the aim of putting together a photobook or collection, and this is the time of year when their rugged and denuded bark, twisted trunks and partly dead branches are most clearly visible, well lit by low winter sun without the shade of their summer canopy. I've been working towards a black and white series to emphasise the sculptural shapes and varied textures, but I liked today's colours too, with the earthy tones of bark, branches and dead leaves, so the mono version is my extra.

The rest of the day was quite relaxed too. J persuaded me to catch up with the Call the Midwife Christmas special with her, and I browsed lots of beret patterns on Ravelry to see what I can knit with the beautifully soft and bouncy Manx Loaghtan wool my friend W sent me, I think from the farm where she stayed last summer. It's the natural brown of the fleece, so I'd like to use it for a pattern with some cables or textured stitch patterns. It's something to look forward to when I have finished J's rainbow socks.