Keeping in touch
As I write, once again we’re plunged into total lockdown and plans to head further afield to enjoy early spring’s natural wonders must be put on hold. Instead, journey with us into the pages of this issue and use these adventures to make plans for better times.
I have been hugely cheered by reader Valerie Whatley’s encouraging words: “We had to cancel our planned holiday due to the pandemic but have been able to have a ‘virtual staycation’ through the pages of the magazine!” That sums up our current mission beautifully.
For instance, while reading Helen Moat’s return to childhood haunts in County Down (page 20), it was easy to envisage visiting those forgotten coastal villages “still untouched by development”. And our migration timetable (page 34) whets the appetite for the return of our spring birds and their uplifting songs. Even on lockdown walks, you’ll hear chiffchaffs, blackcaps and swallows. And no one could be unmoved by Fi Darby’s discovery of how wild-water swimming helped her cope with the symptoms of menopause (page 64).
One pleasure you don’t have to put on hold is collecting treasures on local walks. I have a windowsill where my son and I keep shells, rocks, feathers and even chips of wood from a beaver-felled tree. Beautiful in their own right, each object contains a special memory that is worth replaying. Sonya Patel Ellis reveals what to look for and when in a lovely piece on page 58. Happy hunting.