It was a sunny day so I went for a walk. There’s been a lot of rain so I used byways as much as possible – muddy, but less muddy and more easily navigable than the footpath I took south of Staveley. I’ve never splashed mud up to my knees before.

The strong shadows turned the landscape into an abstract work of art. I was rather flummoxed at the ford – until I noticed the little bridge. On Gamblesmire Lane I looked for the bee nest in the hollow tree, but the sun had disappeared by then and there was no sign of bees.