Share your signs of Spring!

We had a brief,  but much appreciated break from rain on Sunday! The sun came out and it was dry for several hours; it was a great opportunity to go for a walk without getting drenched or blown away. The rhines (dredging channels for the marshland near us) are full to the brim. Luckily, they work really well draining off all the extra water, I'm very glad to say!

I saw my first celandines of the year on this bank,  peeking through the new shoots of greenery. I love their cheery little golden faces, which always seem to glow in delight at the sunlight. See how clear the water is; the rain has cleared a lot of the surface weeds. Little birds constantly flew down to drink, and their song was all around us.

Lots of wildlife use the rhines. Last week I was thrilled to catch sight of a Roe deer doe, slipping out of the undergrowth to take a drink. There are some deer here living on the marshland and in the woods on the hill, but they are really secretive.

 'A little mouse with clogs on, Well I declare, going clip clipetty clop on the stair.... '

Well, we have a windmill. Six, to be more precise. There's a wind farm at Avonmouth, and this path leads us almost underneath one of these giants. We're very fond of 'our'  windmills, (we can see 4 from our windows) whirling around, providing green energy . They aren't noisy and wildlife doesn't mind them at all.

To prove that point, just round the bend we found the Mute swan family,  munching a late breakfast.  Mum and dad still have one daughter with them from last year's brood of cygnets.  You can tell by her brownish markings and much paler beak. The boys get chased off  first, but the girls are often allowed to stay with their parents, even up until the next breeding season. The stormy weather has blown some rubbish into the water, but they seemed not to mind, thoroughly enjoying their weedy snack!

Just dried reeds and grasses, but this could almost be tropical rain forest;  the fantastic reflections caught my eye.

On our return journey, the swans had found somewhere much more attractive to finish their meal. It always amazes me how they appear so pristine and snowy white.

Then as we finally turned for home, one of our local herons (who I've been trying to photograph for ever),  flew across our path and kindly landed close by, allowing me to get several good pictures, including this one.  He's preparing for a fish (or frog) supper.

I love the way he's juxtaposed against the cold, sharp winter grassland, and I really want to use this image for something creative. I'm just not quite sure what...yet!

Now we're back to grey skies, wind and rain, so I'm very grateful for our little taste of spring. 

What's going in in your part of the world?  Have you posted about anything spring like which has cheered, and  maybe, inspired you creatively? If you have - please share it!  Just leave a link in the comments for this post. x