They’ll be in full bloom today – and after more than a week of gloom, there’s some blue sky and sunshine. Perfect! The Cound snowdrop walk is popular at the weekends, but there’s hardly anyone else here on this fine afternoon.

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Just 3 degrees Celsius, and it feels even colder. We’ll need to walk for a while before we’re warm enough to stop and get the camera out. It’s hazy too. Over Brown Clee there seems to be a bit more light, but it never comes our way. For the first time, we’ll forego the chocolate seat in Holdgate churchyard and keep going…

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A cold and grey afternoon. It brightened later – some blue sky for a time – but the real highlight of this walk was in deep shade, beside the old railway trackbed – beautiful scarlet elf cups!

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That’s what was forecast from 1pm. All we saw was a watery sun, providing little illumination and no warmth! We needed to be home by around 3pm, and sure enough, just a few minutes later, the sun was shining brightly from a blue sky. Reddish brown predominates today, with a splash of welcome yellow and a little new greenery too.

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Snowdrops galore – and catkins, and the odd early primrose. Spring can’t be far away!

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On Wednesday’s walk, we passed a wayside plant stall, offering pots of snowdrops for sale. “We’ll bring the car round and buy some after our walk” (we could hardly carry them for the next four miles). We remembered the idea just a couple of minutes before returning to the start – then drove home having completely forgotten again. There were plenty on offer – “We’ll go that way in a day or two”.

Today (three days later) we bought the last two pots!
Continuing on our way, we found ourselves on the Cardington road, for a walk up to Plaish. Oddly enough, there were lots of snowdrops along the way…

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We’re on a distinctly chilly Clee Hill today, walking from Cleehill village to Magpie Hill – out via Whatsill, back past the curiously-named settlement at Random. We would have continued past the Three-forked Pole and over Hoar Edge – but we’d have been fully exposed to that bitter wind, and the sun was becoming rather watery. We’ll take the direct route. Cold notwithstanding, it’s a very pleasant outing on this lonely high ground.

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A walk along the Long Mynd ridge, from Robin Hood’s Butts to Pole Bank and back. It felt cold at first under a stubborn bank of cloud, but once that cleared the sunshine was very pleasant. Not the quietest of places on a fine Saturday, even in late January, but most enjoyable, with great views in all directions. Near the top of Mott’s Road, a sizable flock of birds circles before landing nearby. Are they golden plovers? Later, as we near our starting point, we hear grouse exchanging chuckles. “Go back, go back, go back”. Yes, we will, soon, but we’ll listen to you for a minute or two first. The icing on today’s icy cake!

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The hour before sunset: a walk down the lane, making the most of some late sunshine. What a difference – look towards the light and it’s hazy, atmospheric. Away from the light, everything is bathed in a warm glow. On our way back, the sun slips behind layers of cloud just above the horizon, and the light is going…