I felt like I needed to get out of the house yesterday and get some exercise, so I took a long walk on the West Heath, Sandy Heath and Hampstead Heath Extension. It's a route I often took with Olga, so there were canine ghosts around every bend in the path. It made me sad, but I also found myself laughing at memories of how wild she'd get chasing squirrels and running with her Kong tightly gripped in her jaws.
The pond on Sandy Heath was thinly layered with ice, and there were signs warning people not to try to walk on it. Surely no one would be that clueless.
Here's the Pitt House Gateway, where I photographed Olga many times. According to a plaque on the gate, it dates from around 1766, when it was built as an improvement to the residence of William Pitt, Earl of Chatham.
And here's St. Jude on the Hill, a prominent church on the north side of Hampstead Heath Extension.
The weather was cold and wintry but at least it didn't rain on me. I listened to my iTunes and wished the world could be as simple as pop music suggests, when The Mamas and The Papas told us to "go where you wanna go, do what you wanna do, with whoever you wanna do it with."
I passed this house with a blue plaque, which I don't recall ever seeing before -- but it's on a side street I don't often walk so I've probably just missed it. Michael Ventris was an architect and classicist who deciphered Linear B, an ancient Greek script, and then died young in a car crash.
Back home again, I downloaded the videos from the Garden Cam, and what a boring week it was! I got no nighttime videos at all, perhaps because it was so cold that the animals weren't out moving around. (The coldest temperature the camera recorded was 29ยบ F, at 9:20 a.m. on Jan. 4. I'm sure it was colder at night, but if there was no movement to trigger the camera I'd have no record of it.) My daytime videos were mostly pigeons. I had one brief glimpse of Pale Cat and two brief glimpses of a fox, perhaps Q-Tip:
But really, there wasn't even enough to compile into a video. Let's hope the coming week gives us some better footage.
You have so many happy memories of walks with Olga.. don't shy away of walking where you went with her.
ReplyDeleteEverything is hunkering down where it is cold..and wet..it has been blowing a hoolie all night here and rain too..I'm not planning to go out to see how cold it is as well!!
Yes, if only life could be as simple as the song lyrics.
ReplyDeleteWhile on the the music theme, is that a 'Fox on the run'?
I was confused by the word Decipherer with a capital D. I really don't think it should be a capital letter.
Yesterday I saw videos of 'clueless' people falling through thin ice. They are that clueless.
You are fortunate to have such a wonderful place for walking nearby. I hope that, if your plans to move elsewhere come to fruition, you will be close to other lovely walking routes.
ReplyDeleteIt's good for the soul.
A long walk with the ghost of Olga is the best thing you could have posted today....for all of us.
ReplyDeleteThis stopped me in my tracks. I realized that I too have been walking qwith ghosts this week.
DeleteI know it’s not completely easy but how wonderful to be able to walk those paths again and have sweet memories of Olga. It looks so cold!
ReplyDeleteThe fox looks very much like Q-Tip.
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing the walk with us - it looks very much like my kind of walk, with the intriguing gateway, the bare trees and the church.
The plaque on the wall looks rather bright, so maybe it was put there recently, or maybe it was overgrown from the shrubs behind the wall when you passed there before.
To remember Sweet Olga as you tramped about the heath, I am surprised that you didn't throw a "Kong" toy for yourself before retrieving it from the bushes with your tongue lolling and your ears pricked up. Perhaps you did but you are just not telling us.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you linked to your past post on Olga in this area. i loved the movie too -- it was good to see her again. Your memories of her are so lovely -- I'm glad you could revisit the best of them again, even if there are some moments of poignant sadness.
ReplyDeleteSome local walkers had to warn a young person about the dangers of walking on an ice-covered pond recently. It's not as obvious as you might think.
ReplyDeleteI think walking the paths with Olga memories would be nice, remembering how she ran and played and sniffed and such.
ReplyDeleteWhat kind of trees are those in the fourth photo? They're scary looking and so beautiful at the same time.
ReplyDeleteOh, Steve. This makes ME sad, remembering all those walks with Olga you took and wrote about. I must really be emotional this morning. What a full and interesting life you and Dave gave her. She was such a happy soul with you.
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderfully wild space the Heath is. I wish there was someplace like that within walking distance here but it would probably be filled with poison ivy and I wouldn't be able to walk in it anyway.
ReplyDeleteIt's a nice hike with happy Olga memories for you. I wonder if you will get another dog after your retirement, Steve.
ReplyDeleteSounds like a nice walk. It's good that the cold didn't slow you down. We finally have our normal winter temps here so I've been adjusting to the colder temps. I was out yesterday morning but I bundled up pretty well. Then of course I saw several other poeple out in shorts and short sleeves. Winter in Arizona. You will see all kinds of attire.
ReplyDeleteYou have lovely places to walk. The reflection of trees in the pond is lovely. It looks very much like a winter day. Just think, in a few months the trees will be full of leaves.
ReplyDeleteI'm a bit envious of the variety of your walks. Mine are trees, trees, trees. That's about it. The warning sign? Yes, some people are that clueless.
ReplyDeleteSometimes it's tough to get out. I need a routine to keep going.
ReplyDelete