Greenlaning in Normandy by Velo

 

 

 

Greenlaning is a pursuit I became aufait with my friend Alix when we spent an amazing wild weekend last year traversing the wild green offroad lanes of Dorset in her Defender Landrover. Well, this weekend Alix, I have invented Greenlaning for velos (cycles) not so damn mad as ….. mountain biking ….. but a little more gentile, which allows time to appreciate the spring beauty and space of nature here in Lower Normandy and for me to photograph it!

 

 

Where are living there is an incredible network of footpaths/cycle routes to satisfy anyone with scenery and bucolic bliss to send you to heaven. It is so unspoilt here by any kind of commercialism.

 

The rape is blinding at the moment….

 

Here is my first Percheron, he is literally enorrrrrrrrmmmmous! Last weekend he was out being ridden by a huge fellow who looked like a matchstick man on top of him! Today, he was happily grazing as we passed by with his mate a Shetland pony.

Very sad to reflect so many thousands were lost during the wars.

 

Normandy folk are especially house-proud and garden-proud,  you literally never see a blade of grass out of place here. Everyone endeavours to strim and mow constantly to keep the place looking up to scratch. At the end of our relatively short 5 mile greenlane jaunt today we finished off traversing a field on this cycle/footpath that had just been mown! Amazing!

Bluebell Magic

 

 

 

 

Living on the edge of this beautiful Foret des Andaines we get to see the amazing changes that can seem to happen over night. Driving through yesterday we saw a heavenly blue in the distance. I spent the next two hours immersing myself amongst them. They were so very small and delicate – it was a most gorgeous sight to behold.

No fancy textures, filters etc – all done in camera with a just a few level tweeks in Lightroom.

art in the trees today

Hammer House?

 

Just down the road from us sits this mythical imposing scary but beautiful petit chateau. The gates are always closed due to the fact  the place is closed up most of the time. Someone’s country getaway? The gates were open today to enable the grass to be cut in the far reaching grounds, maybe they are coming soon? Well I think it is a pretty extrodinaire building and would I like to live it in it?  …YES! But I cannot help but think it could have been the inspiration for a Hitchcock movie! Isn’t it just devine?

The Hurdy Gurdy Man

 

I am sure many of us have heard the name ‘Hurdy Gurdy Man’ (depending on your age of course!) Well for the very first time in my life, I met him in person playing in the medieval streets of Dinan in Brittany this week. The music he played was quite beautiful and the sound so very sweet and ancient. As you can see he was very photogenic with clothes to suit the time and space he was in. In  French the Hurdy Gurdy instrument is known as the ‘vielle’ and is most fascinating to see it beng played. He winds the instrument on the side whilst holding the strings to apply pressure to create sound. Loving Brittany, it is so very much like Kernow in many ways.

 

 

…says it all in Domfront

 

I jumped right out of my skin whilst I was leaning against ‘ding dong’ taking the photo …..and the door opened!

Arboretum de l’Étoile des Andaines

 

 

The Arboretum de l’Étoile des Andaines (13 hectares) is an arboretum about 5 mins drive from us. The arboretum was created in 1947 by forestry chief Robert Julienne and today contains about 66 types of hardwood trees and conifers with a walking loop of two kilometers in length.

Today I was in thick mist at times but also in seventh heaven capturing the magic of this Arboretum as it is beginning to burst into life at springtime. Springtime comes later here in Normandy, the primeroses are just in their prime and the daffodils are now just beginning to say goodbye. The bluebells are just beginning to appear. It was extraordinaire here today with that wonderful flat unreflective light that I love to photograph plants and trees and nothing but the birds for company…. feeling very fortunate