At Last - Busy Brogborough Lake!

        As the numbers of fully vaccinated adults has risen, there is a relaxation on gatherings; couple this with a reasonable strength wind, and the numbers attracted to the lake for windsurfing activity rose. I therefore gathered my camera and lenses and, loading the car with both a tripod and my monopod, I headed out of the village to Brogborough. I had little doubt, I would not be the earliest to arrive. I was not disappointed, but I noted that as the wind was forecast for the full day, there was no rush to the water. There was the buzz that the day would not disappoint, so haste was unnecessary, and so everyone chatted and took their time to prepare at leisure. 
        There was therefore no pressing need for me set up in haste, I also decided that with a reasonable wind, and light, I could work with my long Sigma Zoom mounted on the monopod. Once I had seen that a few sailors had completed preparations and were heading for the lake, I readied the EOS R6 with the Sigma 60-600mm lens mounted on the monopod, and strolled to the water’s edge, I took a few shots of some of the early sailors, but also the family of Canada Geese and a lone, small butterfly, after a while shooting from th jetty, I headed for the path in the woods which on occasion doubles as a cycle track, and got down to the lake shore for a different viewpoint.

        I also headed even further round the lake, but that proved worthless, beyond witnessing one lady who was having difficulty getting out of the small cove facing the wind making it difficult to return to the jetty. So I made my way back through the woods towards the sailors assembly area and jetty. I was returning fast to alert others of her predicament, but fortunately passed her husband who was heading to reach her. This trek of mine served little purpose overall beyond giving me exercise in fast walking! Most of the meaningful shots were from the area where the geese have attempted reclaiming, by putting down a deposit, as their way of saying our geese families like the area you vacated whilst under lockdown!

Brogborough and Wind

  Brogborough Lake greeted the windsurfers with wind and variable sunshine, and the variations in response, skill levels and what caught the eye of my camera, meant I was kept on my toes all the time. Initially I planned to use my monopod to be able to react speedily, but I soon changed to using my heaviest and sturdiest of tripods. I was helped in this decision by the gusty wind, and also by my desire to capture sequences where some were using their wingsails for airborne excursions beyond the lake’s water surface. As a direct result of this activity, I have created some galleries so the sequence of such events is useful for later inspection, since some such occasions did end unexpectedly.

Another aspect of the enforced closure of the lake caused by Covid restrictions, was that the lakeside lawn was shared by several young families of Canada Geese and Greylag Geese, and also their subsequent, less welcome lack of healthy toilet considerations. Several of these families were there with their new youngsters with their parents in close attendance; naturally I captured some of this activity in addition to the human attempts at flight from some of the windsurfers.

The variety therefore of activities has meant a delay in putting up a record of this particular lake action, but I hope it proves to be worth revisiting once I have it up on the blog. The delay is longer than usual due to the sheer number of images to sort, and the current sluggishness of my computer. I trust my recording of the activity extends the enjoyment of all those participating.

I have extracted the series of shots of a particular jump sequence from Sam Barnes, because he started from the water alongside another Kitesurfer and was in the air with this fellow watching events unfolding behind him! There is a second sequence I have separated out, which due to the angle from which the jump was viewed is more anonymous, but equally useful presumably to show position and height achieved.

Jump Sequence 1 SamBarnesAirborneSequence          16

Jump Sequence 2 BrogLake-DeceptiveAngleJumpSequence 16

Jump Sequence 3 LongerJumpSequence                 16

Jump Sequence 4 Small Jump Sequence                 12

  I apologise for the delay, but I hope everyone who was out on the lake that afternoon enjoys reliving those moments.

