Walking Journal – September 2022
I have taken to writing my own walking journal – this is the September 2022 edition. Over a few years, it would be good to look back and compare my thoughts.
This month, the weather changed from a record-busting hot August to torrential rain, but the hosepipe ban is still in place in Cornwall. Avian flu is killing thousands of birds and Liz Truss becomes Prime Minister.
Queen Elizabeth II
This is the major news story for the UK. Everything else, all the other nasties going on in the world, seems to have been forgotten. The nation is in mourning with the sad news that Queen Elizabeth II passed away on the afternoon of the 8th of September. King Charles III becomes monarch. The Queen’s State funeral was declared a public holiday on Monday 20th of September.
Early Autumn?
There is a great deal of news that we are experiencing a false autumn due to the hot August and lack of water. On my walks, I see the early ripening blackberries and a fair amount of browning leaves on trees and shrubs. Coincidentally, at the start of the month, FaceBook provided a reminder of my concerns 5 years ago that autumn was coming early. So it’s not just this year and unlikely just about global warming alone, as the media is keen to point out.
No, it’s not early autumn for all flora. There’s an ivy variety that I love, which I’ve only known of in recent years. It flowers in late September and into October and the bees swarm to it. I like to think it’s their last decent meal before winter. In early to mid-September it wasn’t flowering. The worry is that the farmers are already cutting back the hedges, including this ivy.
Geese
St Germans is surrounded by water with the River Tiddy to the north and Polbathic Lake to the south. We have Canadian geese that settle on our tidal rivers. As soon as the weather turns a little colder, the geese move from, usually, the south to the north in the evenings and we get wonderful displays of their arrow-like formations flying low overhead. Aside from one day in August, they started their regular movements late this year – the 2nd week into September. They usually start in the last week of August.
Country and Coast – September
The farmers are also hard at work harvesting cabbages from fields near where I live. I’m not sure if these are being harvested any earlier.
On the ground, sheltered from the sun and wind by hedgerows, various mushroom varieties are popping up. I think this is down to the moisture in the air where it has been much drier in July and August.
Although we have had lots of rain at the end of August and into September, the ground isn’t too bad – neither hard nor boggy. On the drier days, it’s very pleasant walking conditions with shorts and a tee.
