Bradshaw-Taylor Lane-Soil Hill-Ogden-Soil Hill-Perseverance Road-Bradshaw

Sue volunteered for Granddaughter duty today so I had a good stroll around. The weather was hot one minute and freezing the next.

9:45

Climbing Bradshaw Lane in beautiful sunshine I realised I’d far too many layers on – Soil Hill changed all that with a very cold blast from the west. It was Nice having a chat with Daniel up there, both of us were on a Wheatear  hunt – I’d no success today. (Hope you get the Pheasant , Daniel, before it snuffs it!).

There was very little about on the way up to Soil Hill just a Goldfinch, so I decided to do a Magpie count. At the end of play Magpies were 16 up.

I counted 11 Meadow Pipit on Soil Hill but there was a lot of movement so there could have been lots more. A lone Kestrel was hunting on the top, later near Pottery Cottage a Pr. Kestrel were in the air.

C7 Skylark were singing and a couple of Curlew made a fly past once or twice. On the descent to Pottery Cottage, on the west path, a new species for me – a Weasel. A few Mallard and a Chaffinch was all I could muster until the track opposite Coal Lane, where 4 Goldcrest were very active in the pines.

11:30 Ogden Plantation

Quiet as usual just a Meadow Pipit in the fields leaving the plantation and a Nuthatch enlarging a Blue Tit box nest hole and making a right echoing racket in the process.

I had a detour to Boggart Brig Café tempted by the thought of a bacon sandwich but in the end I settled for a very healthy mixed salad sarnie instead – excellent choice.

12:30 Ogden

On the water 5 BHG and 5 Common Gulls with 7 Canada Goose, 1 Barnacle Goose, 1 Cormorant and a bit later 2 LBBG turned up.

On the circuit ,a Nuthatch was calling and also about a Coal Tit, Robin, Wren, LTT, Woodpigeon.

I had a good long gander on the Dipper stream but with no joy.

13:30 Homeward Bound

I thought I’d give Soil Hill another go, just in case Wheatear had sneaked in when my back was turned – if it had I did not get it!

On Syke Lane, I had a long chat with a farmer , putting the world to rights.

Approaching Soil Hill c12 Goldfinch flew over followed by 10 Woodpigeon with another 10 feeding in the fields. The Kestrel was still about and what looked like a pr. Moorhen were on the lower (NK) pond.I flushed a pr. Partridge  on the north path– they were off too quickly for me to get the sp.

A Pheasant was enjoying the nyger seed I’d put down on my earlier visit. On Perseverance Road there was a fly-over of c30 Fieldfare.

Just before Small Tail Farm a mystery bird, slightly larger than a Robin with a dark red breast left the wall top as soon as I’d eyeballed it – most prob. a Robin but it sure did not act like one! And I can’t think what else it could have been.

A couple of  Pied Wagtail, in the fields opposite the Raggalds Inn, completed a bit of mediocre show.

Spot the weasel

Awesome

My sort of post

Awesome(2) Fieldfare over

New pond? 

Climb Perseverance Road from Raggalds, through wall stile at road bend, pond seen on right (2 fields over)  at top of field