Ilkley

School Holidays:

We enjoyed a short break with a Abi to a small caravan site near the river Wharf at Ilkley this week.

Day 1:

The caravan site is a 20 min walk into Ilkley, and we made a detour to the tennis club café on the riverside.

The café was packed with  big tennis tournament on all week.

After some scran the ladles went shopping leaving me free to wander.

A long walk along the riverside path , (the river is very low at present) as far as the waterworks and back via the other riverbank brought some birds.

A warm muggy sort of day.

Birds:-

A Kingfisher or maybe 2.paasing by.

Grey Wagtail 5+.

Day 2:

We enjoyed messing about in the river with Abi today after a "Greggs" picnic. 

A broken down branch by the riverside turned into "HMS AJBranch" which we sent on its inaugural  launch (bart busting a champagne bottle against it's hull).

It soon ended grounded on some rocks though - obviously poorly clinker-built.

Several bombing raids , using the large stones by the river ,were needed to get the ship sailing again.

It was cloudy but it stayed dry.

Birds:

C25 Sand Martin.

Kingfisher, Grey Wagtail 5+.

Jay , 6 Goosander , 2 Dipper.

Herring Gull.

Mandarin Duck 4+ 

Pheasant with young.

Long Tailed Tit,  2 Oystercatcher. 

Not many Gulls -  c20 Bk Headed 5 Lesser Black-backed.

Brown Rats 3+

An evening stroll along the river towards Addingham brought with it:-

Little Egret, Heron, Curlew, 2  Oystercatcher , Moorhen, 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull, 2 Black Headed Gull.

Just beyond the tennis club the path is very eroded with a  4' 'wall' of loose stones and rocks now visible by the riverside.

Sand Martins were nesting here, very low to the river and perhaps Rats?

Outside our house.

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