Today's walk in Highwoods

If you go anti-clockwise from the car park, on the 'all access' gravel path, this is the first of many ponds you will come across in Highwoods. The grand bench is a memorial to a former Warden of the woods, Alan Malpass, so this has become the Malpass pond. Every Spring I am in awe of this Marsh Marigold that sprouts up right next to the pond, in spite of all the dogs scrabbling around, and in, the pond all year round. The photo doesn't do it justice. It's such a bold, vibrant yellow colour, and it gives much hope for the season ahead. There are wood anemones spread throughout the woods, and the bluebells are just starting to show themselves. In a few more weeks there will be battalions of bluebells for everyone to enjoy. The last photo shows Charlie ambitiously attempting to drag a very large branch out of the pond. He enjoys swimming for balls in the larger pond, but has started to lose interest sometimes and then expects me to retrieve them. In the summer when the water level drops I am expecting to see a vast collection of all the balls which sank, either because they were too heavy (and I didn't test them before throwing them!) or because Charlie had chewed them to the point that they were fatally destined to drop down into the murky depths and be absorbed into the claggy clay.