The Wye Valley from Bigsweir Bridge

Sun bright and the weather beginning to warm
Bigsweir scenic old toll bridge with history
Walked to the middle of the bridge to look up and down the river. Two swans guided up the river
Went barefoot for the first time, dewy long grass felt wonderful underfoot
Looked out across the valley and up the tree filled sides
The river was high and swollen with recent rains
Saw four buzzards circling on the thermals, after one chased and harried by crows
Swans caught me up and closer view
A Red Kite flew low above me, forked tail and wing tips catching the sunlight
Majestic oak on the field boundary, now full with dark green leaves
Close approach to a pair of swans by river rapids. Male hissed at me, but they soon settled and returned to preening their feathers
Dew drops sparkling on spiders web in the grass.
Sat by rapids and looked down the valley
Met a man with a mild Liverpudlian accent who lived nearby.
We had a friendly debate about rewilding the local boar population, who have now crossed the river and were threatening to rootle his garden. We agreed rewilding was a process that needed local peoples consent, but that we need to return our extinct native wildlife. Man told me of a local beaver re-introduction, showed me a video of an otter he'd seen on the river bank, and that a white tailed eagle has been seen recently over the Wye Valley. All this gives me hope for a rewilded future for our islands. I thanked him for the local information for my walk and we said our goodbyes.
I walked further along the river path, then switched back up a path into beautiful Ash and beech woodlands, also interspersed with oaks.
Walked up to the high point, which was strewn with large mossy boulders, filled with ancient river stones, and sprawling tree roots - a magical and mystical place overlooking the great river.
The afternoon sun shone spectacularly through the trees and lit up the new pale green beach leaves as I descended from the rocky outcrop
I returned to the path through the middle of the woods.
As I made to scramble down below into the wilder woods, i disturbed a tawny owl who flew across and below me, his face shining brightly in the sun, before lifting up into the a tree by the path. The fallen trees, burgeoning bracken and bramble became almost impossible to chamber through, so I returned up to the path, glad of my descent into the wild depths of the wood
The woods were filled with bird song as a constant auditory back drop
There were a great variety of small woodland flowers (identify from photos) by along the verges of the path that I photographed and paid close attention to.
The views up into the back-lit vistas of trees were spectacular and uplifting, with life in full effervescent bloom
I saw the occasional small butterfly, but not as much insect life as I would expect to see
I passed a dead tree where I could hear the vibrant trill of young life. I realised it was a nest of hidden youg in a hole im the tree, and a woodpecker quickly appeared in a nearby tree with food in her beak for her hidden brood. But she refused to visit her nestlings while I was close by, and reassuringly called to them instead. As I moved away, accepting that I wasn't going yo get a photo, she quickly visited her nest to feed her hungry mouths, and was away again
I passed a few small streams crossing the path, then joined a wider tarmaced path lined withbwild flowers including many wild strawberry flowers.
Just before I reached the main path along the river a the bottom of the valley, I passed a beautiful water cascade over mossy rocks
I walked back along the river with the late afternoon sun slowly descending over to my right, casting tree shadows out along the path.
I stopped at a fishing point with stunning views up and down a bend in the river, where I could walk out into the river over old round millstones to wash and cool my feet.
Several hired canoes passed by filled with parents and their excited children.
I continued back along the path through tall grasses and shaded wild flowers
I saw a small mud island with a pair of Canada geese perched on it, with two swans sailing up and down behind them.
I sat on the river bank near the Bigswier bridge where I had started my walk, and let my feet trail in the water, feeling the great, eternal flow of the life of the river
A mother mallard duck and her brood picked their way down the river by the opposite bank, then bravely struck out across the river
As I returned to the bridge through the green grass large flies rose and descended, gleaming in the sunlight, in a great dance of beings.
I walked back up onto the centre of the bridge to take in the beauty of the Wye Valley one more time, and saw my spirit bird, the heron, loping its giant wings as she slowly disappeared down the river valley.Read more