common_nature | In the April woods

Set off to follow the path through the oak woods in the rain. Only a gentle rain at first, not cold. Not much light this morning, but still the oaks and the birches bright with new leaves, and the woods full of the song of robins, blackbirds and thrushes.

The bluebells still not quite in full flower, but here and there a faint wash of blue in the woods.

Found a long-fallen oak to sit on. Drank coffee from a flask. Down below, gentle rain and the scent of damp earth. High above, the wind stirring the oak branches.

The rain getting heavier as I walked on, the ferns shinier. The wood anemones giving up altogether on the day and hanging their heads.

Coming out of the woods and back across the fields, the wind adding a sharp sting to the raindrops, because it is a Bank Holiday in England, and this is how we celebrate holidays.