Bradshaw - Ogden Water - Soil Hill (Summit) Sunday

9:15 - 13:15.

A bright and breezy day today - too much breeze especially on Soil Hill.

I received a ping on the Calderdale Birding WhatsApp via DJB this morning reporting the fly past  of an Iceland Gull over Ned Hill Track. A great bird to get! The bird had dropped down towards Ogden so I thought I'd head off in that direction just in case it landed on Ogden Water.

No sign of the Iceland Gull, alas, as I got to Ogden Water though.

I did the usual , a coffee and a circuit of the water before heading off to climb over Soil Hill.

Soil Hill was a real breezy affair.

Birds:-

2 Little Owl.

Greenfinch.

At least 7 Mistle Thrush (4+1 seen and 2 heard singing).

Song Thrush.

2 Tufted Duck (1 Drake).

Pheasant.

Pied Wagtail.

12 or so Herring Gull with a good crowd of smaller Gulls.

3 Curlew (2 heard, 1 seen).

Great Spotted Woodpecker.

3 Goldcrest.

2 Skylark.

Stock Dove.

Rook.

Plus the usuals.

Bradshaw - Soil Hill (Summit) - Ogden Water - Bradshaw

9:30 - 13:15

My usual walk again today up Taylor Lane over Soil Hill (Summit) down Ned Hill Road and around Ogden Water - home was via Bradshaw Farm Track and fields.

Nice to have some company on the way up Bradshaw Lane, with Emma, and her Spaniel, from across the road going in the same direction for a while.

It was a bit damp to start but in brightened up and a bit of sun actually appeared.

I bumped into DJB on The Summit , who was just on his way home after his stint up here.

Ogden Water was quite busy with folk but not birds alas.

A couple of decent birds today with my 1st "on the deck" Curlew and a calling Tawny Owl that called from NE of Ogden Water,

On my away around today I spotted a damaged Wheelie Bin Lid that had blown and got stuck , high, in a tree. 

Thinking this could fall and hurt someone, I looked around for something to knock in down with.

Some nearby fly tipping came in handy where a cricket bat and a 3 legged stool had been dumped.

Standing on the stool I tried to whack the lid with the cricket bat several times.

People passed - shrugged - looked away -  Ignored me.

Mind you around here, as the saying goes, matter what you do.

No One Bats a high lid.

Now where are those green pills I forgot to take this morning.

Birds:

1 Curlew.

2 Greenfinch.

3 Skylark.

Herring Gull.

Common Gull.

Black-Headed Gull.

25 Lapwing.

2 Kestrel.

Chaffinch.

Goldfinch,

Song Thrush,

Mistle Thrush.

2 Canada Geese,

Mallard.

1 Male Tufted Duck.

2 Raven,

Wren,

Tawny Owl.

3 Buzzard.

2 Pheasant.

C80 Small Gulls Bradshaw Fields.

2 Little Owl,

Starling.

and quite a few others.

Bradshaw - Soil Hill (Summit)

12:15 - 13:45

Yet another wet and windy day today.

After lunch the weather seemed on the mend so I put my waterproof gear on and went for a walk along the local fields.

Arriving at Ned Hill Road bottom,the weather was still ok so I decided to walk over Soil Hill summit.

At Ned Hill Track the wind increased and by the time I got to Soil Hill fine drizzle was being blown along on a stiff breeze.

Visibility disappeared - dont know where it went - and just a Mallard and a Sklylark were flushed from the summit.

Also a one note , short , high pitched call was heard, just once,  from somewhere in the gunge - no idea what though.

A heavy shower paid me a visit as I walked down Bradshaw Lane.

With hardly any birds to talk of I thought I would do the weather instead.

Birds:

Bradshaw:

Greenfinch. 

2 Little Owl in the same tree.

Pheasant.

C20 Common Gull.

4 Black Headed Gull.

2 Stock Dove.

Soil Hill (Summit).

1 Skylark.

1 Mallard.

Just a small camera with me today,.

Sowerby Bridge.

I had a visit to make to White Windows Care Home , Sowerby Bridge , this morning and I took the opportunity to have a quick look at the canal and river near the town centre.

Zero degrees at home with a bitter wind.

It was a tad warmer down here but still quite chilly.

