My first visit to Haydn's Pool this year......... isn't honesty a wonderful thing?

I had a walk in the countryside yesterday... my first since my knee surgery... but ended up doing it twice.

My knees are still a bit sore but I feel they are getting better so a trip to the Northwich Woodlands to stretch my legs and a bit of bird watching seemed ideal.

The walk to Haydn's Pool from the car park isn't too far and is on the level.

...until you reach the steps to the bird hides but my knees seemed quite happy.

 After a bright sunny morning it was snowing as we arrived at Haydn's Pool.

 The weather was changing all the time...
 ...we saw Mallards, Teal, Gadwall, Shovelers and Tufted Ducks but the water levels were high...
 ...so we didn't see any waders.

Amanda's wellies!... subtle country footwear.

... at least her nails matched.

I still had the steps to descend but took my time and got down OK.

As we headed over to Neumanns Flash it wasn't long before the next flurry of snow arrived so it was back to the car as quickly as we could manage... a quickening limp from me rather than running.

Now for the reason I did the walk twice.

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We set off to the supermarket...  as we arrived I realized my wallet was missing.

I knew I had it with me as we had earlier purchased snacks for the walk.
A four mile journey back to the shop was fruitless so it was back to the woodlands to retrace our steps...

...  now dry but very cold with no sign of my wallet.

The Police Station was next... again no success.

It was then home to phone the bank and cancel my debit card...  it's replacement will take 2 to 4 days but at least I now had peace of mind.

There was no cash in the wallet just the bank card and my photo driving license... something else I would need to replace.

I had been at home for about an hour or so when there was a knock at the door... 

...a young couple (in their 20's I guess) had found my wallet while out enjoying the same walk.

My driving licence has my name and address on it so I was easy to trace... in fact this was the second time they had been round... I was out retracing my steps the first time they called.

I thanked them profusely because as well as my cards I do have some keepsakes in the wallet...
...of no value to anyone else but which mean the world to me.

It was only after they left that I wished I had asked them their names and where they lived so I could somehow reward them... it never occurred to me during my relief at the time.

I really hope I meet up with them again so I can thank them again...

...I am so blown away by their honesty.

Linking to Rurality Blog Spot and Skywatch Friday