The woods are lovely, dark and deep...

Today my dog Freddie and I walked much further than usual, climbing through the pine woods south of Ayvalik up to the communication tower which crowns the hill on the headland , and then walking on miles of unmade roads through yet more pine woods with distant views over the islands which lie dotted across the sea outside the bay of Ayvalik.

These woods take much more time and effort to get to than those where we normally walk, directly above the town, a few minutes from my house. There is a significant reward, though: The roads through the woods are empty, except for lines of beehives (which can be seen in the foreground of the photgraph), you rarely see a vehicle or another person there - save for the odd beekeeper - and can walk for miles in silence, breathing in the scent of the pines, and gazing at the lavender and rock roses and the blue, blue sea beyond.