Today I went on a long walk in Bushy Park.
The park is 1,099 acres and the second largest of London's Royal Parks. It became a royal park in 1529 when Cardinal Wolsey gave it to King Henry Vlll as part of a gift that also included Hampton Court. Until then, the park had been agricultural land.
Here I am in the landscaped area called the Woodland Gardens. It's really beautiful there and I saw rabbits very close by - they did not seem to be afraid of us.
Later we left the Woodland Gardens and walked through the main area of the park. We saw some very old trees. Can you see me in this picture?
Here I am 
We discovered some toadstools growing wild in the park.
I thought this one was quite beautiful.
We wandered on
and wondered who might live in this house. Tea Rose said she'd rather like to live in the middle of the park surrounded by all the trees and wildlife.
We were a little apprehensive walking through this bracken, as there were warning signs at the entrance of the park telling us not to. I wonder why?
There are many ponds and streams in the park. The website says:
King Charles I had the idea of creating an artificial waterway in the Park because Hampton Court Palace (which is nearby) was always short of water. There was nowhere locally with a sufficient fall of water and so the Longford River was built exceeding 19 kilometres in length. It was designed by Nicholas Lane in 1638-39. It was built by hand, took 9 months to complete and cost £4000! Apparently the 12 mile long Longford River runs from north of Heathrow Airport to the Palace.
I thought about going for a quick swim, but wasn't sure.
We continued on our way
Just then we spotted some indigenous animals! Can you see them in the distance?
Or here, under a tree, just right of the centre of the picture?
How about now?
They're deer! We couldn't get much closer to take a photo. When we did get closer, they were very skittish and quickly moved away from us. The Park's website tells us:
Red and Fallow Deer still roam freely throughout the Park, just as they did when Henry VIII used to hunt here. There are currently about 325 deer and their grazing is essential to maintain the high wildlife value of the Park's grasslands. Unlike cutting, grazing creates more variation in structure and plant diversity and does not damage the anthills, which add further diversity and character to the grassland. The herds are kept out of the Woodland Gardens and other protected plantations in order to protect the trees and shrubs there. The Red Deer are the largest mammal native to the British Isles and in the summer their coats are glossy red. Fallow deer, introduced by the Romans, are smaller and their summer coats, usually spotted, vary from a cream to darkish brown colour.
Tea Rose explained that the deer are usually far less skittish and it is easier to approach them, although they are not tame. But today was rutting season. It was actually frightening to hear the biggest stags roar. We took care to keep our distance, and not disturb them. This was why we weren't supposed to walk through the bracken.
We walked home past this lovely willow tree
Again I thought about having a quick swim, but decided the water looked far too cold for that!
