Other flowers are available

At the end of April, I thought I'd had all the bluebells I was going to get, at least in Bristol, but there were a few late surprises in some more sheltered pockets, like this lane at Winterbourne in South Gloucestershire ...

... and also at nearby Monk's Pool Nature Reserve.

There were also cowslips still blooming in one of the meadows on Purdown beneath the BT tower.

Mostly, though, it's been a glorious month of cow parsley and wild garlic, both of which bloom in profusion at Badock's Wood, in the Trym gorge ...

... and in Hermitage Wood, high above the River Frome on Purdown.

Oh, and mustn't forget my favourite whitethorn, here also in Hermitage Wood ... 

... and further upstream on the Frome, at Winterbourne Down.

And, of course, lots of other flowers too ... 

row 1: cowslip; red campion; yellow mustard; ground ivy; whitethorn x 2; comfrey

row 2: greater stitchwort; wood avens; cuckoo flower (lady's smock); hedge mustard; dog rose; jack-by-the-hedge (garlic mustard); bluebells, yellow archangel, wild garlic; hemlock water dropwort

row 3: horse chestnut, whitethorn and cow parsley; green-winged orchid; rowan; forget-me-not; flag iris; lesser celandine; columbine; elder blossom

row 4: fringe cups; yellow archangel; buttercup and vetch; wood speedwell; wild strawberry; herb Robert; black mustard; alkanet

The squeeze-belly stile leading down to Wickham Glen was also beautifully dressed with cow parsley and alkanet ... 

... while downstream at Eastville Park lake, there were cygnets, ducklings, goslings, cootlings and, rather ominously, the local heron. 

Where there are lots of flowers, there are insects, but most of them far too flighty for me to take a photo of.

Fungi don't move around much, though there's not a lot about at present:

Good times for hoggin finding, though: last year's leaf litter is gone, mud is no longer an issue, other people are out walking and displacing soil, and spring showers make the ground soft enough to dig bits out:

On Halfpenny Bridge at Snuff Mills

Path at Vassalls Park

There was deep sadness one morning when I was walking at Blaise and found that a favourite tree - a sweet chestnut estimated to be between four and six hundred years old - had fallen in the four weeks since I'd last visited it. 

I'd got into the habit of photographing it every time I saw it: above, on the left hand side, is how it looked in November, March and early April. 

Nearby in the wood, there was another fallen tree - a beech - blocking the path ...

... and another in the woods at Winterbourne Down. It's been such a year for falling trees, with no signficant wind storms to cause it. I can only assume it's down to extremes of climate - a hot dry summer, followed by a very wet winter, followed by a dry spring.

Other sadnesses: a fallen bluetit and a fallen nest. 

More predated bluetit feathers here, along with an (early) moulted great spotted woodpecker tail feather, a goldfinch primary and a tawny owl secondary.

After the loss of one old friend, making the acquaintance of a new one - this magnificent, railing-eating oak in the woods at Bishop's Knoll - was a comfort. 

Old Sneed Park nature reserve

Old Sneed Park Lake

After the hurly-burly of spring, Cwtch and I are looking forward to summer, where you can wander along side paths and end up getting lost in woods you know perfectly well all the rest of the year. Bring on the peace of the deep, dark woods.

Autumn swansong

I was expecting a conflagration this autumn after the hot, dry summer. In my head I had a vision of the autumn of 2007, though I don't know if the brilliance of the foliage that year was exceptional, or if my state of mind at the time just made it seem like the world was on fire.   

Anyhow, it hasn't been like that at all - more a long, slow burn which is now dying down. Today I noticed that the leaves on the ground more black than gold. The trees more bare than leaved. The fog dropping. 

Winter is coming, so here's autumn's swansong ...

... though actually it's the resident heron on the lake in Eastville Park that draws the attention of passers-by - and the local black-headed gulls.

Meanwhile, I've been wondering which of these two photos to submit to the Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition - it's so hard to choose between them. ☺

The park and nearby Wickham Glen were looking so beautiful the last few times I've been there.

Wickham Glen

my favourite little willow by the Frome

Meanwhile, the yew that had recently fallen across C*lston Hill, largely blocking it, has been removed ... 

... only for a second tree to fall just a little higher up the lane. It's a sobering reminder of the potential danger of walking in woods after a period of drought.

Further upstream, Snuff Mills, the narrow wooded valley of which is dark in winter and darker still in summer, has been looking its best.

Quarry below Ham Lane

Glenfrome weir

We also walked up the mossy lane to Vassal's Park a couple of times, which has some fabulous trees.

ring-necked parakeet and crow

High above this section of the Frome is Purdown, which we've also visited a lot. Yes, it can be a bit edgy and urban ...

... but it's had its moments of beauty too. 

my favourite oak in the woods on Purdown

One just-after dawn morning I was reminded of the stunning sunrises I watched around New Year and the fact that even winter has its highlights, despite the cold and dark. I look forward to doing that again over the next couple of months, if any bright, clear days coincide with my days off. 

There are more spectacular trees at Ashton Court, of course, above the River Avon, though the one morning we were there it was dull and wet, which made for less than spectacular photos.

Badock's Wood has been lovely ... 

... though I was sad to see that the bench I used to sit on to remember my parents and my darling Ted has now gone. Inevitable, I suppose.

I never expect to find much hoggin in autumn, because of all the leaf litter, but I have come across a few bits. (It's the looking, and staying in the moment to look, that is most important for me.) 

Fungi spotting is also a useful trick for keeping me present. There's been masses this autumn, though they're mostly waning now.

Our final walking spot has been Blaise estate. Here are just a few of the lovely old trees in the open space near the Henbury Road entrance, which are at their most striking in autumn ... 

... though perhaps the most beautiful walks of all have been along Hazel Brook (a tributary of the River Trym) and Kings Weston Down on bright Sunday mornings (followed by a cappuccino in the cafe, and doggy ice cream for Cwtch).

Though at times there might be an ocean between us ... 

... I have the two best walking companions in the world.