Lake Pier with Linda

Thursday 21st July 2016

As I said yesterday, my cousin Linda has arrived to stay for a few days. So this morning she came with us on our walk to Lake Pier, Hamworthy.

When we got to the beach the Wareham River Cruise boat was just passing.

It’s a boat trip I’d like to do someday.

Jez was happy to be down the beach and after a while wandered into the sea.

Here’s Linda with both Jez and Max.

And a photo of Linda with the Rockley Sailing School in the background.

We walked along the beach and then onto the lake. Max has got Linda well trained: he knows that she will always throw his cone or his ball for him.

And Linda duly obliges.

Here’s one last shot of Linda for today.

We walked on back to the beach and played some more there. It might look grey and cold but it was actually very warm, so we had a lovely morning.

A year ago today

Max and I went for a walk on Canford Heath. Here he is in the heather.

Lake Pier in Black and White

Wednesday 8th June 2016

It was a muggy overcast morning this morning and I decided to take the dogs down to Lake Pier at Hamworthy for our walk. I took a few photos as the calm conditions made Poole Harbour look very appealing. When I got them back, though, there was virtually no colour in them (due to the weather and light) and they looked almost black and white. So I decided to edit them that way. In some I have lowered the clarity, and in others increased it slightly, for effect.

When we arrived there was someone fishing at the end of the pier.

I loved the reflections of the masts in the water in this next shot.

And this boat, which I photograph quite a lot, just looks becalmed.

And finally in the landscape series, one of the pier.

Today Jez coped with the beach far better than she did 3 weeks ago, so we walked along the beach to the steps, up the steps (she needed a bit of a hand with a few of them) and round to the lake. Then we walked back to the carpark and onto the beach by the marine base. Here’s one last photo from today, in colour this time, of Jez cooling down in front of the marine base fencing.

I think you can see from that photo why I said the photos of the sea today looked devoid of colour.

 

A year ago today

We went to Upton Heath where we met lots of our doggie friends. Here Jez gets some loving from Henry.

We meet Rockley Watersports

Tuesday 24th May 2016

Today was a lovely sunny day, although there was a bit of a chilly breeze, so I chose to take the dogs down to Lake Pier at Hamworthy. As usual Max jumped out of the car and raced to the water’s edge to wait for me to come and throw cones for him.

After a short time he was joined by Jez.

While we were playing a crocodile of canoes from Rockley Watersports pulled up on the beach.

There was another group a little way behind them.

Max wasn’t too bothered by what was going on.

But Jez had to go and say hello and then investigate the boats.

Their leaders got them playing a tag game on the beach so I decided it would be a good idea to take the dogs back along towards the pier. We crossed to the beach that lies between the pier and the marine base, and as we started to play one of the dredgers that keeps Poole Harbour free from silt moved from it’s mooring further out in the harbour.

We walked along that short section of beach and back, at the end of which I took a short video clip of Jez struggling to walk on the dry sand.

Poor little soul is happy enough though.

And on the subject of Jez I’m pleased to say that she had a second heart scan yesterday and the vet was pleased with her. He says she was slightly improved for her last scan 3 months ago, thanks to her medication. We also chatted about the practice’s Pet Fit Hydro at their Bournemouth practice and as a result I took Jez there this afternoon. The vet took ages with her and at the end introduced her to the water walker (without the water on this occasion) and tried some sensory water therapy on her. This basically involved showering her back and legs. Poor Jez – she doesn’t do baths and showers, but she was a good little dog. We are going back a week on Friday for a proper session.

A year ago today

We went to Lychett Bay for our walk.

Hamworthy Park

Friday 20th May 2016

As I was later going for my walk this morning (or Friday I do the grocery shopping first) Jez decided to join Max and I. For a change I took them to Hamworthy Park. Max has been there before but not Jez. However, I thought it would make a nice short walk for her.

Hamworthy Park runs down to the beach a little bit further along in Poole Harbour from Lake Pier at Hamworthy where we sometimes walk. This was the view looking in the direction of Lake Pier (although you can’t see it from here as the yacht club and marine base are in the way.

