Normally a visit to Lyon’s Parc de la Tête d’Or would offer a palette of vivid colours, but not today. The park is feeling bleak and desolate during this bitter winter. The central lake is frozen and the facilities are closed.

A frozen waterfall in Lyon's large park

A few animals in the zoo are still visible but most are inside keeping warm.

Watusi casting its shadow

Crocodile laying inside out of the cold

Pelicans grooming

The frozen lake was the highlight of our visit. Only a small section of the lake is not covered in ice. In this small section the bird life has gathered.

A small open channel of water

Around the lake are signs warning visitors not to try and walk on the ice. A few large cracks in the ice suggest the frozen layer is not too thick.

Cracks line the edges of the frozen lake

Ice has formed not just on the top of the lake but in blocks and strange shapes around tree branches that dip into the water.

Ice remains on the tree branches

Ice on the branch of a tree