Some of you may recall back in April I mentioned that we had sold our property and might end up homeless. Well, in the last couple of weeks everything has moved very quickly. We were given a date to exchange contracts and complete the sale so all our spare time has seen us packing away thirty years of our life and yesterday we moved out. Thankfully we are not on the streets as Mrs H’s great friends Angela & Simon are letting us use their annex while we wait, hopefully, for the purchase of our new home to proceed. We thought our old house was in a rural location, the ‘Old Apple Store’ is even more remote. Surrounded by beautiful garden and only a two minute stroll to the disused North Walsham and Dilham canal.

A spare day before back to work so we decided to explore the old waterway. The sun was trying to peep through and it was warm and sheltered from the strong breeze. Flitting around the reeds were dozens of Banded Demoiselles (Calopteryx spledens) looking for all the world like overgrown blue butterflies, I have never seen so many in one place.

The females of this species are green and lack the coloured wings. Difficult to pick out they are charming in their own right.

We saw several butterflies including our first White Admiral (or as the better half called it, a black and white Swallowtail!) of the year. I think a copy of the ‘I-Spy Book of Butterflies’ may be on her birthday list! The habitat is fantastic here and I will probably spend a fair bit of time checking it out when there is a bit more sun.

So a very special thanks to our new ‘landlords’ for allowing us the chance to relax and catch our breaths until we move on again.
Perfect Pictures. Thanks.
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Many thanks!
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What a smashing ”cottage” to park off before you move on. Love the comma shot.
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It’s a really nice place Ark, small but beautifully formed (like the wife).
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Oh, 100 points for that one!
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😉 bread, butter, side.
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Indeed, Mister B. 🙂
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Transitions can be tough, but you seem to be weathering this one pretty well. As always, I love seeing your beautiful shots of the odes and butterflies in your area. Both of the species you featured today are relatives of ones that are I am used to seeing, though the wing pattern on the male Banded Demoiselle is something I have never seen in the Calopteryx damselflies that are here.
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It’s been stressful Mike, so nice to take this walk and discover the local wildlife. Glad you like the shots. We may not have as many species as you stateside but it is interesting to note the similarities we share.
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I live in the state of Virginia, where we get to see some of the species from the north and some of the ones from the south. A friend of mine operates a Facebook group for odonata in our state and so far this season there have been 111 different species seen of dragonflies and damselflies combined.
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Wow that’s three times our total species!
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It is definitely unusual, but it is partly because the state is diverse in terms of terrain–in the East of Virginia there is the Atlantic Ocean and coastal plains and there are mountains in the West that rise to over 5700 ft (1446 meters). From a climate perspective, parts of the state are subtropical and parts are continental. All of that combined together helps us to host an amazing array of species. 🙂
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It looks like a beautiful place and a great location too. You may not want to leave…! I can see you finding all sorts of things wrong with perfectly good potential new homes. “Oh, the kitchen is far too small”, “The garden faces east”, “It didn’t have a man-cave for Brian!” The list is endless… 😉
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It is a lovely spot Mike but hopefully the property we have put an offer in on will give us all we want. It’s on the edge of town with a small garden but has potential.
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Wow! I must have missed this life changing event in all this mess! What a crazy time to be selling a house (believe me I know how the house selling business goes- took 5 years to sell my US house and it sold in Jan 2016, coldest MN two weeks of the year.) I can’t imagine 30 years of stuff to pack as I have never lived so long in any one place except here in NL. The shock of selling will wear off and you guys will find a beautiful location soon (I hope). In the mean time it looks like this temporary location is providing some great opportunities. Best wishes in your house hunting.
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CJ it’s been manic! We have finally done it and took the jump into the unknown. Never imagined leaving the old place but now looking upon this as a new adventure. We have a place lined up so fingers crossed. Not in the countryside so will take getting used to semi-urban life.
Right now we need a bit of time to de-stress and look forward to the future.
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Again best of wishes on your transition.
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So good you found a place to stay just in time. People are helpful, we just forget about that. Your captures of the Banded Demoiselle and comma are real treasures Brian!
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Good people come forward just when you need them Greta, the value of friendship can not be understated.
Glad you like the images, it was so good to get back out into nature after all the stress.
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Beautiful images! Fun to see different Damsels from your area! Hope all goes well with your new home & move!
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Big thanks Reed, really appreciate your comment and fingers crossed for the future.
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The “apple store” looks very cozy. A wonderful hangout until you can move into your new home.
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It has all we need Tanja and it sort of feels like we are on holiday.
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Wishing you everything of the best with the purchase and move, though if the beauties that punctuated the time thus far are anything to go by it will be smooth sailing!
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That’s very kind of you. It’s nice to have these little ‘distractions’ so close by, certainly helps to relax ’till we start again.
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Love the Demoiselles – great pics. And good luck with the on-going move.
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Thanks David, lots to look forward too.
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Settle in by all means; then for Dog’s sake get out there with your camera and get snapping!
(Sheesh, don’t make me have to come over there … )
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Will do Argus!
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Beautiful photos – as always! Love the colors and the way the sun glistens on their tiny wings. Good luck to you and your family as you move forward with this new adventure!
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Thanks so much Kim. Exciting times ahead but probably less time in the field.
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Maybe once your are settled in you will have so much spare time you will get to spend double the amount of time in the field! I’m being optimistic because I selfishly want to see more of your dragonfly and butterfly photos. 🙂
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We wish you all the best as you transition to a new home! The move can be traumatic but once the dust settles you will no doubt find so much to be thankful for as life takes you down a new path.
What beautiful damsels! And the Comma is striking!
Take good care and let us know if you need a hand with lifting any moving boxes!
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Wally & Gini thank you so much. We are really looking forward to our next chapter even though there is hard work ahead. I’ll be sure to give you a shout when we need a hand and the drinks will be on me!
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Lovely abode to holiday in until the next chapter of relocation occurs. Smashing Banded Demoiselle captures!
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Thanks Donna. It’s ‘cosy’ but so relaxing here. I would think we might hear about our possible new place in a week or two. As for the Demoiselles I can’t leave them alone!
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Good news on the home front … at least you have place to stay while the other opportunity processes through. Best wishes for all the needed pieces to fall in place. Right now I’m in a bit of disarray as my Internet has gone to crap and I’m basically cut off from the world (leeching bandwidth from a local merchant at the moment in a desperate attempt to get caught up on everyone’s post. Hang in there and at least enjoy the dragon and butter bounties at the temporary place.
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Cheers B. Everything is good so far despite some un-summer like weather. Hope you get the ‘net sorted, amazing how we rely on such modern things nowadays I remember when we used to write letters!
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Congratulations on your new temporary home Brian. You picked a very beautiful spot in more than one aspect. Enjoy!
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We have been very lucky to stay here, so much to see.
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Your photos are fantastic 🙂
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Appreciate that thanks!
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