Wandering in the woods

On Thursday between Christmas and new year, the sun was shining and I took myself off for a nice long wander through the woods. 

This path snakes ever so slightly uphill for a few miles, and as the trees thinned out, it got colder and the ground was covered with an increasing amount of snow. 

Eventually I reached the top of the hill, and stopped to drink my flask of hot chocolate. I was warm from climbing the hill, but the air was freezing, and as I turned the corner and left the trees behind me, the wind blew across the exposed road. 

I'll miss this route when we move. It's my ten mile running route (or at least it was, back when I was capable of running for ten miles...). On this occasion though the aim was scenery, and, after seven miles of walking I decided I didn't need to trek the last three miles through the suburban streets so I hopped on a bus.

The very next day I found myself doing the first part of the same walk with a friend, and this time all of it was in the snow. 

It's funny how much difference the snow can make to how the landscape feels. 

On this occasion we just walked for a couple of miles, then stopped for lunch at a cafe (along with half of the rest of the city population, it seemed). 

It's felt good to be out and about in the winter weather. Not the grey, rainy, gloomy weather (not all the time anyway), but give me a bright sky or a bit of snow and I'm itching to be outside. I can see a lot more being outside in my future...