A Spiritual and Sensory Walk by Jennie Hart

Tangled grey branches, wet decaying brown--black leaves and discarded debris, gather and cling by the low town bridge slowing the swirling water on its meandering route to the Bristol Channel. The river reflects the sun's brightness, scattering sparkling sunbeams over its agitated surface.

There are five elegant swans gliding serenely on the water, avoiding the fast flow of the mainstream, their perfect white feathers lying smooth like velvet, outlining their contours. They hold their heads high and in arrogant manner, dominate the Severn.

Mallard ducks displaying multi-coloured feathers, soak up the weak winter sun. The females are more drab but look closely and you can see their speckles: cream and earthy. They all fight over crumbs brought by humans, pecking and annoying their neighbor. Sometimes, one dives and disappears for many seconds, the shape of its webbed feet discernible through the churning flow. There is a single lonely, tufted duck, black and white with a tiny fanning 'sporren' at the back of its head. He's a Rastafarian bird among the commoners. He doesn't fight and squabble, just gracefully accepts the crumbs that float his way.

Today there's a beach by the bridge, often submerged when deluges from the Welsh hills,spill into our town. Greylag geese strut and gather there in groups or sit on the sandy spit. Some have buff and white feathers unlike the grey shades of the adults. They are last year’s young, full size now, but not yet adorned with their final plumage. All are serene and composed, unaware of the furore a little way up the river where, swans, ducks and seagulls are in rivalry for the artificial feast. Wood pigeons and a collared dove fly in and out, searching for food and mingling with their goose colleagues.

The castle gardens overlook the River Severn, guarding the imposing ruins of the medieval castle, violently brought down by The Roundheads. It is barely erect, tilting to the diagonal, but still retaining its grandeur and towering over the neat and tidy gardens. Snowdrops bunch together in tight but delicate groups, and crocuses in shades of purple and yellow are emerging from the earth. They are ephemeral blooms low to the ground and pointed but opening out like water lilies in the February sun.