We explored
Burgh Castle yesterday. I've not been there since I was a child, and didn't really remember either its size (particularly imposing from river level) or how exposed it is. Strong winds blew across the marshes and Breydon water, where various duck floated in rafts. On a dull day, shelduck stood out amongst various smaller ducks. Gulls wheeled noisily around the walls and over reed beds, but it was not a day to stop and watch for too long.
To borrow a phrase from Simon Barnes, I am a bad birdwatcher. But I'm even worse at recognising flora, so I am making positive efforts to identify common British trees and shrubs. At Burgh we found hawthorn and ash (I told you I was a novice!) amongst others. I'm just going to try and fix those in my mind for now.
Stopping in the graveyard on the way back to the car we found the first snowdrops of the year, in amongst this larger carpet of yellow flowers - winter aconite?
Addendum. This from Richard Mabey's Flora Britannica: "Winter aconite, Eranthis hyemalis, from Southern Europe, is often the very first flower to bloom in gardens in mid-January, and is widely naturalised in plantations, roadsides and churchyards. The yellow flowers have been called 'choirboys' in Suffolk, from the ruffs that surround them."
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