Bedford River Great Ouse Visit

After a spell without wind, the Lake at Brogborough was not enticing excitement on water, so the need to be out prompted me to visit the banks of the River Great Ouse in Bedford, and see what activity was to be found there, for me to capture.
Fortunately finding a place to park was not difficult, and from there I was able to walk by the river in less than a minute. I noted two small jetties that I presumed were for Anglers, but this seemed to be a small lake detached from the river as there was a vast amount of green algae covering a fair part of this pool, so I made my way to the far more busy river bank and was soon fully absorbed in recording the nature of life on and by the river. It was very apparent that far more people were desperately trying to return to normality and break free from the restrictions imposed by Covid.
It was pleasantly warm, but the sun which graced the earlier part of my day, soon retreated to spend more time behind the cover of clouds, but fortunately it did not prevent me from capturing the spirit of the day as life began to show signs of returning to the earlier norm, and the season showed evidence of the journey towards Autumn.
The images from my venture, capture the atmosphere I encountered whilst I was out with my camera. The camera to which I refer is the small LUMIX FZ10002; it is small, and has a zoom lens, which covers a surprising range, which I sometimes augment further by screwing on some small dioptre close-up lenses to allow me to move even closer on small insects, or flower heads.
It did not take long for me to find subjects for my camera, the first being Swans, with their new families of Cygnets, and it was interesting that one small area, close to the water had become a bird toilet — I have no idea whether this spot has always drawn the swans to this area, or that the restrictions imposed by Covid have simply kept the area free of human interference and allowed the swans to takeover this particular spot.
I spent some time at this area as the various birds felt safe; I found one spot where some four pigeons just stayed unmoving among a patch of weeds and daisies, quite unperturbed by my closeness, as if observing a Siesta! The cygnets and a lone swan close by the riverbank either were preening if awake, or dozing eyes-closed; the scene was somewhat surreal, but  I took advantage of the unmoving pigeons and captured images of both groups.
Whilst I was by the river many of the Sculls came only so far then turned around and afforded me some subjects, and I learned later this was as far as they were able to go, so this was the area that those craft tended to turn around. This I learned from a charming young lady whom I had recorded using this spot for just this purpose and later met up with her on the towpath.
Obviously this section of the river was the place to be, for I heard violent flapping of wings resounding from the water coming from the area by the nearby bridge. As the Swan came into view, I was able to capture several shots of its takeoff, and these feature in the associated gallery of images from that afternoon, and I was lucky to be in the right place at the right time.
There is something majestic about Swans; if you had never seen a Swan, and were asked: could a bird as large as this fly with elegance, a bird on water that seemed the epitome of grace and serenity, your answer might well be: "No!" — However, although takeoff required brute force and was noisy, the sheer power and will, allows this bird to prove you wrong. I hope that the few images I managed to capture are testimony to the power and beauty of this bird that has Royal protection and patronage. This does not excuse their abysmal toilet etiquette!
My walk along the river was not confined to just one side, I also crossed to the other bank which allowed me to witness the protective behaviour of a rook who had found some pieces of bread, and encountered a Mallard who made a failed attempt to steal them, but despite the size disparity, the rook prevailed!
This day's gallery ended with my salute to the architectural elegance of the white bridge with its avian group taking their advantage of the commanding views from its height above the river.

Harrold-Odell Lake Avian Activity

                A lake with abundant wildlife on the water, and close to shore, was where I was headed, and seeing a space on the main road outside Harrold-Odell Country Park seemed like a good spot to park, since I suspected the Car Park itself was likely to be crowded. My guess was accurate.

               Although I was planning to use my EOS R, and the Sigma 60-600mm with its 1.5 Converter, I still slung my LUMIX FZ10002 over my shoulder, and this was a good move, even though it only came into its own at the end of my visit.

               Once I had mounted the camera on my Benbo tripod, I was good to go, and first stop was the small area closest to the car park, where I could get an idea of what activity was on the main lake, after a short while there I then started a walk anti-clockwise around that lake, glancing through the trees to get a feel for what I was likely to find. A Black-headed gull had monopolised the now tilted post at the first stop, and as I ventured further, it seemed as if it was interested in featuring in photos, as I feel sure it was the same bird, that later I spotted gliding in search of a meal and every so often after circling, would swoop to the water, and then spend time in amongst the swans, geese and ducks, on the water amongst them.

               The swans some with young, seemed to be protective, but also in the distance with no young could be seen to be fairly aggressive amongst themselves! As a consequence the swan families and this gull feature strongly. In the case of the gull, I wanted as much panning activity as possible, so I was very grateful for his equal desire to assist. He (or She) put me through my paces, by often flying just by the treeline, which was certainly challenging! 

               Although hardly an attractive bird, the Egyptian Goose features fairly frequently as it is not every day that oneness them, but I have spotted one here on an earlier occasion.

