Autumn Colours

The sprawling heath in Hampstead is one of the most beautiful places in London this time of year.

I took a walk through the trails in the woods and later up Parliament Hill (photos of that part for another time) and brought my camera along to capture the pretty colours.

Joggers, families walking dogs and couples holding hands stuck to the main paths so it was easy to find complete silence on some of the trails through the woods.

The ground was a blanket of Autumn colour, the air fresh and wildlife scurrying about.

The branches above were still losing their leaves.

It was, of course, drizzly (it is London afterall) and the leaves were shining.

Wild mushrooms cling to the branches, some flowers are still in bloom and the bushes around Kenwood House are pretty reds and orange.

There are even lots of pretty magpies flitting through the trees…

Perfect for a lazy Sunday stroll.

Crunching leaves under your feet, leaves floating down when a breeze comes through and squirrels chasing each other along the branches above your head, it’s a great escape from the rush of the city streets.

Either take the Northern line to Hampstead or the London overground to the Hampstead Heath station.

After the walk, warm up with rum and chocolate crepes at La Creperie on the high street or pop into one of the many bakeries, pubs or warm book shops.

Mosaic of Autumnal Days

“It was one of those perfect English autumnal days which occur more frequently in memory than in life.”  ~P.D. James

The Arrival of Autumn

An invigorating Autumn chill is settling in the air – the first hint of my favourite season.

It means looking forward to an early morning caramel macchiato warming the body from the inside, to cosy sweaters, long walks in the park.

It’s a season of nostalgia, for remembering childhood leaf fights and jumping in huge piles of them, small fragments tangling in blond hair. Of pressing the pretty ones in the pages of the big yellow phone book. Of collecting fallen chestnuts from the sidewalks.

It smells of earth and the great outdoors, of cedar chests and new books.

Tastes of hot apple cider and iced doughnuts on Halloween, the all-American pumpkin pie and Thanksgiving feast.

Autumn is a season of rejuvenation. It was always the beginning of the school year, a time of learning and waking up from the lazy summer holidays.

And of course, there’s that satisfying crunch of walking over a mosaic of fallen leaves and the trees an explosion of fire-colours.