An encounter with an otter in a mid-Wales bookshop led me to the banks of the River Dee in north Wales to explore the magic and history of the celebrated ‘wizard stream’ of Milton and ‘silver clere’ waters of Spenser. The otter in question caught … Continue readingFOLLOWING THE WIZARD STREAM

I was inspired to write about the journey of the River Dee, from its source on the dark, eastern slopes of Dduallt in Snowdonia, following its course as it gains speed, rolling and spilling into valleys, sometimes meandering and mazy, sometimes rushing and impatient, but … Continue readingRIVER SONG

The morning of Saturday 15th August 2020 dawned sunny and fine, perfect for my drive to Hope Mountain Bed and Breakfast and the watercolour workshop I had booked in for.  Travelling through the quiet country lanes of Cymau, blowsy and voluptuous with the dark, deep … Continue readingHOPE FOR THE FUTURE

There is no present in Wales,
And no future;
There is only the past…
R.S. THOMAS
… Continue readingOF CHRISTMAS PAST

At the going down of the sun, and in the morning, we will remember them. … Continue readingREMEMBER, REMEMBER…

With Hallowe’en just around the corner, I’m taking a look at the dark and mysterious tales surrounding two of our longest living and most iconic trees, the mighty oak and the venerable yew, both of which feature large in the collective mythologies of our islands, … Continue readingTALES FROM THE WOOD

Autumn, with its velvet-soft mornings sharpened by cool, still air  – a reminder that winter is on its way – is the celebrated season of mists and mellow fruitfulness, the time for harvesting summer’s bounty from our trees and hedgerows. For me, there is no … Continue readingQUICK, QUICK, SLOE

Today is the first of September, and it’s brought with it a good drying day. Cobwebs and bed sheets fly in the wind as magnificent fleets of cumulus clouds billow in full sail across the blue of a fresh-washed sky. I’ve been out gathering apples … Continue readingCRAFT CIDER CYMRU

Together with a small group of enthusiastic amateur botanists, I could recently be found seeking out the wild flowers of Halkyn Mountain in Flintshire with the Clwydian Hills in the distance before us, their blue and violet outline just breaking the soft grey of a … Continue readingON HALKYN MOUNTAIN

‘Rewilding’ has become a bit of a buzz word (no pun intended!), with the issue lately receiving increasing exposure from the mainstream media. A wide-ranging and far-reaching subject, the basic premise is that we can all do our bit for wildlife by allowing our gardens … Continue readingWHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE