24 January 2024 – 19 February 2024

Tiptoe through the Snowdrops

Tiptoe through the Snowdrops

 

Take a stroll beside Etal Castle to see the abundance of snowdrops that bloom in the nearby copse. You’ll also find snowdrops on Etal’s riverside walk, where the eagle-eyed might spot some early primroses, as well as on walks around Ford Village. Snowdrops walks will not be signposted this year, but please enjoy exploring unaided and be mindful of social distancing.

Lone Flower, hemmed in with snows and white as they
But hardier far, once more I see thee bend
Thy forehead, as if fearful to offend,
Like an unbidden guest. Though day by day,
Storms, sallying from the mountain-tops, waylay
The rising sun, and on the plains descend;
Yet art thou welcome, welcome as a friend
Whose zeal outruns his promise! Blue-eyed May
Shall soon behold this border thickly set
With bright jonquils, their odours lavishing
On the soft west-wind and his frolic peers;
Nor will I then thy modest grace forget,
Chaste Snowdrop, venturous harbinger of Spring,
And pensive monitor of fleeting years!

William Wordsworth, To A Snowdrop, 1819

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