Snow day at the forest

My alarm went off at 6:45am on Saturday morning, ready for a trip to London. Thankfully I checked the trains before walking all the way to the station because they were cancelled due to the snow. I had no other plans so I walked up to the forest with my camera.

I've walked through these fields regularly for the last three years but this is the first time they've been cloaked in heavy snow.

Apart from the people above, I didn't see another soul in the forest. I had the place completely to myself. It seems most people are not cold weather lovers.

Snow covered all of the trails so I lost my way a couple of times. On the plus side, I found a pond I didn't know existed and this photogenic clearing in the trees. I walked all the way down the slope before realising I was not on a trail. Then I had to scramble back up again, trying not to fall flat on my face.

This dog came to say hello on my way up to the forest. Her owner was nowhere to be seen so I called the number on her collar — it turned out she lived a couple of doors down from where I was standing. Oops. I passed through the same field on my way home and she ran over again, sat right in front of me and dropped a stick on the floor. We played fetch for a while and it occurred to me that she would follow me all the way home if I kept hold of that stick.

Although the day didn't work out as planned, it was nice to go exploring with my camera. I love being outdoors when it's cold so I wish we had snow more often!