With some delay – at the end of March – I’m looking back at my February hikes.

The first hike was also probably the nicest. I chose a trail that, aside from the first part, isn’t too busy. It was a windy day, but that was a common trait for most of February.

The chateau area has an interesting history – the main part is the relatively simple white chateau, while the red chateau was mostly administration and stables, as well as a gate to the park. It was built in the late 1800s and combines elements of Gothic architecture when it comes to shape and layout with the raw bricks that were used dominantly when building train stations.

The white chateau was built as a replacement of an older chateau and castle after a fire in the late 1700s and has a much simpler design. In the early 1800s, world-renowned composers (such as Ludwig van Beethoven) and painters were hosted by the owners.

The park continuously gives way to the surrounding woods, though there are many lookouts named after individual famous guests before that happens.

At the rear gate – by which time, the park has long given way to woods – is a small gate and a hunting lodge, with a weather-beaten wall spanning some part of the park, until it simply ends with no ceremony at the crossing of forest paths. From there on, I walked through the woods, with long gaps between villages, enjoying the solitude.

My second hike of the month led me to an area near my home. The forecast was mixed, but I was lucky to be in the sunnier part of the hills.

Even though the mountains had some light snowfall, most of that was long gone. Even the waterfall nearby, not known much, wasn’t as strong as I hoped.

The third hike was an easy walk through the suburbs, unfortunately, in a light but continuous rain, and as it led me mostly between fields and villages, the visibility was minimal and chances for photos even fewer.

The next (and last, for the month) weekend had slightly better weather, but it wasn’t exactly assured, so I remained close to home again. This time, it was much warmer, feeling like mid-April more than late February. I started by walking up an artificial hill – created by stone from the nearby coal mine (which isn’t operational for a couple of years already) with a limited view of the suburbs (including the massive lumber mill) and the mountains in the background.

Given the time of year, and my choice of destination, I could mostly admire the flowers in people’s gardens more than any “wild” natural beauty. Those were great to look at, but not that good to take photos of.

Thus, the shortest month was over. With a lot of walking, but not so much when it comes to photos. March – I can hint now – was much better, especially when it came to flowers.