Cromwell.Bottom

I enjoyed a stroll around Cromwell Bottom this morning where it was nice and sunny to start but clouded over as the outing progressed.

It was good to have a quick chat with Mike St. in passing.

I found a few birds but nothing unusual and the ski-lake was disappointing with no 'scarce' Ducks on offer.

Viewing was only slightly better here, with a just  few leaves gone from the trees.

As always though,  it was good to get out into the fresh air.

On my way home, I called for my weekly Aldi shop in their busy Brighouse store.

Home was via Baliff Bridge rather than Hipperholme, where I'd  noticed temporary traffic lights were being installed when I'd  passed earlier - no delays on my journey home  - smug or what?

While I was walking along the canal I met a lady who reminded me of a 1960's film star but I just could not think who.

The lady told me her name was Bridget and that she was stony broke.

After some more banter she tried to tap me for a Tenner.

That was when I remembered the name of the 1960's film star.

Bridget-bart-dough.

Birds:-

1 Redwing.

1 Very light Pied Wagtail - on the Avocet Building.

1 Mute Swan, 5 Tufted Duck, 2 Nuthatch.

4 Goosander, 1 Buzzard, 1 Jay.

2 Cormorant, 1 Moorhen.

Many Long Tailed Tits.

and a few others.

Bradshaw - Ogden Water - Soil Hill - Bradshaw

The forecast nice sunny day waited 'till after 3pm to get its act together (for me anyway) with banks of dark clouds over Ogden and light drizzle as I crossed a dark soil hill summit.

3 1/2 hours out and about today with a double lap of Ogden Water interspersed with a coffee and a choc choc at the very welcome visitors centre.

Ogden Water is very full now and most of  the water side weeds are submerged.

Very, very few Ducks here today, but some young bread lobbbers were keeping the Mallards happy.

It was hard to come by anything worth a mention, really, but all this traipsing about has given me an appetite for my fish pie for tea  - great, yum, yum unless of course you were the unlucky fish.

Birds:-

Little Owl.

Usual gathering of Gulls in the Bradshaw fields.

Kingfisher (seen from the sluice area from the prom. immediately flew out of sight under the bridge).

c20 Small Gulls with a couple of Lesser Black-backed.

2 Tufted Duck.

1 Teal.

c20 Gulls on Ogden.

Just a Pheasant flushed on Soil Hill.

2 Rook - Percy Road.

11 Fieldfare over Taylor Lane.

??

Town Crier Gull.

Bradshaw - Ogden Water - Soil Hill Summit etc.

An early-ish start to my birding walk today was bathed in bright warm sunshine as I went across the fields and through the farms to Ogden Water.

I did one circuit of the water before calling for my coffee and choc choc fix in the visitors centre where one of the volunteers was explaining Chinese writing to me - something for me to 'take away'.

I did a second circuit of the water before sloping up through the woods at Ogden Clough to eventually arrive at the car park.

By now the earlier sunshine has gone home leaving some light cloud.

This soon went home to be replaced withs some drizzly stuff .

The walk up Ned Hill Road to Soil Hill top coincided with thick mist forming, reducing soil hill visibility to 50 yds or less.

Anyway, I did a circuit of Soil Hill summit and saw nowt (again).

The mist had cleared as I headed down Bradshaw Lane leaving the usual dull, grey stuff.

Birds:-

Ogden Water.

A couple of Raptors were seen - one was definitely a Sparrowhawk that flew fast west hidden by  the trees that I was under  and  that escaped the camera.

A second Raptor that was very high, north west-ish, looked bigger.

This bird was mobbed by two Gulls - but there could have been another Raptor also.

It was far too agile for a Buzzard and although it looked bigger than a Sparrowhawk It probably won't give me Gosh!

c200 Gulls on the water at one point.

3 Teal.

Female Goosander - giving me a grimace.

4 Wigeon (3 Drake birds).

Red Legged Partridge by the water.

2 Sparrowhawk (mention above).

2 Tufted Duck.

Nuthatch.

Usual Goldcrest and Long Tailed Tits.

2 Bullfinch.

Not many Chaffinch today.

3 Great Spotted Woodpecker (2 seen, 1 Heard).

Just a Mistle Thrush seen on Ned Hill track as the mist kyboshed the job.

A Kestrel was seen along Taylor Lane.

Small flock of Fieldfare high in the sun over Ogden Golf Course  seen from the farm track also.

30 Canada Geese and c125 Mostly Common Gulls in the Bradshaw Fields.

Sparrowhawk.

Gull mobbing Sparrowhawk Above

Sawbill.

Soil Hill and Bradshaw

I was out with friends for most of the daylight hours today - went to Wildes cafe at Crossroads above Keighley for elevenses.

I had a cuppa tea and the biggest jacket potato I've ever seen with lots of Tikka curry filling.

Took some swallowing but I got there in the end -  we certainly know how to live in Bradshaw!

Mid-afternoon,  to work off some of the calories, I headed off up Bradshaw Lane to cross Soil Hill summit.

A very mirky outing with thin foggy stuff here and there.

No sign of the recent Black Redstart although I only checked the soil hill east side boundary wall before contouring around the top and going down to Ned Hill Track and home via the farms/fields.

Soil Hill was ..... well ... Soil Hill with 1 Crow and a Blackbird seen.

A few Gulls were in the distant Shay Fields.

There was a good number of Gulls in the Bradshaw fields a bit later.

A Buzzard was on a fence post as I left Ned Hill Road bottom along the track.

Nothing new really.

Birds:-

Blackbird, 1 Crow - Soil Hill.

36 Canada Geese.

2 Mistle Thrush.

4 Stock Dove.

Buzzard.

3 Pheasants.

2 Greenfinch.

2 Bullfinch.

Chaffinch.

Long Tailed Tits.

c100 Jackdaw.

c170 Small Gulls - Bradshaw Fields

I forgot to mention - at Whitelome yesterday - I was making a note on my blogger pad,  trying to spell Grey Plover and, don't ask me why, I put an F in the spelling.

I mentioned this to birder up there and he told me there's no F in Grey Plover - I had to agree with him - funny that.

I went for a pint to the Raggalds yesterday tea time - Redwing were calling from the darkness as I walked up the bonnet.

Whiteholme Reservoir

I had planned a visit to see Emma at White Windows, Sowerby Bridge this morning.

As luck would have it a WhatsApp from AC inform me of a Grey Plover at Whiteholme, so that was my eventual destination.

As I was at White Windows a disappointing Whats app told me that the bird had flow.

Anyway I thought I give Whiteholme a go on this very mild calm day.

Arriving at Whiteholme I enjoyed the walk along the Water Board track, having a quick natter with LD & PD and later Martin H who were just leaving.

I sat at the waters edge and scoffed a huge BLT sarnie that I had bought earlier form Tesco's, whilst trying to eek something out of the sky.

At one point I thought I as not going to see ANY birds here.

I enjoyed a longer walk along the reservoir to the far east side intake stream and a few birds did make an appearance - but , as is usually the case here, not many.

I managed just 6 different species here today - better that some days - and a lot worse than others.

But this is the kind of area where something tasty can always drop in (like a Grey Plover for instance!).

There were some great 'brown colours' on the moor today and the few drops of rain that fell as I was walking back to the car didn't spoil things.

All-in-all an OK outing.

Birds:-

16 Golden Plover - flew through, not stopping.

2 Raven.

2 Wren.

11 (Eleven) Red Grouse.

1 Carrion Crow.

1 Kestrel.

Dull, Grey and Gloomy Bradshaw

I went up to Tesco this morning to buy some enthusiasm, but they, like me were clean out of it.

Another windy, mild very dull day again today - apparently October 2025 was the dullest on record.

I eventually ventured out this afternoon for a couple of hours with a slow meander along the local fields and back.

It stayed dry at least.

Birds:-

Green Woodpecker.

Little Owl.

3 Buzzard.

3 Stock Dove.

The many Gulls in the fields were mainly Common Gulls.

At one point C100 Gulls all took to the sky, but I could not see a Raptor about.

Ogden Water

I had a drive over to Ogden Water this dull and damp afternoon.

I did a mostly dry, circuit of the water, then called at the visitors centre for a natter with Pat and Steve, the volunteers, and a coffee and choc choc.

A second circuit was even more dull with bits of Windy Drizzle.

 "Windy Drizzle" sound like a 'Watch With Mother' character .

Sorry I forgot , you are too young to remember 'Watch With Mother'.

Birds:-

A Dipper in the dark promenade sluice was a pleasant change.

8 Teal.

2 Wigeon asleep throughout.

2 Tufted Duck.

Bullfinch.

Just a few Chaffinch (heard).

Long Tailed Tit.

Goldcrest.

Jay (heard).

Still lots of waterside weeds although the water is gushing in big style.

Later on a large-ish contingent of maniac, Black Headed Gulls dropped in screeching , soaring and dive bombing - they must have eaten some weed? .....

They preened for a while then left.

Nothing new today but it is aways good to get some exercise out and about.