Grey Skies over Sutton Hoo

Saturday was a very grey day, but we were keen to get some fresh air and decided that NT Sutton Hoo was our best option. There seem to be a lot of changes happening over the site at present, not least the construction of this 17 metre high viewing tower.

The Anglo-Saxon Sutton Hoo ship was 27 metres long, and was dragged up to the site in the photo above.

Sadly there is no lift so the tower will not be accessible to all, but for those who can climb, it will provide views not only of the Royal Burial Ground (you can see a couple of the mounds in my photo), but also of the river Deben, which lies in the valley behind. 

The sudden flicker of sunlight was a welcome sight on a grey afternoon.

The photo above was taken on Saturday, showing the work in progress at the base of the tower...

...and I took the photo above last summer when the area was being excavated. 

It is always a joy to see the Herdwick sheep on the site. Apparently, and not surprisingly with the 'wick' ending, the name comes from the Old Norse word, herdvyck, meaning sheep pasture. 

 I took the photo above on a grey day last June, but have reposted it to give a little more impression of the site.

The photos above and below show a metal installation (i.e. model/reconstruction) of the ship by the visitors' centre.

I looked so hard for some wild spring flowers, but without much success. There were some lovely daffodils, ...

...a few late snowdrops,

...and some beautiful blossom. I think it may be Blackthorn as there did not appear to be any leaves in evidence.

We noticed the raised beds and assumed they were part of a sensory garden, but it turned out to be a 'dye garden'. 



I look forward to seeing it again once the plants have grown a bit. 

The names alone conjured up aspects of Anglo-Saxon life in my imagination, but the Woad plant actually originates from the area that is now south-east Russia (K.G. Gilbert, in Encyclopedia of Applied Plant Sciences, 2003).

These Woad plants seemed to be thriving. 

We visit Sutton Hoo several times a year. I wonder what we will see next time. The site is usually a good habitat for Skylarks and Small Copper butterflies. We noticed that a number of bramble and gorse bushes had been removed. I just hope the construction work will not disturb the wildlife habitats too much. 

NT Ickworth with its Rotunda, Ducks, Wildflowers... and Sheep

We had a lovely visit to NT Ickworth earlier this week. There were plenty of ducks about...

Some were upside down while others were more stream-lined!



 We were pleased to see a good number of Tufted Ducks...

 and a few Coots.



The Moorhen below was about to make its way through the newly-planted box hedge towards the lake. The scent of young box was wonderful!

 The photo below shows our first view of the classical Rotunda through the trees...




I decided I would keep an eye out for early wildflowers, starting with [1] Daisy.

[2] Groundsel

[3] Chickweed

[4] Dog's Mercury



[5] Red Dead Nettle



[6] Primrose (plus what I think are the two-tone leaves of Yellow Archangel).

 [7] Comfrey, I think...

[8] Aconite

 
[9] Snowdrop [update: correction - Conehead54 tells me this is Spring Snowflake. Please see comments below]

[10] Wild Arum (not yet in flower)...

I'm not very good at identifying blossom: do let me know if you recognise the species below. [Update: please see comments below - Conehead54 tells me this is a Viburnum.]



There were some fine catkins dangling in the shadowed sunshine. 

There were also quite a few logs lying about, some covered in moss. A pile like this makes the perfect des res for insects. 

We emerged from the woodland area and walked through the parkland towards the church and walled garden, passing the sheep. Apparently it will be another two weeks or so until they lamb. Like fellow blogger, The Quiet Walker, I find sheep so photogenic...

I noticed a couple of queen bees on the wing, but failed to photograph them. One touched down in the woody area in the photo below, and disappeared. The little acorn cup reminded me of a rather charming couple of lines by an American 19th century poet:

‘… the pride of the forest was folded up

In the narrow space of its little cup!’

H.F. Gould, The Pebble and the Acorn

This Grey Squirrel was rather camouflaged in among the branches. It caught our attention when it moved...

  This is the view of the lake...

 ... and this is the view from the other side, looking back towards the church

 ... and the rotunda.

There are two churches, one (the parish church) dedicated to St Leonard by the entrance to the park and the second, dedicated to St Mary, inside the grounds. St Mary's has some beautiful flint-work.

We have often seen good numbers of ladybirds in this area, but, perhaps on account of the cooler weather, we failed to see any yesterday.

It was time for a cup of tea so we headed back to the area around the Rotunda for Earl Grey and (in my case) a slice of coffee cake.

I particularly like the fact that there is a mini-rotunda carved on the frieze!

We bought a pot of daffodils on our way out to add an extra splash of colour to our garden at home.

#welcomesignsofspring