Quiet walks in the woods

One of the things I’d been anticipating about spring was walking in my local woods. It’s too bad that spring took so long to get around to giving us nice weather this year! Last week I finally got out in the woods to look at what was growing. Things were just beginning. Here’s some Carolina Spring Beauty:

It was an almost rainy day, and little drops of rain were occasionally dropping onto last year’s leaves. I heard the squawk of a hawk circling overhead, a woodpecker at work, and the chickadees chattering to each other. The trout lilies were out in abundance:

There were little patches of bloodroot with the starry flowers all turned in the same direction:

My favourite part was spotting this little group of ferns-to-be in a temporary stream:

This week I can already see a lot of changes. The trout lilies are over. The bloodroot flowers are gone and the leaves are taking over:

There are violets:

And a few trilliums:

A lovely walk in the morning is a refreshing start to the day. I can feel my mind relaxing and I am more open to new ideas. What do you do to recharge?