This year it has so far been a much colder and drier start to the winter, which is a blessing to be honest – no-one wants a repeat of last year’s mud fest as it kept on raining. The skies are thus much clearer giving some lovely sunsets through the trees providing a different effect now that the leaves are largely gone.

The lane itself is looking more bare and bleak. Not so many pickings around for nature’s creatures, but that doesn’t stop the hens from wandering around, foraging whatever they can from the verges.

We did have some severe winds in storm Angus that blew through the other week and that caused some residual damage. The crab apple tree in the horses’ paddock which I showed previously was already propped upright but sadly now has collapsed once again – possibly terminally this time.

The brown and white shape you may notice behind the tree in the picture above is none other than our hero, Tommy! This was one of the milder days so he took the opportunity to have a sit down and enjoy a little warmth from the winter sun. He is looking in fine fettle at the moment.

Tom doesn’t have a good relationship with winter blankets. He either rips them while scratching himself against a shelter or a tree or they bring him out in a nasty skin rash if he perspires too much. The racehorses next door, on the other hand, are far more sensitive to the cold and are always well dressed during the day when grazing outside.

And back to where we started, note the lack of mud in the fields pictured in the photos above – long may it continue!