A couple of hours away from the chaos !

After three days of unpacking endless boxes after our household effects were delivered Wednesday, we needed to regain a bit of sanity so downed tools and headed off to visit Tegg's Nose Country Park.

It is an area near Macclesfield in Cheshire and has good views across part of the Cheshire plain and Macclesfield forest, pasture, moorland plus the reservoirs.   There is a lot of history dating back to the bronze age in this surrounding area which you can read a little about HERE with mention of the quarrying of sandstone.    Macclesfield and other nearby towns which wove silk years ago.   Anyway,  back to the fresh air and to see what birds and insects around;    to be honest, I didn't expect to see much on a two hour visit midday but the one highlight for me was catching sight of a newly fledged Wren which definitely had the Awwwww factor big time !     Photo of that a little later in the post.         

Once in the fresh air it was bliss !      I only took the one camera so landscape pics were taken on the old iPhone

views towards Cheshire's 2nd highest peak Shuttlingsloe (which we have climbed in the past ! )   to Macclesfield forest beneath and one of the reservoirs.

Bottoms and Tegg's Nose reservoirs 

Now for the enchanting newly fledged Wren who was trying to catch up with its siblings who were all calling to one another - bless !!

I dare you not to say Awwwwwww       lol      brand new baby fresh out of the nest !

It was responding to the sounds of the other siblings on the other side of the path so it hopped off the low fence and scrambled its way into the scrub !  can you see it ?

close up ....     goodbye little Wren, safe travel

Despite the warm weather there was a lot of cloud when a male Kestrel was hovering nearby .....     pity about the leaden sky ! 

Lovely Gatekeeper butterfly on the daisies

7 spot Ladybird   ......................"don't jump "    !!! 

busy bee

Daydreaming Jackdaw 

Bouncy Pied Wagtail 

Peacock butterfly 

Grazing cattle used for keeping the moorland under control ! 

collecting wood pulp for the nest 

Finally grey cloud and a heat haze with view of Jodrell Bank

Ok, that's it from two hour walk but the Wren had to be the highlight !       It's back to boxes for us so sorry if I get behind in catching up with posts.     The bad news is we still need to buy a sofa as our luxury white leather one which we brought from previous house did not get through the tight turn on the corridor off the stairwell    :(      it's now in the parking bay and despite its value I will just have to kiss it goodbye asap  :(     a longer story about that saga which I won't bore you with but it was a very stressful day when not all our goods were delivered.    Will catch up in a few days when we are able to breathe again !

  • Looked a good trip Hazel, certainly a bit of a stress buster!
    The wren was definitely cute....but my, he looked grumpy!! And a nice collection of other creatures :o)
    Good luck with the rest of the unpacking!!
  • All I can say is - you have managed without whatever those boxes hold, so don't panic - take your time and it will all be sorted. Much better to go out and enjoy the weather and beautiful countryside you have around you, what fabulous photos of Macc and area, I always thought it was superb when we drove through to see brother-in-law and family.
    Very lucky to see the newly hatched Wren, definite Awwwww there. The Kestrel is a smasher and your dancing Pied Waggie. Lovely flutterbies too, we are doing well this year, today especially I had loads in the garden.
    Keep smiling:-)
  • Great post aitch, so pleased to see that you escaped the curse of unpacking boxes (looks horrendous) & found some peace & tranquility in the lovely countryside ... also very happy with Kestrel images, never mind the sky!
    Who wouldn't love that baby Wren?
  • Awww what a grumpy looking baby but a cutie all the same. Brilliant pics Hazel...Looks like you had a much needed break away from the suffocation of boxes! Too many good pics to pic a favourite this time..although I do like your ladybird pics as I havent seen a single one this year!
    (Pardon the Scottish Accent)
  • I think you needed that break from unpacking Jenga. Gorgeous baby wren - love watching them buzz about. That's quite some landscape to enjoy.
    As long as you've found the kettle and something to drink out of all is good with the world
    CinJ
  • My oh my, what a lot of boxes. It's amazing how much stuff we accumulate over the years. No wonder you needed to escape for some fresh air.
    Lovely views of the Cheshire countryside. Interesting contraption for cutting stone I wonder who Mr Tegg was that he and his nose had a quarry named after him.
    Nice collection of birds butterflies and bugs. The baby Wren is adorable.

  • It's a necessity to unwind sometimes, Hazel.
    Lovely set of shots. I especially like the Ladybird looking over the edge. :-)
  • I agree with Gaynor. Get out when you can and unpack in your spare time, not the other way around ... well maybe get a few essentials sorted first! Nice close-ups of the young grumpy one and good to get the Waggy one. Grey skies are the bane of in-flight shots, unless you're extremely lucky with light. I can actually see Jodrell Bank from one of the local parks ... just.