Gavin Johnson's photos

I spotted these while walking in the local woods. I'm no expert (and I don't think I'll ever be brave enough to forage for edible mushrooms) but I think these are Mica Cap (Coprinellus micaceus).

HWW - I spotted the remains of an old sign in Gloucester. I believe it is advertising Talbot & Co. Founded in 1845 by Thomas Talbot, this firm operated out of premises on Ladybellegate Street and Commercial Road (partially occupying the former Blackfriars Monastery site). While they started with mineral waters and ginger beer, they expanded by the turn of the 20th century to wholesale beer and cider bottling—notably for major names like Bass and Worthington. Antique embossed "Talbot Gloucester" bottles are frequent finds for bottle collectors today

HFF! We found an unusual sign as we were out walking a section of the Cotswold Way. Sadly, no cats crossed our path on the walk.

I've been wondering why I've been getting through €2 or more of bird food every day recently, and today I figured it out. I count 27 House Sparrows roosting in this bush, and there were at least another dozen in a nearby tree. I suppose at least I'm doing my part to keep their population up!

This plant caught my eye on a canal-side walk. Growing out of a crack in the brickwork of a bridge, the tendril had grown, putting out regularly spaced leaves, until it touched the water.

HFF - a shot from last month where we spent an enjoyable day watching Gloucestershire play (badly) against neighbouring county Worcestershire at the Cheltenham Cricket Festival. The festival is held in the grounds of Cheltenham College, and is the oldest continuously held cricket festival in the world, running annually since 1872.

A lot of people can see shapes in clouds (I think it's called pareidolia). These made me think of ocean waves breaking in a storm. I've cheated a bit by altering the contrast - the sky was really a much lighter shade of blue.

HWW. We're a county over from the Oxfordshire countryside that inspired Professor Tolkien, but a lot of the walks along the Cotswold Way make me think of his writing. Fortunately, we made it home without meeting any Ringwraiths.

Even after some nice late summer rain, the fields are brown and very dry. Flattening them for next planting is slow and heavy going.

HBM! The bench (it's there, just below the white house) is at the bottom of Coopers Hill in Gloucestershire. The image doesn't do the steepness of the slope justice, but this is the hill that brave and foolhardy folk throw themselves down in pursuit of a wheel of cheese at the end of every May. The PiP is a view of this year's event, from a very safe distance!

HFF - a very local shot today, from my garden. We tried growing a new vegetable this year, the Armenian Cucumber (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armenian_cucumber) It's actually a type of melon, but tastes like cucumber, and, after a slow start, has started producing a lot of fruit that grow incredibly fast. We have so many already, I think the ones in the photo are destined for a pickle jar!

It was another sunny day yesterday, and we were looking forward to seeing the partial eclipse (around 93% where we live). As the big moment approached, so did this cloud, which lurked around until well past the fullest coverage. I would have been slightly less annoyed if it had dropped some rain, but no, it just spoiled the party and drifted off :-)

Some young Long-Tailed Tits occasionally pop in to eat some of the blackfly on our beans (which is nice of them). They're always on the move, but I managed to catch this one making his contact call to keep in touch with the rest of the clan.

HWW! The walls under Stroud's viaducts are a favourite spot for graffiti, a mixture of street art, political protest, and terratorial tagging. This wall struck me as slightly interesting, as the moss growing on the mortar is gradually growing over the paint, which is flaking off in places to reveal prior layers of art.

The caterpillars have been munching through the sacrificial nasturtiums we planted for them, and have mostly left everything else alone. The butterflies are usually very skittish, but this one tolerated me poking my macro lens in its face for a while before flying off.

HWW. I hope this counts as a Wednesday Wall. This is a view up the hill of the main street in the Cotswold market town of Winchcombe. I liked the way that the houses are all terraced together but seem to be in an odd mix of sizes, styles and building materials.

Halfway up a hill near us is a house who's owner has a sense of fun. As well as a garden with a huge golden egg and brightly dressed scarecrows in the vegetable patch, he has made a creative sign for his house name. As you walk towards the house, the random jumble of letters arrange themselves to read "Oakwood House" if you stand in the right place.

HBM - This bench is on the main street in the small Cotswold market town of Winchcombe, dating back to the Anglo-Saxon era. The town still has many buildings and features dating back to medieval times, and more recently, in 2021 it was the site of a meteorite strike of worldwide astronomical interest. As a bonus, the wall behind the bench has a 'ghost door', that used to lead to the grounds of Winchcombe Abbey. The sign on the wall reads "Abbey Terrace, known by locals as the High Walk, was created in 1835. The main gate and grounds of Winchcombe Abbey stood northwards from here."