Winter - the spectre of a barn owl...
In winter the Brecks and Suffolk’s eastern fringe stand apart from the rest of the county. Their sandy soils are light and free draining – fantastic walking and riding country. These heathland areas are at their finest in this season, a subtle tapestry of 
green and gold, brown and faded purple burnished to perfection by the slanting winter sunlight; the silvery bark of the now-bare birch trees and the smooth, light-grey bark of beech trees made even more striking by the sombre backdrop of glowering pines.
Across the Brecks, crossbills, firecrests and goldcrests, siskins, hawfinches, woodcock and lapwings are all the more easy to see now that seasonal restrictions on Open Access Land is lifted. From November until the end of February you have the freedom to roam and enjoy this unique and very special landscape.
On the coast, the coldest months also bring wonders to behold; in the evenings at Dunwich Heath, ant-lions, small lace-winged insects, start to emerge after a month cacooned underground. The estuaries are alive with stilt-legged wading birds; avocets and godwits. This is the time of year to see snow buntings, white fronted geese and goldeneyes. On the River Stour, flocks of brent geese are chattering away to one another, whilst keen birdwatchers train binoculars on long-tailed ducks and red-breasted mergansers.
February at the National Trust's Ickworth House, just south of Bury St Edmunds, is beautiful at this time of year with snowdrops and aconites at their peak, whilst across the arable heart of the county, the subtle spin of the changing seasons is mirrored in flocks of redwings and spiralling columns of rooks, that begin to nest while snow and frost still chill the ground.
And down almost any quiet country lane, there’s the chance of an encounter with a ghost – no unearthly spectre but a barn owl, floating across the long twilight of a winter afternoon.
Back to Suffolk Seasons >