Some signs of spring with Snowdrops and Crocus in bloom.

Birds:-

c15 Canada Geese.

Mallard.

4 Goosander (3 Males and s "Redhead").

c 30 Jackdaw.

Bullfinch. Goldfinch. Great Tit. Blue Tit.

Long Tailed Tit

Cormorant.

A few Gulls  overhead.

Probably awake to snow tomorrow, if not before.

Result of bikers frustration after

forgetting code on his bike lock.

Bradshaw - Soil Hill (Summit) - Ogden Water - Bradshaw Fields

9:00 - 14:30

A Cracking sunny morning with frozen snow lying on Soil Hill summit and a cold northerly wind up here - I left the north slope for another day.

By contrast Ogden Water was sheltered and an overcoat warmer.

Mr. Predictable I'm afraid again today with my usual circuit.

Ogden was very busy with it being school holiday week but I enjoyed a real good laugh with Pat and Janice who were on duty as I made my usual 2 visits, to the "cafe" on my rounds.

I did not pack any lunch and had to settle for a bag of Cheese crackers and a cuppa soup or was it a cuppa salt?

Birds:-

Bradshaw, Soil Hill (Summit) & Ogden Water:

Starling, Greenfinch, House Sparrow. Little Owl. Common Gull. Woodpigeon.

2 Stock Dove. Canada Geese,, Wren, Herring Gull.

Pheasant.

Raven carrying nesting Material (Soil Hill) & Raven heard (Ogden).

c10 Small Gulls on Ogden Water at one point.

6 Tufted Duck.

Dunnock. Robin. Blackbird. Great Tit, Blue Tit. Coal Tit. Wren.

Treecreeper.

Goldcrest.

Great Spotted Woodpecker.

Mallard.

1 Redwing.

2 Nuthatch,

Song Thrush.

Ogden Lane to Home.

2 Mallard. Little Owl. 2 Pheasant, Chaffinch.

Bullfinch,

Usual Magpies Crows and Jackdaws.

2 Black Headed Gull.

c10 Common Gull.

Mistle Thrush.

Cromwell Bottom Nature Reserve

Another wet and windy cool day today.

After lunch I had a drive down to Brighouse to have a quick look at the Ski-Lake area.

The "Avocet" car park area was rammed so I parked in the busy Nature Reserve Car Park.

The weather during my visit was mostly kind with just a couple of heavy showers to contend with.

Most of my visit was gawping through the railings at the ski-lake.

Many Gulls were on the metal fencing way over on the SW(?) end of the lake - obscured by trees.

I took quite a few photos to see if I could spot a scarce Gull but didn't.

I did not see any Tufties either today?

Birds:-

2 Mute Swan.

Little Grebe calling from the lagoon.

Canada Geese.

Usual Gulls as far as I could tell with 4 Lesser Black-backed Gulls.

A group of Siskin were calling noisily from trees above the wooden walkway that crosses the lagoon.

They very near but I could not find them in the bins!!

5 Goldeneye (3 Males).

Buzzard.

Jay.

2 Coot.

2 Heron.

10 Cormorant.

Plus a few others.

2nd Winter Herring Gull

Bradshaw - Raggalds - Soil Hill Etc

12:30 - 14:45.

'Back to the future' with rain, sleet and lots of wind on soil hill.

A bit of a dismal outing today but good exercise climbing over soil hill summit.

Sleet at the Raggalds for starters then a dry sandwich then a trifle wet for afters.

At the Raggalds the little bit of water there, was frozen.

Most birds were showing more sense than me keeping dry out of sight.

Anyway I did see a few.

I hope the electricity does not pack up like it did last evening in Bradshaw - 241 properties affected apparently.

I was Halfway through cooking my chicken a la king with Heinz Ketchup when the power went caput.

I managed to knock together some sanglier, pissaladiere and crepes suzette using one gas burner though.

Redshirazplonk to accompany it was very, very (c)hic.

Maybe I read the French menu without the required Frenchy accent because...

It didn't look much when I'd made it - I'll stick to English cuisine next time.

Birds:-

5 Rook.

C40 Starlings.

1 Mistle Thrush.

2 Raven.

2 Mallard.

1 Moorhen.

Plus usual crew.

What I can create when the power goes off is awesome...

Sometimes I just amaze myself.