               As I walked around, several times I spotted a species of almost colourless damselflies, but every one bar one never seemed to settle, so were too elusive to warrant the effort to photograph them. This lone one however seemed happy to stay close, so I brought out my LUMIX camera and attached the closeup lens then stretched out my right hand, palm-down in the hope it might land, meanwhile since I am naturally right-handed I gripped the camera awkwardly with my left hand, and contorted myself, such that I could hold it to my eye and operate the shutter with the same hand. It obviously felt I should be humoured having gone to such effort and duly landed on my free left hand, and patiently stayed there to allow me a couple of bursts, and at the end stayed put till I offered him a leaf upon which he could alight.

               This entire scenario was watched by a man in a wheelchair and his carer, who were seated nearby, so having succeeded in getting my shot, I showed them the result on the camera. They probably were convinced I was nine pounds short of a tenner! But I was really chuffed with my small success! Butterflies appear to be fairly trusting of humans, as this was not a one-off for me. I have also put seeds on my hand for Robins! Palm down, always.

Sunny Priory Park, Bedford

Supposedly a tentative loosening of LockDown, but the roads were busy with traffic, and the Car Parks at Priory Park, Bedford we’re filling steadily, I found one of the few vacant spaces in my chosen one. In the branches of a tree above a black bird sang heartily, and a robin came from the bushes to the path seemingly searching for food. Poppies bloomed in the grass alongside the path, and numerous dog roses bloomed in the hedgerows, out on the lake parent Canada Geese formed a close guard on their young as did the Greylags. Watching the ducklings, there are often some more adventurous than others, but the parents were keeping a wary eye out for those that strayed. Early on I was pleased to see a Grebe or two, but these were adults. I soon took the less-travelled paths and found numerous mating pairs of damselflies, and dragonflies in reasonable numbers on the reeds.

On the water in the smaller lakes, were Mallard families, as well as more Canada geese groups, out on various handy perches were gulls relaxing and watching for potential prey. I soon found a Grebe with a single youngster nestled on its back, and from its condition, I suspected it may have had a fight to protect its young as normally Grebe are very well groomed, and this one looked tousled. The floating lilies were yet to open, but those in the reed margins were well ahead. In the trees were a pair of nesting Heron, but In the distance, and  had I not been in conversation with a lady photographer and her husband, I would not have seen them, and although I was able to get a shot; armed with only my handy LUMIX, this was definitely a shot for my grown-up camera and it’s 60-600mm lens preferably with its 2x Converter! Perhaps with the lessening of restrictions I will return with the EOS R!

Perhaps the highlight of my visit on this occasion was to squat down and capture the lengthy grooming of a swan, which I found fascinating; the swan seemed to have all the time in the world to ensure its plumage was in tip-top condition. It did keep its beady eye on me at frequent intervals, but never once showed any animosity towards my interest. It had evidently been at this task for some while due to the evidence of white down all around! I stayed at this spot for quite a time, in the main due to my fascination in how it was able reach every part of its body, yet for 99% of the time I was there, it only occasionally lifted one or other leg simply to extend its reach and retain balance. During my time spent at this spot, a group of young lads who had been present on my arrival, had a visit from other friends before finally leaving; the couple with whom I had chatted earlier and a Czech pair of girls were the only people that ventured to this location. One of the two girls had gone to the end where the lads had been earlier, but when the swan I had been observing came up to the path, unwittingly they had become separated either side of the swan! Once I realised the girl had wanted to rejoin her friend, but was afraid of the swan’s intention, I told her to slowly walk past, and it would be fine, and she definitely was not going to move fast, as I could appreciate from the look on her face! The second girl did speak English, so she translated my suggestion and very tentatively the nervous colleague passed the swan and joined her friend. I then watched the swan return to the water’s edge, but missed the full extent of its stretch and flap to remove the last of the down, and its actual launch into the water.

I do have a very full set of images of the mammoth preening I had witnessed. Appearance for a swan is definitely a high priority! After this spell, I made my way back to the more public area, and got a few shots of youngsters sailing dinghies, and got a closer shot of the Grebe and Grebeling, and a Magpie wandered across my path, on my return to the car.