The dogs can only get on and off the beach here via the steps, which are a little bit steep. But I managed to help Jez down.

Both dogs went in the sea, but then Jez had to have a rest.

That’s the port of Poole in the background in this photo. After we went on the beach (and on the last section I had to lift Max sopping wet up the steps!) we walked on round the park. But the wind was freezing and I was glad to get back to the car.

A year ago today

We went down to Lychett Bay.

A sunny afternoon at the beach

Saturday 30th April 2016

We had more sunshine today, although there was quite a chill to the breeze. That meant I wrapped up well when I took the dogs down to Lake Pier at Hamworthy – which was a mistake! Down there we were pretty sheltered and I was soon quite hot. I got some good photos though.

As ever, Max was really excited to be on the beach. Here he waits at the water’s edge for me to go and play with him.

I had chosen the beach again as Jez’s physio had suggested the sand might help her work out what her back legs are going. The poor little soul really struggled though. She found it very hard going and was wobbling everywhere. She, too, was really pleased to be on the beach, though, and loved the water.

And the water was looking very inviting today.

And here’s a close up of that boat that you can see on the right of that photo.

Max, as ever, just wanted me to throw things into the sea for him.

And, for today, one last photo of a very happy Jezebel.

After we’d been on the beach Jez decided she wanted to walk to the lake. I was worried it was a bit far for her, but she managed well. And at least it meant I washed the salt and sand off the dogs before taking them home.

A year ago today

Max and I parked by Eye Bridge then walked up to Abbot Street Copse in Pamphill to see the bluebells.

Search and Rescue

Saturday 16th April 2016

As we had Jez with us for our walk this afternoon I wanted somewhere where she could potter about. In addition, her physio had suggested that sensory stimulation, such as sand or long grass, to her back feet and legs might help her. So with that in mind we went down to Lake Pier at Hamworthy.

I was aware from Facebook that the Search and Rescue teams were out and about in Hamworthy as an older gentleman had gone missing from there earlier in the day. When we got to the car park the teams were still there.

Sadly, as I write this (10 days later) I believe that they still haven’t found him. It must be such a worrying time for his family. Max, meanwhile, was happy to be back on the beach and I spent all of my time there throwing a cone into the sea for him while Jez pottered about. We only wandered back and forth along the beach today, and didn’t walk up around the cliff top and lake, as I needed to keep Jez’s walking to a minimum. She was happy though, until she went along the pier. It’s an old wooden pier, and she got half way along before she realised she really wasn’t coping very well with the slats where her hind legs weren’t working properly. So we quickly headed back to the car park, but not before I had snapped Max, who, whilst we were on the pier, wandered around in the water below.

And one last photo from today: of one of the boats that’s always moored out near the marine base.

I thought it looked good in black and white.

A year ago today

Here’s Jez, on a nice sunny day, in the River Stour at Cowgrove.

Sunshine and Poole Harbour

Friday 11th March 2016

Max and I were later with our walk this morning, as always on a Friday, as I did my grocery shopping before I took him out. It was a lovely sunny morning and we went down to the Baiter and Whitecliff Park.

The strip of land between the Baiter and Whitecliff Park is all scrubby grass, but at certain times of the year you can find flowers growing in small patches there, and at this time of the year it is the turn of the daffodil.

When we got to Whitecliff Park this was the view over the yacht club.

Max wasn’t interested in the view though. He hopped over the wall and waited for me to throw something for him. Either that or he was playing peek-a-boo.

We had a quick play there and then headed back along the path towards the Baiter where we had a proper game of cone on the beach.

We continued along to the Baiter slipway where I loved the bright green of the seaweed that had washed up.

We turned across the Baiter and headed back to the car. Max managed to get covered in mud en route, but luckily there was a big puddle in the car park along Newfoundland Drive. I liked the tree reflected in it and thought it worked well in black and white.

And so back to the car via Poole Cycle Speedway track, which has this graffiti on the wall.

It had been a nice walk on a lovely sunny morning.

A year ago today

Frog spawn in the pond.

