May Eve on Port Meadow

Some pictures taken this evening in Oxford's Port Meadow, on the eve of May.

Pictures can't show you the sounds of the meadow: the twittering of all the different kinds of birds in the trees; the occasional honk of a goose or low of a cow; the shouts of the rowers going up and down the river; the distant thud of horses' hooves as now and then they take to running; the rustle in the bushes which reveals the presence of invisible rabbits; the swish of the wings of the ducks as they fly overhead.

The neighbouring fields were full of rabbits, enjoying the evening light. May Eve is supposed to be a night for fairies, but none were in evidence tonight - only the rabbits.

That tower in the distance belongs to what was once the church of St Philip and St James. May 1 is the feast of these saints, so tonight was their Eve too.

The last sun of winter began to set behind the ruins of Godstow Abbey:

Some legends say the dead walk on May Eve, but I didn't wait at the abbey to test this for myself.

By sunset, I could see in the distance a small group of people gathering to build a bonfire, to welcome summer in. You can just about spot them in this picture, dwarfed by the water and the sky.

And so the sun sets until May Morning.