Yes this another repeat of a previous walk!  This one from October 2017.  Finding new walks has become quite a struggle and not that rewarding when the weather forecast is less than encouraging - snow expected later today.
There was surprisingly little frost on the forest, shame as I was expecting some interesting photos, but parts of the lakes were frozen over.  Although it was a very dull grey day it did not seen that cold while we were walking but most people seemed to have decided it was better to stay in doors.  We hardly saw anyone all day.   We did however see the lovely thatched cottage pictured below with wonderfully bow shaped walls.  We also found a few places where the local authority had kindly provided wooden walkways that took us round the edge of what would have been deep mud in warmer weather.
The paths are all quite easy to follow but some care is needed to avoid wandering too far off the route across the common.  We decided to weave a strange path through Appleslade Inclosure in deference to Ray's knee but this turned out rather well as it meant that we spotted the silver birches growing on a tiny island in a pond.  One of us could not resist the temptation to go and take a few photographs while the other sensibly stuck to the main path.
A 40% discount voucher came in very handy at The Smugglers Haunt, a Beefeater establishment in Ferndown.  As it is open all day for meals it is a little surprising that we have never, as far as either of us could recall had a walkers' lunch there before.  It was a pleasant location and good value.

The catkins are starting to appear all along the field edges and it is amazing how much pollen they can produce.
​Home Farm is often worth a quick visit but unfortunately it was closed until February.  Their little cottage is looking in need of a little, or maybe a lot, of TLC.