There's two ways to walk from my house to my studio. One is up the road and the other is along the river. The road is nice enough as it's mostly through the trees and then down past colourful houses and allotments into town but whenever I can I walk along the river path. It takes a little longer and it's often very muddy but it is a lovely way to start the day.
Right now there are hazel catkins a plenty dangling over the river and the path.
I have been watching them loosen and open up.
And I've been looking out for the teeny tiny pink flowers that look like sea anemones waiting to catch some pollen on the breeze. It's amazing to think that this will one day be a hazelnut!
On the other side of the path these buds were sitting like birds on a wire.
I didn't know what they would open up into.
One week on and there were clues.
And then one day, 'poof'!
These are the goat willow catkins - these trees end up looking like they are covered in lemon sherbet.
I stop and take a photo each day at the bend in the river. Right now each photo looks pretty the same - a little bit dull and grey and it appears that not much is happening, but I know that up close there are many stirrings of spring. Pretty soon it will explode into green.
These things are worth always having muddy boots for.
2 comments
Beautiful photos Hannah. You’ve made me want to get outside more often, even though I have been feeling a little under the weather. Our garden is so wet with all the rain we have been having that I have been unable to complete the beds and wood chip paths I have planned. But there are of course, wonderful signs of new life! I really enjoy your posts and blog.
How lovely to (virtually) accompany you on your morning walks; the catkins have been wonderful and I sometimes give them a little nudge to watch a drift of pollen in the air. I have noticed the green shoots of bluebells in the woods – much too soon, and the birdsong fills the air on dry mornings.