The almost luminous turquoise waters of the Southern Ocean glow on a warm Spring’s afternoon, west of Albany.

Small native flowers push up through sand along a boardwalk west of Denmark (WA).

Ford House, Bridgetown.

A field of wild flowers prepares to erupt in a carpet of colour near Port Gregory.

One of the first flowering plants each season, wattle is iconic and permeates the air with a distinct sweetness.

The first subtle signs of spring slowly creep into the bushland around the Murchison River in Kalbarri National Park.

The first inklings of the Mid West spring were starting to peak out of the ground as I explored the Murchison gorge.  Very infrequently one was lucky enough to come across a tiny beauty like this native orchid.

The floodplain within the Murchison Gorge stretches out before the eye revealing a broad spectrum of ground colours and cover.

One of the joys of living in Western Australia is this time of year.  As a kid growing up in Australia you hear about the ‘wildflowers’ and see photos but figure it’s just that, select images and stories.  Turns out that it’s all that and more.  As of about last week, for example, the highway that I drive on to my day job has begun to erupt in colour; native bushes covered in pink, white and yellow flowers.  Wattle trees too are beginning to bloom with soft yellow pompoms and soon carpets of everlastings, orchids and others will begin blooming from about 700ks north of Perth to 400ks south.  I’m hoping ot make a definite effort to chase the wildflowers this year and hope to be able to share them here.  For now, a bright little bush spotted in John Forrest National Park.

This little fellow is tiny in the scheme of things.  The flower is tiny, maybe 10mm across and the spider, a fraction of this.  There’s so much going on in that world beyond our nose.