Hem Heath: Part of a Circular Walk

This week, on a fine sunny morning, I went for a circular walk which started and finished at Hem Heath. Hem Heath is a woodland near Trentham that is managed by Staffordshire Wildlife Trust (we are members).

There must of been more rain than I expected as some of the paths were very muddy with plenty of wet areas. However, I was able to take a few photos as we walked through the wood to the Wedgwood factory. Below is a view of a glade accessible from the main path from the car park. You can see from the soggy leaves on the lower left that conditions were soft underfoot:

Next we have a view of fungi growing out of the underside of a fallen, moss-covered, tree trunk. I have been trying out an ultra-wide angle zoom lens; I was pleased with how it handled this type of close-up:

Further along the tree trunk was this hole that had been made in the side of it – I don’t know what caused it. Any ideas?:

Finally I show a view of the woodland near the southern exit to the Wedgwood site:

After this we walked past the factory and along the road to the canal…