November

Thomas Hood wrote a poem which starts “No sun no moon no morn no noon” and ends “no shade no shine no butterflies no bees no fruits no flowers no leaves no birds. November!” Thought he was overdoing it for dramatic effect. Was planning to say November’s not as bad as that. Wikipedia tells me London when he wrote in 1844 was heated by coal, and peasouper fogs were common. 1956 Clean air act cured that problem. Now we have vehicle pollution and smoke from woodburners.

November can be a gloomy month. Sometimes it never really gets light. After 46 years in east Kent i’m still surprised when the sun sets about 420 pm. This November wasn’t too bad. One wet and windy day including a hailstorm. One wet night. Some gloomy drizzle. But many cold dry sunny days, great for walking.

Trying to return to normal. Countryside access work, walks with Datrows, allotment. The last never stopped during pandemic. Allotment a welcome refuge.

Last week looked at a few footpaths south of Boughton. A new area to me. It was cold, damp and grey. Wore two jumpers, woolly hat and windproof coat. Rural walk with hopgardens and orchards. Roar of traffic on A2. Replaced a waymarker.

Sunday joined Datrows walk from Goodnestone, first for a while. I’d missed one walk because it was horrendously wet. Cold and sunny. A leisurely walk led by Mike Weston. Reverse of Aug 22nd’s walk. Not leisurely enough for me. Failed to keep up. Talk with Steve Tebbett who had repaired two shaky stiles. Told about “where do camels belong” by Ken Thompson, about invasive species. Discussed alternative energy. Are heat pumps the answer?

A colleague once said “November is a winter month” Sometimes it is. Anyway we move into December. Happy walking.