Bluebells woods have a mysterious air. To get the full effect, you have to imagine everything moving in the lightest breeze, bees humming in the bells, birds singing as they attend their nests, and the odd grey squirrel bouncing around.
Light dapples through the tender young beech and chestnut leaves, moving across one patch then another; brightening or fading as clouds float between the woodland and the sun.
Beech is the most beautiful tree at this time of year.
In case you’re (rightly) thinking I ought not to have been trampling the bluebells, I didn’t: the woods are laced with paths, broad, ‘ordinary’ ones and many more secret or narrow ones. Some are more suited to foxes or deer than humans, others are wet, more river than path.
Since my pictures of the beech tree leaves and the bluebells are on the impressionistic side, you might like to see the nodding stalks of dancing bells closer up:
I’m sharing these so Mum can look inside the woods: she was saying this weekend that her bluebell wood-rambling days are over and she just has to imagine they are still much as they were.
Susan Rushton 
Gorgeous 😍
It’s a special time.
Beautiful!!
They are one of the flowers I am most homesick for if I’m away.
Beautiful pictures accompanying with delightfully descriptive prose – a perfect gift to us and to your mother.
Thanks for your kindness, Derrick.
And they are. Lovely photos Susan. I was admiring the bluebells lining the lane on my way home today. Getting very blown around in this wind!
It’s a good job they are waterproof.
Beyond beautiful
One of those times where even if a picture can convey a tenth of it, a tenth is good enough.
Stunning!!! A fairy glade indeed!!!
Thank you!
You are very welcome!! 🙂
If I’d managed to get to my woods at the right time I would have seen similar scenes but with one difference, we have red squirrels here on the Isle of Wight!
Red squirrels are just about holding on, but the nearest ones are towards the coast near Southport and in Formby.
Beautiful, Susan. I love the impressionistic side.
Bluebells blur always seems apt.
So nice to walk between these blue beauties.
I also found it interesting to see the fanning patterns of their leaves from the other side of the valley.
There’s little more wonderful than bluebell woods, and yet they’re so very hard to capture on camera. You’ve done a great job.
They have the magical property of appearing to vanish when they spot a camera.
They do. I guess that’s part of their charm.
On one of our trips, many years ago, we were along the southwest side of Lake Erie at a lighthouse, and on the way into the property I caught a glance of the floor of the forest, which was covered in blue. I had no idea what that was so when we were done with the lighthouse tour I told my husband I was going to walk back down the road and see. It was bluebells, thousands of them, it was amazing! I keep thinking I want to try to grow them here, but we’re not near the Great Lakes or a large body of water and I wonder if they needed that sort of place.
I’m glad you investigated. There are reservoirs in the area but the bluebells prefer the woods. Our woodlands are on the damp side for most of the year. The Spanish ones are wonderful plants, in their way and are much more sturdy. I see them both growing in sunny gardens too.
Oh, bless! I’m sure Mum’s more than happy with impressionistic bluebell woods, as am I 🙂 🙂 That feeling of them drifting around you…wonderful!
She says so. 🙂 I’m glad you liked them too.