Calm

Warm and with hardly a breeze, the calm early morning of a perfect spring day shows everything at its best. Even the sheep enclosure has attractions. Banks of bluebells relieve the cropped grass with surprising colour reminding of the days, two years ago, when no sheep grazed and Harebell, (or the Scottish Bluebell), ran riot later in the summer.

These bluebells get by because the sheep have been off until recently and so far not explored the further parts of this land. Still it's a bit freakish to have a woodland flower where there are no trees. This is where the hares and curlews may be seen.

And one lapwing flew over.

It’s not taken long for the sheep to leave their mark and their need for shade has determined that the areas around the very few trees are places to avoid unless you have a peg on your nose.

Outside the enclosure where, blessedly, no farm livestock have yet arrived the deer were beautifully relaxed, stags browsing lazily on the lower branches of rowan.

Hinds were snoozing in the high bilberry and leggy heather until roused to furious indignation by our presence on the path. We moved off shamefaced at disturbing them.