A very cold area of high pressure has swept across Northern Europe from Russia and we are experiencing the first really cold spell of this winter with daytime highs of around -6°C. I would love to join Cathy at Rambling in the Garden for a vase again today, but there is not yet anything I could pick!
So instead a couple of views from brisk walks in the sunshine…
I can feel the cold just by looking at this picture… 😉
This pathway is along the edge of an area of woodland where only beech grow, and being on a south-facing slope it catches the sun nicely, melting the snow and warming the ground enough to allow the first little flowers of our native Hepatica (H.nobilis) to start unfurling…
It is always a major event for me when I see these first blooms! I looked in vain for some Coltsfoot (Tussilago farfara), which is also one of the very first wild flowers to appear here, but perhaps that needs a few more days of sunshine.
Up on the hills above us the woodland contains mostly evergreens, and the view is quite different…
Sunday afternoon walk (-6°C)
I wonder how your season is progressing this week, as we in the northern hemisphere slowly but surely move towards the spring equinox. I hope you are getting some winter sunshine at least!
Stay warm and cosy!
Words and Herbs 
magical and stunning!!!
Thanks Mihrank!
lovely to see that peek of perky purple
It was a nice surprise as I didn’t think they would be out yet. 🙂
We are still waiting for the predicted glacial wave to hit us. At least having the sunshine lets you enjoy the countryside and the Hepatica is beautiful. Amelia
It is sunny again today Amelia, but I think I will stay indoors today – overnight it was -12°C!
Minus 6 as a high sounds frighting Cathy. Our snow arrived and with it freezing wind from the north north east. So not just northern Europe is receiving the cold weather from Siberia.
Yes, the wind makes it seem even colder too. I saw pictures of Rome in the snow yesterday!
I’ll have to look at those
Chilly looking, but still beautiful
The sun has warmth in it if you find a sheltered spot, as these Hepatica have! 😉
The walk through the beech trees looks lovely Cathy. I am afraid winter has finished with us yet!
I wonder if you have had snow Brian, as I hear it has been forecast for some parts of the UK. We might get some at the end of the week, but it is going to warm up quickly and might just be freezing rain instead – not so nice!
Brrrrrrrrrr. These cold temps do make you enjoy the warmer weather to come and those beautiful brave little blooms.
I agree. It’s nice to have a cold snap so you appreciate the milder days more afterwards!
Beautiful views. My goodness that is cold. We have another warm up and winter is yielding a bit here.
It should warm up a lot next week here too. I hope!
To tell you the truth, I enjoyed your walk just as much as I enjoy pictures of flowers in a vase.It’s always a treat to see where other people live, especially when they are far away. We still have between two and three feet of snow in our yard. It probably won’t be gone until the end of March, but with the crazy weather we’ve been having, you never know.
Well, I just hope it doesn’t hang around any longer than that, Laurie! We occasionally have another flurry of snow in April here, but this year I am hoping it will warm up a bit quicker than last, when it was so cold all through April and into May.
The weather has been absolutely crazy in the U.S. Keep us posted about the weather in your neck of the woods.
Beautiful pics! And hepatica! For us too it is very cold and sunny, with the possibility of snow tonight…
I wonder if you had snow Ali. It was a very cold night here (-12°C) so I shall stay in the warm today I think! 🙂
We have had a lot for us – about 9”!
Goodness! Enjoy it while it lasts! 🙂
Cathy here in Spain also hits the Siberian cold. Wednesday snow again in Madrid and from 200 meters high from Madrid up: half the country. I want to go with you (with your permission) to take a walk on the path between beech trees in the sun and to show me the beautiful Hepatica nobilis that is worth more than a vase of flowers. To the other area with snow we will go when the temperatures rise! Keep the heat. Take care. Greetings from Margarita.
There is always a few degrees difference in temperature between the wood up on the hills and the warmer slopes in our valley. But the cold wind is making it unpleasant even in the sun. I hope you can stay nice and warm Margarita. It must be especially hard as I suppose Spanish homes are not geared up for such cold spells.
Cathy houses in Spain are very prepared for this cold. They are not so much in the south of Spain but the new ones are ready. On the southern beaches the people who live there all year are prepared, like the hotels; but people who have a house for the summer do not have it ready for the cold. Keep the heat. Greetings from Margarita.
Beautiful woodland photos, Cathy. -6 is cold for you and this time of year. I’ve been reading about your cold-snap, brrr.
Our days are now regularly above freezing, so the snow slowly melts. I’ve seen birds returning from the south and a dove is building a nest in the hedge. Confirmation spring is progressing!