Altogether a very enjoyable way to enjoy the afternoon in the Park, I suspect it will not be too long before my camera becomes the EOS R with the Sigma 60-600mm and I am lugging a heavy tripod once more! I am also hoping to speak to an expert on the LUMIX who can help me to set up some of the controls to improve access to those I need speedily!

Priory Country Park, Bedford 2020

Before all the travel and other restrictions became the new norm, I had visited the Priory Country Park in Bedford, but that had been from its main entrance, and since I was trying hard to distance from my fellow humans, that was definitely not going to be where I was heading. I took a long look at the Bedford area using Google Earth, and also my Ordinance Survey Map of the area. I also decided to call my earlier fellow BRSCC Assistance Chief Pit Marshall, because he had spent some time living in Bedford, to sound him out for local knowledge. From this telephone call, I received an interesting wake-up call, Peter reminded me it was over twenty years ago, since he retired from the company for which he had been a Director; and the area, and had been living on the South Coast ever since! 

Doesn’t time fly?! Perhaps I should take a moment to realise that we ceased marshalling around the same time, and my marshalling ended at the same time as I set up ‘SOLUTIONS photographic’, but I am still in touch with other marshals from that time, and am still very much interested in motor racing. Yet my photographic interests still span the peace and solitude of small insects, birds, flowers, landscapes and skies as well as powerboats, windsurfers, 

and venues such as Goodwood, Brands Hatch and Brooklands. I find no contradiction between these two categories.

On this trip, I found a lone swan had commandeered a short stretch of the bank to perform its grooming, and noted that white downy feathers were around, so it was obviously a favoured spot. Later when the swan vacated the location three Mallard ducks came in to claim the spot at high speed! Yet they knew better than to make any attempt to share the spot whilst the Swan  was in residence!

I was also lucky with some of the butterflies, and a Magpie, and the lighting on a very closed riverside Pub. The Canoe section was acting as a nursery for algae, so I imagine that will be probably attended to before that is opened once more. I do hope that we do not have to wait too long before the freshness of the young leaves is all lost.

I suspect this trip will be the last for at least a week, because the forecast appears to be far less favourable, so will mean I have no excuse not to attending to cleaning my kitchen floor, and other household chores that have featured less over the last week! Once those have been done, I will spend some more time reading the LUMIX manual to try to set the camera up better to suit my way of working, because speedy access to certain controls is still very hit ‘n’ miss — or to be more specific — often very much ‘Miss’! It is still not fluid enough for me. And since the chance of my using my other much heavier gear is still a long way off, I need to get the hang of this little beauty, while have some time on my hands.

Marsworth Reservoir – Afternoon Bird Activity

Since the weather was cooler, but still bright, I decided I would drive down to the  Tring Reservoirs, park up at Tringford on the offchance I’d catch up with the Water bailliff, Bob Menzies, then see what birdlife was to be found on either Marsworth or Startops End lakes. I saw little of interest on the latter, but the former looked promising, and so it proved as I set up my tripod and camera.

There was a young Great Crested Grebe family with both parents and four juveniles in their striking stripes of black and grey. Seemingly the male parent was fully committed to looking after the young, but the female seemed less so. Of the four youngsters, one seemed to be somewhat rebellious, often paddling away from the main group, with occasional returns for short spells. There was also a large family of Cygnets with their Swan parents.

There were more Herons around than on my earlier visits, and they seemed less worried by the closeness of humans too. There seemed fewer Gulls than normal, but way more Cormorants, presumably much to the annoyance of the local anglers. I caught no sight of Kingfishers and the area of Marsworth where they were often to be sighted was even more forlorn with fallen or felled trees filling the pools hitherto fished by the Kingfishers, which was really sad.

At one stage I walked through a tunnel of bushes to reach a secluded part of the shore favoured by anglers, to find a lone juvenile Black-Headed Gull relaxing on the foreshore, and so I approached very carefully so as not to startle it, and was able to take several shots as the bird behaved with total disinterest in my presence, which was very rewarding. This was the same relaxed attitude I had spotted amongst the Herons earlier and later. Despite my not considering the Cormorants to be beautiful birds whether on the water or in the air, I did capture some in flight which is obviously good experience. It was a quiet afternoon in School holidays on a weekday, but the few, but growing numbers of people walking the paths as the day wore on were often interested in what I was finding to capture and more than willing to involve me in conversation, so altogether, a very pleasant afternoon.

