Sunday Picture Post: Keeping It Local

Posted on July 5, 2026 by crispina kemp

22nd June 2026 and while I’ve mostly recovered from my mishap the previous week, I don’t want to stress the leg too much. And besides that, the forecast is for a miserably hot and humid afternoon. So, no wasting time on buses, we’ll get out there early and be home by lunchtime. We’re keeping it local. Please join us.

22nd June 2026

🔼 Where the town wall meets the rive Bure, a tower remains. Here’s where our walk starts 🔽 It’s also where the marina is, where the Broads cruisers can hook up for the night. Being early season it’s not overly busy

22nd June 2026

22nd June 2026

🔼 The Bure is tidal, the deeper, navigable channel is marked. 🔽 And being tidal it’s subject to those devastating North Sea surges, thus flood defences are high priority

22nd June 2026

22nd June 2026

🔼 In the height of summer this river is busy with boats and cruisers. But for now this sweep of the river is wonderfully empty 🔽 Once the Great Estuary, the grazing land here is pancake flat. Some dozen of so drainage mills remain in various states of preservation. Today, with heat haze and the distance, and my camera on zoom, make this look like an oil painting

22nd June 2026

22nd June 2026

🔼 No apologies for so many river shots. We’re still feeling the heat, here, and these water views are soooo cooling! 🔽 There is no wall or fence immediately next to the river to prevent the walker from tumbling into the water. But there are lifebelts positioned along the way

22nd June 2026

22nd June 2026

🔼 Walking on the ‘safe’ side of the flood defence wall… 🔽 Unlike these sheep who seem to have escaped their pasture

22nd June 2026

22nd June 2026

🔼 And here we’ve arrived at Bure Park situated to north of the town. We sit and rest a while then it’s time to go home for lunch 🔽

22nd June 2026

I hope you enjoyed this gentle walk. More pics on Tuesday

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Friday Flyers

Posted on July 3, 2026 by crispina kemp

Photos from our walk on 15th June 2026. Butterflies weren’t so much scarce, as shy of the camera. Damselflies made up for the lack. Enjoy these few that I managed to snap

15th June 2026

🔼 Broad-bodied Chaser, the first I’ve ever seen, so happy with this 🔽 These next two look to be different, but Google Images insist they are both Common Blue Damselflies ⏬

15th June 2026

15th June 2026

🔽 Large Red Damselfly, male. Don’t you just love how they’re named!

15th June 2026

🔽 And here’s the troublemaker. I was so determined to get the photo that I wrenched my ankle and had to cut short the day. What is it? Can you see it? It’s a Brimstone butterfly and it’s right in the centre of the photo, hanging onto the purple flower

15th June 2026

That’s all for now folks

 

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CCC093: With a Flick and a Wink

Posted on July 2, 2026 by crispina kemp

With a flick of her wand, and a wink
She coloured the meadow pink
With a sneeze and a tease
She turned to purple the dull green trees
And over it all she cast a honey-dipped spell
That the meadow should have the sweetest smell
Satisfied she turned herself into a butterfly
And flew away

Posted in Crimson's Creative Challenge, Photos, Prompt | Tagged , , , | 20 Comments

Crimson’s Creative Challenge #093

Posted on July 1, 2026 by crispina kemp

Every Wednesday I’ll post FOUR photos (if you want to get a head start you’ll find them marked in that week’s Sunday Picture Post and Tuesday Treats). Lots of choice!

And here they are:

You respond with something CREATIVE. Perhaps an  answering photo, or micro-fiction, or a poem, or just a caption

As before, there are only two criteria:

!!!!! Your creative offering is indeed yours !!!!!

!!!!! Your writing is kept to 150 words or less !!!!!

If you post a link in the comments section of this post I’ll be able to find it.

Here’s wishing you inspirational explosions. And FUN

Posted in Crimson's Creative Challenge, Photos, Prompt | Tagged , , , | 17 Comments

Tuesday Treats: Flower Medley

Posted on June 30, 2026 by crispina kemp

A medley of photos of flowers seen on our walk down to the Yare on 15th June 2026. Enjoy

15th June 2026 

🔼 Yes, it is a Potato flower. Very definitely a member of the nightshade family (in case you’ve ever doubted it) 🔽 Dog Rose, not sure what the red leaves are, but they make for an interesting photo

15th June 2026

15th June 2026 

🔼 White Bryony. Love that twisting tendril. There’ll be plentiful (poisonous) red berries there in a few months time 🔽 Talking of berries… Sweet Cherry (Prunus avium)

15th June 2026 

🔽 Bladder Campion. I love all the campions, but this is not so common

15th June 2026 

Fen-Meadow Flowers…

15th June 2026 

🔼 Common Spotted Orchid 🔽 Ragged Robin

15th June 2026

15th June 2026 

🔼 Velvet Grass… has many other names 🔽 A true medley, too many to name

15th June 2026

15th June 2026 

🔼 Common Meadow Rue 🔽 Purple Loosestrife…and bee

15th June 2026 

🔽 Not actually a wetland plant, but it’s doing well here, almost rooted into the water: Valerian, and another bee

15th June 2026 

That’s all for now, folks. Hope you enjoyed. And yes, there will be some ‘flyers’ on Friday. Not many, but some.

