ASs some regulars may know I sometimes have a few health problems that at times restricts my access to the countryside so many of the restrictions that we have endured, and are still enduring, do not feel strange to Chris and myself. My immune system is pretty shot up at times so I'm quite good at avoiding numbers of people, I'm maybe not as anti social as it seems, and I've never been a lover of shopping unless its books. When we were recommended to shield in our own homes we actually realised we could walk the riverside fields with permission from the owners and had little chance of meeting anyone so we felt quite happy there. When restrictions eased we have four small nature reserves within a couple of miles of home with plenty of space to avoid close contact but still both watch birds and talk about birds with others doing the same, quite a little anti social bird club we are. There has been good birds aplenty and as winter has drawn closer the wintering Thrushes arrived we have been doing counts on them. One of our local reserves has got a wonderful Starling murmuration,60,000 birds at least, which we managed to social distance the grandsons to. We have found by visiting the busiest of the reserves late afternoon most birders have gone home and we enjoy the spectacle of birds going to roost. We do miss visiting our local moorland but they are outside the 3 mile radius we put on ourselves, they will still be there when all this is over and we settle down to our new normal. Because I am in that at risk category we seem to be swimming in hand sanitiser but Chris keeps an eye on what I get up to. I just hope other folk are coping as well as us and getting the support we have been getting, take care out there we will beat this lot somehow.
Pete
Birding is for everyone no matter how good or bad we are at it,enjoy it while you can
Cin J
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Regards, Hazel
Jim
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Best wishes
Hazel in Southwest France
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Tony
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Pete, I share your thoughts and frustrations, for all of us its been very challenging this last nine months or so, and no real sign of a let up any time soon, vaccine or not.
Like yourself and Chris, and others, I too have had to find alternative ways to watch wildlife, and I'm lucky, we have a decent sized garden (minus a hide....) where Mrs PR and myself are able to enjoy watching nature go about its daily business.
Incidentally, Mrs PR has suggested that the old playhouse house our son (now almost 24) used should be removed and a garden shed put in its place, as a hide....
The end of October, Mrs PR had a vital op on her spine, with the most serious part just below here skull, and with me disabled we've had to rely on online shopping, which infuriates me, with fruit and veg delivered with hours left on the use by dates, or worse, battered and bruised.
To add to all that, where we live, just on the edge of Tier 3 restrictions pre Lockdown 2 and now in Tier 3, I've been reluctant to visit the local reserves because all types are getting to these places and taking away from the tranquillity.
Keep the cheerful chin up, one day it will calm down and we'll all be able to visit the reserves again, and I'd like to think that some of the newer reserve visitors appreciate how delicate nature can be and join us.
In the interim, stay safe, its hard, but it'll be worth it.
Mike
Flickr: Peak Rambler