Brogborough Busy on the Lake – Minimal Wind

The weather was warm and sunny, and with a lack of a brisk wind, I knew that the activity would likely mainly be Paddleboarding, but due to my arriving well into the afternoon, that was drawing to a close and a few windsurfers were taking to the water, amongst them André who was out on the latest upgrade to his own creation of hydrofoil, and I learned he was getting aloft more frequently, as he both gained experience of both the hydrofoil design and the handling of his craft.

For that reason, I have created a general gallery as well as two smaller single pages devoted entirely to his activity in order to help him assess his performance:

Click here for one, and here for the second.

As always, clicking the text headline takes you to the main gallery of thumbnails

I hope that the three give an account of the afternoon’s activity. I also managed some shots of some of the wildlife, swans, a cormorant and Canada Geese. In order to maintain as low a viewpoint I was once again using the Benbo tripod, which affords a really stable platform from which to shoot using the 7D MkII on a gimbal head, absolutely necessary since André was only able to find sufficient wind well away from the shore, so I was using the lens almost entirely at the full 600mm.

Crisp, Cold Wilstone – Not Too Many Birds

It was a cold misty start to the day, but the mist was due to burn off, and I had decided it might be worth my visiting Wilstone Reservoir as it was less muddy underfoot for a change. 

I cleared the build-up of emails and took a leisurely breakfast after gathering the camera and lenses I needed, choosing the 24-105mm on the 5D MkII and the 150-600mm on the 7D MkII and the lightest (Carbon Fibre) tripod with a Manfrotto levelling head beneath the Lensmaster Gimbal Head (minus the spring washer on the side adjustment, as I had found that this did not add to general operational smoothness).

Going to Tring Reservoirs from Marston Moretaine did however require me to use the iPhone SatNav to give me the directions cross country as I did actually wish to get there as soon as possible, and I have yet to work out the best route for myself. Fortunately there also proved to be little traffic.

To get to the Hide from where I park gives me a long trek, and seeing little activity on the water meant that I did not even remove the lenshood until the last straight before the bridge and wood; this is one way I get plenty of exercise, and this is one walk I definitely do not make with my heavy Gitzo tripod!

Arriving at the hide I hear voices, something I generally do not expect from a hide; but in this instance it was I suspect one of the rangers with an trainee, as he was taking a count of bird species from this quadrant of the lake, and naming some of the birds that he was seeing; this is always handy for me! In this instance he mentioned Widgeon and that was a bird I would not have recognised for myself, so that was handy, as I might have mistaken it for a Teal.

Although I spent some time in the hide, it was not an overwhelmingly productive period, really only capturing shots of the Teal and Widgeon. As I left the hide, I spotted a few smaller birds in the swampy area alongside the path, and set up the tripod there, but that was enough to ensure that I simply wasted the next quarter of an hour hoping they might return. 

On the outward journey I had spotted some nervy wagtails, and on the final stretch of my return I did manage to get a just a couple of shots of a Grey Wagtail, but it was the Greylag Geese that I was hoping to capture in flight, and they at least announce their forthcoming takeoff plans giving me the opportunity of takeoffs from the field and the water to complete my trip.

Cold Good Friday – Tring Reservoirs

In the hope of the wind dying back and the possibility of fitful sunshine, I headed for Tring Reservoirs. On my arrival it was still dull and as I walked from the Weir along the path between Startops and Marsworth reservoirs, the wind was very obvious, and I had come layered up but without a coat – bad mistake!

At first there seemed little activity beyond numerous Coots and Mallard, but then I spotted the distinctive flight of wagtails as they looped out from the bank and back again, and then foraging in the grass. I did spot a couple of Grebe that were showing signs of interest in each other, but continuing observation did not suggest they might start their dance ritual. I also spotted some swans that became restless and would take off, and move just a few yards before landing again, leaving one of their number behind in the corner between the reservoirs and the canal on the Marsworth side. He became very aggressive towards a single Greylag Goose, but the behaviour was very odd; his head was lowered as he fast-pedalled towards the goose, but it certainly put the wind up his opponent who amidst a flurry of wings took off and landed a few lengths away, but the swan employed the same behaviour a few more times; I could not work out quite why the Goos was so intimidated.