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Sunday Picture Post: To the Valley of the Yare

Posted on June 28, 2026 by crispina kemp

15th June 2026, forecast is for escalating heat so we need to make an early start. We’re heading to one of the many nature reserves between Norwich and the east coast, plus there’s another we’ll pass through along the way. The ‘way’ is downhill (mostly), into the valley of the Yare. We might find places soggy underfoot, best to wear waterproof shoes. Let’s go…

15th June 2026

🔼 A bus into Norwich and another bus out again, we hop off at Hellington, which is at the top of the ‘hill’. The first part of our walk is along rural lanes made white with hedge bindweed and ox-eyed daisies 🔽

15th June 2026

15th June 2026

🔼 Ah, poppies. I do love this season for the poppies that pop up everywhere 🔽 Across the fields we see Hellington church, but we don’t want to delay by visiting there today

15th June 2026

15th June 2026

🔼 Heading now to Rockland St Mary, and the Low Common which lies between the two villages 🔽 Rockland Low Common local nature reserve, and now you see what I mean by potential wet feet! This is wetland, this is fen, and there are no man-made drains to take the water away. But what I’m not showing are the plants that thrive here. I’ll give you a taste of those on Tuesday

15th June 2026

15th June 2026

🔼 Meadow Rue dominates the community 🔽 A gate that doesn’t close marks the end to Rockland’s small reserve

15th June 2026

🔽 We emerge into farmland… the photo is taken looking back towards the reserve

15th June 2026

🔽 Having skirted Rockland, it’s now down the hill we go, though it’s only when looking back that we realise the descent

15th June 2026

15th June 2026

🔼 The final destination, Wheatfen Reserve 🔽

15th June 2026

We had to cut our visit short because, clever me, wrenched my ankle while trying to get a better shot of a butterfly. Hobbling with a screaming ankle then weakened my knee and threw my hip out my balance. To  try to walk further was not a good idea, even if possible. But how to get home? I couldn’t walk back to the bus stop. In an area with no phone signal, the reserve warden helped us get a taxi. A disappointment, but I’ve done the best with the photos I managed before that happened. Hope you enjoyed.

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King Henry’s Tower

Posted on June 27, 2026 by crispina kemp

18th June 2026

King Henry’s Tower, built 1284 as part of Great Yarmouth’s town wall, the second most complete town wall in England. Clearly, this is H for History, my June choice for Maria’s Photo Challenge.

Posted in Photos, Prompt | Tagged , , , | 19 Comments

She Was…

Posted on June 27, 2026 by crispina kemp

3rd November 2021

The tiniest thing I’d ever seen
A fairy, I don’t doubt
Cos when I stared hard
The truth won out
She was dust
A powder-filler
She was scintilla

28 words written for Sammi’s Weekend Writing Prompt: Scintilla

Posted in Poems (Some Silly), Prompt | Tagged , , | 18 Comments

Friday Flyers

Posted on June 26, 2026 by crispina kemp

Butterflies and damsels from our walk on 10th June 2026. Enjoy

10th June 2026

🔼 Where else would you expect to find a Meadow Brown? 🔽

10th June 2026

🔽 Speckled Wood

10th June 2026

10th June 2026

🔼 Painted Lady on Breydon path 🔽

10th June 2026

10th June 2026

🔼 Tortoiseshell 🔽

10th June 2026

🔽 It’s a moth. I don’t know more that that

10th June 2026

10th June 2026

🔼 Southern Damselfly 🔽 Azure Damselfly

10th June 2026

🔽 A Buff-Tailed Bumble Bee enjoying a dab of mustard with its nectar!

10th June 2026

That’s all for this week. Hope you liked

Posted in Photos | Tagged , , | 19 Comments

CCC092: Grandma’s Story

Posted on June 25, 2026 by crispina kemp

Beatrice held out her hand, as defiant as a traffic cop. “I don’t care if you are my husband, you’re not coming near me nor my bed till you find us a proper house.”

Two babies she’d lost, living in this wooden box on wheels.

“But, Beatty, I’m a horse dealer,” her husband said, all reasonable and logical-sounding. “I need to travel to the horse fayres.”

“You need to. I don’t.” She restated her demands, “You’re not getting any more children on me till we’ve a proper house.”

So, yes, he bought a proper house. In fact, he bought a farm where he bred his horses and set up a riding school.

True story? It’s the way my grandma told it, so I guess so.

 

Posted in Crimson's Creative Challenge, Mostly Micro, Photos, Prompt | Tagged , , | 22 Comments