Join me on my walk today

Just down the back lane looking over the fence - saw this female and one young - but was spotted and the young one dashed into the undergrowth

On down the lane, the postman came behind me so I headed for the copse and down into these fields

No wildlife or birds around but better still no people!

Sue has to be on a lead now as fairly blind which doesn't stop her chasing a rabbit and I wouldn't want to lose track of her.   She fairly patiently waits for me to take the photos.   

Nice to see the May coming out, just up by the school field now.

We are back onto the lane now and Sue decided she wanted more so we turned to follow the road down

  

Came around a bed to see these two about 15 - 20 yards ahead of me

 Hope you don't mind a little sequence of them, don't know whether the posing was friendly or not, I did hope to see courtship feeding but not lucky.

Then they both flew up into the hedge, I was happy to see them leave the road in case of cars coming around the bend below them.    Can't make up my mind if it was a pair or just two males posturing - they were mirroring each other there at the end weren't they.

Anyway that's all folk, 

feel free to add your walks on here if you wish

Gaynor

  •  My pleasure Jude, it has been lovely to walk out in the sunshine lately.    Hope you get better quickly now, it must be awful not to leave the house at all.    This weekend though will see a change with the cold weather back, even the birds will forget about their mating season for a while.

    A couple more pics from same day in my garden - well that pic was supposed to be under the above comment!!

    These Greenfinches are a pleasure to see, as it is a while since I had any visiting the garden, I can't remember seeing any at all last year.

    Mr and Mrs 

    I was sharing a cup of coffee with my neighbour, keeping a safe distance, and enjoying the sight of the birds close by.

    Sparrow saying come on you have had your share

    Our turn now

    My little post filled with mole hill, waiting to be topped up with compost when I can buy some and plants would be good too!!

    Chaffies in my elderflower/berry tree

    That's all folk

    keep safe and happy

  • I can sympathies with you on your eye problems Hazel,I suffered with what was called a "lazy eye" as a youngster although it was not diagnosed until I tried to join the RAF. For some strange reason they did not want an air gunner with a dodgy eye.I coped with this fine until was diagnosed with macular degeneration after I started to notice that I was missing a lot of birds.This was made worse when after getting Crohns Disease I was given heavy doses of steroids which maybe things look ;like I was looking through frosted glass. After a struggle we have changed meds and it is possible to go birding again with Chris having to do a lot of spotting for me. I'm still enjoying my birding but just accepting I will not see them all.
  • Just been on your walk with you again Gaynor, what a fabulous idea to capture such lovely pics as you go ... the additional pics of your garden birds are great, I still only get Spadgers, Starlings, Hedge sparrows & Collared Doves plus my lovely Robin but they are joyful to see & hear & eat for England! Bonus is that Colin visited today!
    Take care & stay safe ... hope we'll see more from you after the horrid weekend weather's passed!
  • That was a super walk, thanks for the invite :o) and your finches at the end were looking handsome/pretty and healthy. Lovely!
  • Lovely additions Gaynor and good to see the Greenfinches which were so in danger of their numbers dropping off with Trichomonosis. It has been lovely sunny weather which helps lift the spirits and our feathered and furry friends add to boost our mental well being. Guess we have to concentrate on what is outside our window and remember there is still beauty in the world - even though much of it has fallen off a cliff. Stay well, and thanks for sharing your garden birds; give Sue a cuddle from me - and yourself at two metre distance of course !

    @ Pete, you've had such a rough time of it over the years but you provide a lot of inspiration to those people with challenging health problems.    I am lucky with my general health, only minor problems which are not life threatening in any way   (unless they come up with a Coronavirus cure which involves anti-malarial ingredients which would be worse for me than the virus  ! )   

    Just wondering how Mike and I can celebrate our 40th Wedding Anniversary today - no restaurant meal, no special holiday break and I'm sending him a cuddle at social distance   LOL  

    Btw,  Happy Birthday Ann,   hope you can enjoy your celebration and Mr GB cooks you up a delicious feast   :)       

  • Thanks all, if you have spotted my post tonight you will see the Greenies were lucky yesterday!!!

    How can you celebrate you ask Hazy? Chocolate!!!!! no ban on it yet!!!! I haven't any in the house and of course I am now missing just a small portion when I need a treat.....like now!!!!!!
  • gaynorsl said:
    How can you celebrate you ask Hazy? Chocolate!!!!! no ban on it yet!!!! I haven't any in the house and of course I am now missing just a small portion when I need a treat.....like now!!!!!!

    LOL Gaynor,   no chocolate here either but a friend of mine dropped off a lovely card, some cake, homemade cranberry sauce (which I love with chicken, turkey, ham) and a huge bunch of flowers, bless her.       Once this pandemic is over (whenever that will be)  we will have a belated celebration although I'm not one for eating out very often and I'd settle for the Leighton Moss café which would suit us better  !!     A good birding trip will be just the ticket and maybe next year when there is more certainty that Covid-19  has run its course, a trip to see my brother and family in Australia would be wonderful.     Seems a long way off at the moment   LOL       Keep well, keep hand washing and keep distancing.  

  • Cheers Hazy, Just watching BBC2 Australia: Earths Magical Kingdom, no wonder people love it over there.
  • Here's a contribution from our recent walks. On the 24th we walked on the back roads, so you go up a slope with high banks, past the badger sets (library photo from  2015)

    Along the top with views over the village & saw our first Clouded Yellow of the year

    then turn left & go through a little copse, I could hear a bird call but wasn't sure what it was, then saw it with the bins (briefly) & decided it was either Firecrest or Goldcrest. I got a distant photo (looks a candidate for Paul's quiz) but at least confirmed it was a Firecrest. There was also a Chiffchaff singing.

    At the bottom of the hill we go past a pond & river & then head back uphill though the vines to home.

    On the 27th we went out the other way on the marshes. We started by taking some shots of a Storks nest that has just been started. It's very exciting because it's our first that can be easily seen from the garden.

    Then we took the small road out toward the gironde river, a female orange tip stopped a little way off

    There was a male too but they didn't mate & he went off, then after 1km (our distance limit) we turned right & then right again onto a track back towards home. A couple of Coypu dived into the water alongside the track, a belly-flop as usual, got 1/10 for style! LOL. No chance of a photo though. The track has nice bushes either side

    It's nice & dry with no rain for a few weeks now. A few birds flitting around but nothing posed for us. So head back home before our hour is up. Another photo of the Storks from up near the house

    A photo of the bank at the back of the garden, very sunny looking,

    I must do a bit of weeding, but the insects like it all. The moles are really bad at the moment, they seem to be dancing to the battery powered mole repellent!

    We knock them down daily, but they just come back again! Walk finished & just a photo of the setting sun.

    Good news on the telly last night, for a change, a couple in their nineties survived the virus, despite both being hospitalised. Good health everyone & stay safe.

  • wonderful set of photos Hazel and what a beautiful area to walk and that sunset is stunning. How special to see a Firecrest and Stork plus the early butterflies. Stay well and great news to hear about the couple in their nineties that came through the virus, it gives us all hope.