The Canada Geese like the Swans seemed to spend time flying from one spot to another, but their numbers were far smaller than those I had seen at Wilstone a fortnight or so back. On Startops End a lone Grebe seemed happy on its own and was successful on one dive I was able to capture. It seemed a small prize for a bird of its size, since I had once witnessed a Grebe swallowing two freshwater crawfish within a five minute spell.

I twice closed up the tripod to head home, and each time I spotted something else, such as Swans in flight, that caught my eye, so hastily used the tripod as a monopod to grab the shots! The reason for leaving early was to be ready for the off later to see my daughter Lizzy’s 20th Anniversary of Playing with Bedfordshire Music at a church in Bedford.

Tring Reservoirs – 7D MkII 2nd Test

A second outing with the Canon EOS 7D MkII, again with the 150-600mm Tamron Lens, this time on all three of the Tring reservoirs, Startops End, Marsworth and Tringford and once again in bright sunshine; not that it contributed to my warmth, that was provided by far more insulated undergarments.

The subject matter was varied, but unexciting, but I was there primarily to get to understand the features of the new camera body, whilst there was reasonably good sunlight.

The response of the new body was excellent and I was impressed by the burst rate, now if I only my body would react with equal agility, my anticipation and reaction still need to improve if I am to get the peak of actions such as a duck diving, a dragonfly or a kingfisher taking off. Frozen limbs and fingers do not help; had I kept my hand on the camera the entire time, it would likely need thawing with a hair dryer! Memory is another of my failings, I forgot that the gimbal head does not remain in the car boot, so had to use a ball head in its stead.

The last shots of the gulls were taken using either the tripod with only one leg extended to form a monopod or hand held, as they were swooping and diving close to the bank. I also found that when the camera was on the tripod animals were happy to come close but off to one side, leaving me only able to watch helplessly, unable to release the camera quietly and speedily. This time it was a mink which climbed down a branch above me, then across another to disappear beyond the tree trunk and back into its hollow in a dead tree stump at the water’s edge. I suppose I should not be too disappointed as I really did only have a back view!

Bitterly Cold at Wilstone Reservoir

Despite a biting wind, I parked by the cemetery gates and took the long walk towards Wilstone reservoir, soon after I arrived I spotted a swan skimming low across the water in the distance in front of the line of trees and old duck shooting stands, but there was then a long spell with little or no activity till I spotted a hovering kestrel, but as I drew closer it dived down and was gone for more than half an hour before returning to hovering, and this time just a smidgeon closer, before flying to the branches of a tree, the spot was such that he was barely seen, but very fortunately as I moved closer he flew to a much better spot where I was able to get a clearer shot.

Beyond the stand of trees the kestrel was in, were two fields where Canada geese and Greylag geese were feeding and generally using as an airfield, and it was here I noticed that each flock had seemingly a Master of Ceremonies who spent less time head down than his subjects, and I presumed they were the lookouts. The two distinct breeds intermingled with little fuss. But when a new couple flew in to join those on the ground one was very vociferous in his annoyance at how they came in.

I then spotted two grebe who were showing definite signs of interest and began their courtship dance, but no sooner had they started than a group of swans started a ruckus and the noise spoilt the mood completely so the pair parted, and both resumed their diving activities and drifted apart, which was such a shame, but maybe another day we’ll both be lucky! The grebes to get it together, and me to be their witness.

Meantime a coot was busy looking around for suitable nest-building reeds, and some of the swans flew off to another part of the reservoir, and one couple simply floated majestically by.

Tring Reservoirs in February Sunshine

I travelled lighter than many a time to the Tring reservoirs, hoping that I might catch sight of a kingfisher, and I was rewarded by sighting one by the weir where the path leads between Startops and Marsworth reservoirs. On the first few sightings it was far too fast for me, barely settling for half a second anywhere, but he began taking dives into the reeds, and on the second or third time he landed on a reed for long enough for me to capture a couple of shots, before disappearing once again.

