18th July 2018 The never ending story of the Great Drought.

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Wednesday 18th 65-77F, bright overcast with a light breeze increasing. Still not a drop of rain as early clouds clear to a milky sky and thinner and higher brushwork. I pottered about on a large, harvested field for today's walk. A red kite was circling nearby but found nothing to eat. While a buzzard dived into the crops a couple of times but seemed to have missed its breakfast for the moment. It returned to soaring over a nearby wood.

Late morning ride to the shops. I was cruising at 17-20mph with a tailwind and draughting a tiny, tricycle van with a very noisy engine. He sprayed me with his windscreen washers but I have no idea if it was deliberate. He certainly couldn't see me behind his solid back door. Only 10-14mph coming back home into a straight-on headwind. I have an errand to run after lunch so I'm going out on my trike again.

The good news is that they have developed a mobile phone sensor for passing cars. Sadly, they haven't yet discovered flash photography to identify if it is the driver using the phone. So, basically, no new good news at all. Except for the psychopaths who still use their phones while driving badly, despite all the dire warnings and paltry fines.

Afternoon ride to more distant shops. Warm and quite a strong cross-headwind. Another 13 miles for 20 total today. A young lady, racing cyclist complimented me on my trike as she rode past. I tried, but could not stay on her wheel.

These are desperate times for many farmers. They say the hay harvest is only half of the usual. This is on top of last year's unusually cool and wet summer. The double blow is causing acute shortages of feed for cattle and damaging livelihoods. With farm bankruptcies double the usual in June alone and fears of much worse to come. The forecast shows no sign of rain in the next fortnight.

Sweden has appealed for help in fighting its fifty plus, forest and heath fires. Denmark is sending a contingent. We wish them luck and a speedy and safe return!

It's not all bad news for nature. The insect eating birds must have had a bumper year and the butterflies in our garden have exploded in numbers. There are often ten per square meter over the carefully selected plants they are known to enjoy. There might have been many more had we not lost many buddlias in one cold winter.

The butterfly numbers are probably only a tiny fraction of the myriad of different bees which frequent our "semi-wooded" rural garden. With its soaring hedges for nesting and ridiculously overgrown fruit and native trees we are constantly surrounded in a bewildering variety of birdsong.

It is not unusual to have a dozen swallows perched on the ridge of our home. As an attentive audience for those still performing acrobatics in the air. Birds of prey are often to be seen floating silently, just over our treetops or circling high above on thermals.

Click on any image for an enlargement.

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