Cotswolds Walks, Nature & Discovery

I like a Good Tree!

There. I’ve said it.

I like a good tree! 🌳

I’m not quite sure when it happened, but somewhere along the way I’ve become the person who stops to photograph a tree.

A beautiful old willow.

A wonderfully twisted trunk.

A canopy that makes you stop and look up.

Light filtering through the leaves.

Or simply a tree that looks as though it has been standing there quietly watching the world go by for hundreds of years.

And when I’m out walking, I find myself noticing them more and more.

Perhaps that’s what walking does to you

When you are walking, you slow down.

You have time to look around rather than simply getting from A to B.

You notice the old stone buildings and the stories they hold.

You notice wildflowers growing at the edge of a path.

You stop to listen for birds.

You notice the changing colours and textures of the countryside.

And, increasingly, I notice the trees.

Some are enormous and magnificent. Others are gnarled and slightly battered but still standing. Some are so perfectly shaped that they almost look as though someone has designed them.

And then there are those that make you wonder about everything they have witnessed during their lifetime.

How many people have walked beneath them?

How many summers and winters have they seen?

What stories could they tell if only they could speak?

Seeing familiar places through different eyes

This is something I have particularly appreciated through my work as a walking tour leader.

I know the Cotswolds well. I have spent years walking, exploring and working here.

But when you take a group around, particularly visitors who are seeing the area for the first time, you begin to see it differently yourself.

Recently, I had the pleasure of showing groups of American visitors around the Cotswolds.

Seeing their reactions to the villages, the landscapes, the buildings and the countryside reminded me just how special this part of the world is.

Sometimes we become so familiar with somewhere that we stop really seeing it.

A visitor looks at something and says, “Wow!”

And you think…

Yes. Actually. Wow.

And there is always something unexpected

One of the things I love about guiding is that you never quite know what you are going to encounter.

One day it might be a magnificent view across the countryside.

Another, a beautiful old church with centuries of history.

Perhaps a birding experience where you are privileged to see a fledgling being carefully ringed, with the bird’s welfare very clearly at the heart of everything being done.

Or the unexpected beauty and incredible detail of wild orchids growing in the countryside.

And occasionally, you come across something completely unexpected…

Like a rather fabulous monument featuring reclining knights! 😂

That is the joy of walking.

You set off thinking you know what the day will bring and then something catches your eye.

You stop.

You look.

You ask a question.

And suddenly there is another story to discover.

My walking tours may have finished for the year…

Unless, of course, I get that last-minute call for help!

It has been a challenging year for me physically. I managed to injure myself early in the year — rather impressively, by playing ten rounds of golf in eleven days!

That created a problem with my peroneal tendon, which then led to plantar heel pain, which then led to… well, you get the picture!

But what kept me going was my commitment to the tours I had agreed to do and, most importantly, the people I met along the way.

People with fascinating stories, different experiences and wonderful perspectives on life.

It has been an absolute pleasure showing them around the Cotswolds and sharing some of the wonders it has to offer.

And now, as the walking season comes to an end, I find myself looking back at some of the photographs I have taken.

The people.

The places.

The history.

The wildlife.

The flowers.

The views.

And, of course…