A Cautionary Tale To Start the Week

I have chosen to split February Photo Fest 2021 into four weekly themes. The first is rope week. And here is a cautionary tale to kick things off As mentioned in this post, I am a big fan of this form of restraint, and have a lot of pictures to share so it seemed the right place to start.

When Loki and I took a summer trip to Dartmoor, not only did we find five scavenger hunt locations- the most recently shared being the cave. I had permission to be tied too! As we gambolled down a path through the woods there was a pause. We both spotted the mossy tree stump, just off to one side of the path. All good so far…

What about this cautionary tale?

We’d both had the same idea. To recreate a tie from our first rope excursion shared for sinful sunday a couple of years back: I am… Sinfully Me. After a long walk on the moors we were both pretty comfortable and relaxed, lulled further into a sense of security by the rope. All of a sudden I heard something. “Oh, don’t worry, it’s just voices from the lake”. Then a flash of red from the top of the footpath, a gate clanging shut…

“Blanket Loki” I called as I hopped off the stump and stepped across to the tree trunk where I could sit facing away from the path. Having previously had a close call we always have an escape plan! The blanket draped over my shoulders, tucked into the rope at the front, the two runners careened down the path.

Fortunately we were in time, and the coast was clear. A brace of runners, enough to get the heart racing, but no need to panic… Nothing unusual for an early summer evening, especially not in this spot. Getting back into position, on the stump, something caught my eye on the ground.

A little pile of wood chippings. They hadn’t been there earlier…

Joining the dots: 7pm, Thursday, summer, wood chip piles dropped by runners…. HASH HOUSE HARRIERS!!!

“Loki, those were the Hares. It won’t be long until the hounds follow. I need to dress now.”

Acting with appropriate urgency Loki untied me as I explained the concept of Hash House Harriers. The ‘Hares’ lay the routes, and the ‘hounds’ follow the clues around a route. There are usually two groups, for different speeds, and they head to the pub afterwards. The hashers that I know describe it as a “drinking club with a running problem”.

Returning to the car, we saw the hashers around and about, reminding me how lucky we had been that it wasn’t a regular running club. They would all have tumbled down the path in one long trail of enthusiastic athleticism.

The buzz was intense, for both of us I think, but a strong reminder that the risk is more exciting than the reality of being caught! Still, we did get some beautiful images.

And I love to see the way my body has changed, and how his rope confidence has grown.

In the spirit of my scavenger hunt, I have chosen a fellow scavenger to share in the same location. This week is the turn of Purple’s Gem, and Bare Bottom in the Woods. I remember this one from the first time round, and I just love how playful they are. And what a glorious bottom!