We have a poorly girl

Friday 4th March 2016

Yesterday afternoon I had to take Jez to the vet for her heart scan (her vet picked up a murmur 3 weeks ago). Unfortunately the news was not good as it turns out that Jez had Dilated Cardiomyopathy (a type of heart disease) and the walls of one of her heart chambers is very weak, which means the chamber is enlarged and the heart is not pumping properly. Hopefully the prognosis is slightly better though, as our vet says the heart medication that he has put Jez on is very effective.

Typical for Jez she decided to try and prove that there isn’t much wrong with her an insisted on going for 3 walks today. The first of these was with Max and I down to Lychett Bay after I’d done my grocery shopping.

We hadn’t been down to Lychett Bay for ages as I it can get very wet and muddy. Today, as we set off, I wondered just how long our walk would be as there was a clear storm front moving in.

Fortunately it seemed to be a lot worse over the other side of the bay.

As you may be able to see from the photos the tide was a long way out this morning. Max was not happy.

Even when we got round to the boats at Turlin Moor he struggled to find any water to play in.

Jez, meanwhile, was just happy to poke around amongst all the discarded fishing and boating rubbish that’s down there.

And then, just as I took that photo, the wind whipped up and it started to rain and sleet slightly. You can’t tell it, but it was actually sleeting on us as I took this photo.

Unfortunately the rainbow wasn’t bright enough to show up on my photos.

We walked back to the car and by the time we got back to the viewpoint at the head of the bay the wind had dropped, the rain had stopped, and the sun was shining.

The car was dry, but a short distance away as I drove home the roads were soaking wet and there were piles of hailstones everywhere. We’d been lucky!

A year ago today

Max and I went to Badbury Rings and I took photos of the lambs at Wimborne on the way.

To the sea

Friday 26th February 2016

On Friday I do my grocery shopping before I take Max out as the supermarket car park tends to fill up by mid-day. This means that sometimes on a Friday Jez comes with us too, as she is up and doing by the time Max and I are ready to go out on our walk. Today was one such day and so for a change, and to keep the walk reasonably short for Jez I decided to go down to Parkstone Bay in Poole. We haven’t been there since last autumn I don’t think.

I had read that there was a new path down there, leading from the car park where we park (by the skateboard park) to the main path along the bay, and sure enough, there it was.

As you can see, the weather wasn’t great and, as is so often the case, there was a cold wind whipping across the harbour. The tide as in and the harbour, itself, was looking rather nice.

Poor Jez, though: she can’t get up on the wall along at Whitecliff Park any more, and she so loves to stand on the pillars there, so today I lifted her up.

Max, meanwhile, was the other side of the wall: waiting.

Here he is again, in the sea at the bottom of the steps.

And here he is with Jez.

I love that photo of them, even if Jez is a tiny bit blurred where she was moving.

We headed back to the Baiter, where Jez found herself a puddle.

And then we cut back through to the car park. En route, though, I spotted this Blackthorn blossom.

Spring is on its way!

A year ago today

It was a bit of a wet walk at Upton Country Park.

Oh what a beautiful morning

Wednesday 13th January 2016

The thermometer in the car said it was 2.3C, but the sun was shining and there wasn’t a breath of wind. So I wrapped up well and took Max down to Lake Pier at Hamworthy, having checked the tides first. What a great choice. My one complaint? I was way too hot!

I took loads of photos, but have tried to be selective in the ones that I have uploaded to post here.

So, firstly, as we set off there were a couple of canoeists preparing for a morning out in Poole Harbour.

It may have been calm today, but as I mentioned yesterday, we had quite a bit of wind. So there was still quite a lot of foam about on the water. Here Max ignores a ‘foamberg’.

There has been an old tree stump washed up on the beach recently, and this morning with the calm conditions and high tide it was reflected nicely in the water.

I thought this yacht on the calm sea made for a very tranquil scene.

And I love this one of the reflected clouds.

Another photo of Max for you, taken at the end of our walk and after his swim in the lake.

And I will leave you today with a panorama across Poole Harbour, taken as we walked along the beach.

We are so lucky to live in such a beautiful place.

A year ago today

We were at Upton Country Park where I took this great photo of one of the calves.