Thursday 9 December 2021

Walking and Watercress Around Le Grand Pressigny

 Here are some photos from a 10 kilometre walk we did on Thursday 2 December 2021.

Garden, Indre et Loire, France. Photo by Loire Valley Time Travel.
A well ordered and working garden in Le Grand Pressigny.

House of the poet Andre Theuriet, Indre et Loire, France. Photo by Loire Valley Time Travel.
We've only just noticed that this house has a plaque on it saying it was the home of the poet André Theuriet [link].

Santa Christmas decoration, Indre et Loire, France. Photo by Loire Valley Time Travel.
These dangling Santas have lost their popularity of a few years ago, when every second house would have one, often not taken down and left there all year.

Apple tree, Indre et Loire, France. Photo by Loire Valley Time Travel.
An apple tree in a farmyard.

Mediaeval field, Indre et Loire, France. Photo by Loire Valley Time Travel.
This place is called Chante-grolle, so named because it is a mediaeval field that belonged to black robed warrior monks, who chanted whilst working in the field. Grolle is old French for rook, which even today you can see in flocks in the fields, so the villagers dubbed them 'chanting rooks' and the place name reflects that.

Chateau du Grand Pressigny, Indre et Loire, France. Photo by Loire Valley Time Travel.
View over a ploughed field of the Chateau du Grand Pressigny sitting above the village.

Spring fed reservoir, Indre et Loire, France. Photo by Loire Valley Time Travel.
Old spring fed reservoir in the grounds of the Aged Care Home.

Spring fed stream, Indre et Loire, France. Photo by Loire Valley Time Travel.
A spring fed stream and lots of Field Maple leaves on the ground.

Crossing a stream, Indre et Loire, France. Photo by Loire Valley Time Travel.
Simon assisting other walkers across the stream.

Watercress in a spring fed stream, Indre et Loire, France. Photo by Loire Valley Time Travel.
Near the source the stream was chocablock with Water-cress Rorippa nasturtium-aquaticum (Fr. Cresson de fontaine). Beware though. Also growing in the stream is the poisonous lookalike Lesser Water-parsnip Berula erecta (Fr. Berle dressée).

Houses, Indre et Loire, France. Photo by Loire Valley Time Travel.
Houses along the side of a limestone ridge.

3 comments:

Colin and Elizabeth said...

Love the hanging Santa banned in our house ahhh. Simon you definitely have a look of Billy Connelly in that photo. C

chm said...

Watercress salads are so good! Did you picked some?
I see a lot of ferns near that water. I love ferns.

Susan said...

Colin and Elizabeth: Santa quite rightly banned :-)

chm: I'm not a fan of watercress, and this was private property. We may have been trespassing, I'm not sure. If we were I blame Joel.

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