I stayed on longer, but though he came by at least twice more, he was once again doing training flights as an Exocet missile, and before I left he took a long flight past the trees beyond the weir across the path around in an arc over the stream and became lost deep in the woods.

The next flying display was by the heron, and allowed me a few in flight shots, and as I walked along the canal towpath a different heron strolled along the far bank before also taking to the air. I then spent more than half an hour of fruitless waiting by fallen logs hoping that I might see another kingfisher, but the only birds I even heard were a couple of mallards, who took off raucously as I arrived.

Having given that up, I found the dunnock and robin by the old lock arm, and whilst there spotted a mix of Canada Geese and Greylags flying off noisily. Later as I passed Startops on my return to the car, I spotted the red-crested pochard preening itself, sadly getting further from the bank and rarely turning towards the sunlight.

Snow Gives Way to Sun

Saturday brought the first sun for some time, offering a respite for birds and animals to take to the open with a chance to feed. In my case it gave me a short opportunity to get out and capture some of the scenes in good light just before it was all washed away in the thaw.

I drove out past the gates to Luton Hoo's walled garden, over the treacherously icy hill past the water treatment plant and take shots on the top of the further hill, and looking back to the Hotel that was once the great house, and home to the Werner Collection, famous for its collection of Fabergé Eggs.

Then on to Codicote with its fine church, and Claggy Bottom and the wonderful setting of its cottage farmhouse. From there beyond to Welwyn, and back via Wheathampstead to East Hyde, where I spent the rest of the day enraptured by the racing river and how it had enticed all the local birdlife in abundance, though it was somewhat overwhelmed by the large number of gulls, that did however give me the opportunity to see that Canon's alignment of my 300mm and EOS7D had made a difference as I practiced capturing the gulls in flight.

Fortunately several knowledgable birdwatchers visited the same bridge and they generously pointed out rarer species of birds than gulls, swans, Canada geese and mallard ducks, that I had not even spotted, such as the snipe and egret. The snipe was so distant, that in the gallery it is a far smaller image due to the cropping necessary to show it at all!

The heron looked bitterly cold as it hunched up in a tree, a magpie watched from afar, a red kite over flew, the pied wagtail ventured from the muddy bank to strut across the patches of snow amidst the grass tussocks, and a robin and jackdaw were tempted to the parapet by seeds and nuts I had laid along it. Courtesy of the aforesaid experts spotting the wagtail and kite, they also pointed out the landing of a kestrel on the nearby pylon. To them I am very grateful – I need every help I can get to spot such birds.

As I left with the clouds covering the sun once again, I got a shot of shy sun and rich yet pale orange glow diagonally behind a skeletal tree on the brow of the hill as I left. The water level under the bridge had noticeably risen over the hours I had spent there, and I have no doubt the banks will recede still further over the next few days and swamp much of the fields close by.

Westcott Day, followed by Bulbourne and Tringford flowers

A bright day with a chance to see how Lizzy’s garden was progressing and to see the kitchen in sunshine provided a few interesting examples of colour, light and shade.

A day or two later, visit Bulbourne to see the Blacksmith where there was a beautiful display of Spring flowers rarely all seen at the same time, daffodils, tulips, and early bluebells with some dandelions thrown in for good measure! Then on to Tringford to meet the man who introduced me to the bailiff, which allowed me to capture life on both the stream and the reservoir, there in his garden were poppies and tulips.

There were Greylag, Canada Geese, a Heron, Coots and a Grebe to be found in flight, on the water and on the ground in a field still with blossom on the trees, yet at long last the day had the warmth of coming summer.

Later still, and I took a walk along the Wendover Arm of the Grand Union canal, and managed to get up close and personal to a Starling. Fishermen were to be found in abundance as were cyclists, families with children and dogs and a few slowly chugging narrowboats. A woman was knitting seated by the towpath and a man ensconced with his Sunday newspaper outside his galley. Birds were to be seen gathering twigs for nest-building others sang invisibly in the bushes, and overhead were the occasional sounds of light aircraft, cattle lowed in the fields nearby and the horses wandered slowly with swishing tails – the midges and seemingly mosquitoes were the reason for that. There were some very strange canoes on the canal looking very precariously low in the water.

The shot of the anchor was especially for Catherine.