Wow, nest-building already. Either an optimistic dove or she knows something we don’t… 😉
It really does feel like the first stage of spring. I have been thinking of your post about the German sectioning of the seasons. This feels like stage one of spring, not the last of winter, but we still have March to go. 😉
It doesn’t feel like spring at all here yet, despite the sunshine, but next week it should get really mild very quickly they say…. 🙂
I love Beech trees and forests,one thing South Florida is sadly lacking. Thank you for the photos,lovely. Stay warm!
We are lucky here, with mixed forests all around us. 🙂
Ah, I see your blue hepaticas now. How glorious to have them growing wild. My coltsfoot is in bud- just waiting for this Arctic phase to pass over. I’ve really enjoyed a walk in your woods. It looks so beautiful there. Thanks for sharing. Karen xx
You’re welcome Karen. Can’t wait till enough Hepatica flowers are open to pick and float some! 😉
For now, all the snow is gone and the first Snowdrops are starting to bloom. Love that Hepatica.
So you are catching us up. The snowdrops have a prolonged season here this year as it is too cold for them to open much.
Wonderful photos, Cathy. It is the coldest stretch in SF that we’ve had in a long time but cold is relative.. 🙂
And it can feel freezing if you are not used to it and homes are not geared up to it. Stay warm!
Such a beautiful spot. Lots of sunshine the last few days but golly it’s cold
Here too Dorris. The cold wind on top doesn’t help. Stay warm if you can!
Doggy has got her coat on, it must be cold!
I adore Hepatica, Cathy, they did so well in my Swiss garden and I’m trying to settle them here. We had -7°C this morning and tomorrow the cold spell is supposed to be over. Then I can count the victims! Plenty of sunshine though at the moment and on Sunday I was even able to sit outside in the Adirondack chair Monsieur made for me. Tomorrow I’ll visit the wild daffodils in the wood to see how they’re coping. Glad the book arrived 🙂 keep warm
🙂 The cold spell should be over by Thursday here and then it is supposedly going to warm up a lot. Can’t wait to see crocuses and daffodils in bloom!
How exciting it must have been for you to see those first little hepatica flowers Cathy. What glorious colour. It looks seriously cold in those woods despite the blue skies and sunshine.
Yes Anna, I am sure you know that feeling when your first snowdrop appears… my equivalent is the Hepatica! It is a sure sign that spring is around the corner! 😀
We are up and down. Last week a record high and now it’s chilly again, but nothing like you are experiencing. Please stay warm.
Thanks John. After several days of these temperatures the house has really cooled down, so we have got a fire going again tonight and the electric heaters on as well as the normal heating at full blast! It should warm up by the end of the week thank goodness! 🙂
Brrr.. Cold here! It’s -20C!
Ooh, that IS cold! We rarely get it that cold here, but usually have a few weeks where we have sub-zero temperatures in the daytime too. Stay warm Ilze!
I will stay warm, thank you! This is ok here for few coldest weeks in a year 🙂 But if it will continue… i don’t know, I start to buy daffodils and tulips to welcome spring 🙂
🙂
We have a little rain right now, which is very welcome, but compared with what much of the world is experiencing right now, it’s kind of a non-event! LOL! The temps in Northern Europe are headline news here, though. It’s hard for me to even imagine, Cathy! Sending a prayer for early Spring. 🙂
Thanks Debra. I am so looking forward to some spring weather soon!
What a contrast! I have to say I much prefer the beech woods, and that hepatica is fantastic. Good luck on getting some warmer weather. I think it’s time 🙂
It should finally rise above freezing point today after some more snow overnight. I think the big thaw is on the way. 🙂
You can’t beat a bracing winter walk, Cathy! We had temperatures of one degree above zero today – and the wind had dropped – and it felt SO much warmer!
I just saw I missed this comment Cathy! It seems the winter is keeping us all in its grip still this weekend too. Snow forecast here tonight… 😉
Looks that way, Cathy!
What a brave little flower, poking up between the brown leaves. I’m glad you got out for a brisk walk. I’ve been quite spoiled spending two weeks in mostly warm New Zealand as they come to their summer’s end. You need a quick trip to somewhere warm, Cathy. 🙂
Oh yes, some warmth would be wonderful! I may have to wait a bit longer, but I know one day in summer I will curse the heat, so I must be happy with what we get now! LOL!
Isn’t that the truth? If only we could get by with spring and autumn. I guess the heat and cold make us appreciate the in betweens even more.