Awash with lines...

Firstly, thank you all so much for the wonderful comments, stars and many hearts you gave my hornet image. I'm so glad to see that there are other people out there who love wasps and hornets as much as I do, as well as those who tolerate them from a respectful distance. I can completely understand that and it's a very wise strategy if you are at all nervous.

In contrast to the gloom of yesterday, today was bright and chilly. I took Rosie for a fairly early walk at Southey Wood, where there was a dusting of frost in sheltered hollows. I hadn't taken my gloves, as up till now they'd not been necessary, but my fingers were soon frozen! Definitely time to ferret out the winter clothing.

I tried to get on with some work in the middle of the day, but by mid-afternoon I realised I was just staring at the computer screen, and there was nothing really happening in my head! So I upped sticks and headed out to do my second autumn photoshoot at Stanground Wash.

I probably left it a bit late, as the sun was already dipping towards the horizon when I arrived, but I got a few shots - enough to show that the ditches that were empty in September are now filled to the brim. I quite liked the cloud pattern reflected in this ditch - a combination of natural high cloud and a con-trail - lots of lovely diagonals!

For those who are unfamiliar, the term 'wash' refers to an embanked area of grassland which is used to accommodate floodwater and therefore keep the surrounding farmland dry. The two largest areas of washland are the Ouse Washes and the Nene Washes (of which Stanground Wash is a small part), both of which are of international importance for both breeding and overwintering wildfowl and waders, that utilise the shallowly flooded grassland. This section is at the driest end of the Washes, being close to Peterborough city centre, and only gets flooded during very major events, such as the floods of 2012.