Our first Brede High Wood guided walk of 2009 took place on Saturday, 14 February (St. Valentine's Day). For a change the weather was perfect: warm late winter sunshine from a pale blue sky.
When we started there was ice underfoot from the overnight frost, but the warmth brought a quick thaw and plenty of mud. Hazel catkins were at their best and we saw the first primrose and the inconspicuous flowers of dog's mercury (see below).
We walked for 2 hours covering mostly the eastern part of the woods. In many places the yellowish green tips of the bluebell plants were poking through the fallen leaves and it was good to realise, after this unusually cold winter, that spring is not far away.
There will be many more walks and other events during the course of the year, and I will try to flag then up on this blog as they occur.
