So tonight I got the tape measure out

As I have mentioned many times before, we have visitors that come most nights, but tonight I was amazing. Not only one but three deer ventured through the back garden gate and ended up only 8 foot from me .It was a shame as I get a clearer photo, when I have the stable door open. It was well after 8pm and as the sun had gone down it was getting quite cool and the dew had fallen. I happned to look out of the window and saw a deer near the gate so I went to the stable door as I thought I would get a btter photo. Low and behold there were 3 of them only 8 foot from me . They are casting their winter coats so they do now look their best. The wire fences are up to stop them coming during the night and getting into the main front garden. They can soon do a lot of damage. One night they cleared the whole 6ft magnolia tree off of its flowers . We turn a blind eye to them nibbling the blossom from the trees. We are hoping to set up a hide so when you come to stay you can see them as near hand as we do

Oh how Deer ... and precious

 How I love Autumn. 

The trees are looking amazing all warm red,oranges  and some days the skies are too as the sun rises and set. The former I don't normally see as many of you know I am quite a night owl. Although this morning I was up before 4am as we have just been having some new shelves put up in the and I needed to fill them ...well more like I needed to make space. 

I think it looks as if I will be back to writing my blog more often as we are going back into stranger times, so here goes.

I take some of the dogs out during the day when Jack is on the shoots and in fact have quite enjoyed it . I managed to pick quite a gathering of blackberries [before the devil spit on them ]- Some say the 10th October but as I looked this up I feel there is more sense to the date being the 29th September,which is Michaelmas.  After that the early frosts seem to come and make them all mushy . 

 I gathered quite a lot of fungi and we have survived although I left some in their natural habitat as I wasn't too sure.

The longer I walked the more the dogs seemed comfortable to do their own thing and  I liked that too as I wasn't tripping up over them all the time . They are very good and always come back when I shout ...well most of the time .

And look what I came across ... the photo below show a little fawn curled up in the sunshine. probably no more than a couple of days old. I have never been to one so close before and it warmed my heart for days.To begin with I wasn't sure if it was dead or alive .then I saw its ear twitch and a step nearer you could see its tiny body breathing . I went back a couple of hours later  without the dogs  just to check it hadn't been left .By this time it had opened its eyes as I heard a noise high above me .Its mother was calling out as I made a quick exit as I didnt want its mother not to come back for it .

Nature is such a marvellous thing and this last few months as the pace of life has slowed down for many of us we start to see things more or less on our doorstep . 

Look who came to see the waterfall ..

This must be our video of the year even though you have to be quick to see it.I was clearing some of the debris away near the waterfall and heard a grunt and then another and it went on for 5 minutes or so .So I climbed up the bank side and [you have to be quick to see it at around 11 seconds in ] a deer had come to inspect what we had been doing . It is just above the waterfall but I am sure if I had been really still it would have come even nearer. This was 2.30 in the afternoon so when we say we have deer in the back garden we really do have. I guess the grunting was the fact I had blocked its path down to the back garden gate. 

Will be interesting to see if arrives later or if I have disturbed it for today

Sausages and the countryside .This blog is dedicated to Sarah B

Back into the kitchen today as we have locked ourselves at home as much as we can. We will call it being anti -social -say no more.  Lucky to have acres of green...green fields, green trees with green ferns, moss and flora. Huge swathes of wild garlic invading into our flower garden  around us and a mile out of the village wildlife is abound and life is carrying on just like any other March day.

Sausages rolls today .... Joan Sanders do you remember making all that puff pastry for your Mum and and Dad when they used to provide all the food for the hunt balls ?. That would be 50 years ago now .I remember it was roll the pastry, slap lots of butter on it ,fold it out, one, twice and do it all again. And again and again ... I wonder how many chefs make their own puff pastry these days.
I must admit mine today was the snowflakes' way ...out of a packet but I did use some rather nice sausage meat.  We are lucky to have Wass Farm Shop just across the road from us who sell some amazing meat and proper yellow yolked eggs .

We have an Aga and anyone who has used one will tell you if something starts to burn the smell goes up the chimney rather than like a conventional cooker and you can smell it is the kitchen.

As you will see my sausages rolls got... ummm.. slightly well cooked. Jack said as dry as b... and  even I felt if I had tried to hid them under some mushy peas he would still have complained. So I pull some prawn and mushrooms in a leek  sauce with spaghetti for his supper to pacify him.

I hope you can enjoy watching the video which I took trying to catch this little fella for you to see. I took about 10 videos each time getting a it nearer . At one stage I wanted to shout at him as he chewed on one of my fruit trees . By the time he saw me we had eye balled each other for what seemed ages I was less than 15 yards from him. I thought it was a young deer but my dad said it was more likely by how I described it a muntjac. He was darker and more calf like than the usually roes that comes to graze around the house. .Well dear deer, whatever you are,  you showed how marvellous is nature. Enjoying the afternoon sunshine and grazing without a care in the world . And I knew the gate needs replacing, but my uncle made it for me and I am too sentimental to get rid of it . It is held together with moss and over 40 years old . Always quirky and always made with love here.

Byland Abbey this evening . It is an English Heritage site just 15- 20 minutes walk from here or as Jack would say 5 fields away . There is a public right of way passing halfway down our drive ,but you can get through our fields to it if you prefer and probably see some deer on the way . It is free to enter..

Deer �� at Carr House Farm Ampleforth- they are back ..20 yards from the orchard gate

Just to remind you Spring is with us .

For the last couple of weeks I have been looking out of the kitchen window at tea time . At this time of year we see deers in the orchard at the back of the house. We have seen up to 5 at once before but last night there was 7 . They were too quick for me as I sneaked around the end of the house to take a better photo and just got two. Below is a little video of what you are likely to see in Spring when you are here. The fields are filling up with lambs. The birds are really doing their courting songs,as soon as you walk out of the door you can hear them. The wild garlic is well up now so anyone wanting to take a bag full home are quite welcome .They are now a favourite of young chefs in the area.