Gt Barford Trip & Chopper

          Always a good sign when the sun is up early, so a quick shot of my breakfast toast seemed appropriate, as I had just been checking the camera settings and the sun fell on my toast, and later decided it was available to make up the numbers of images to fill discreet pages in the gallery.
          My destination by the long bridge over the meandering River Gt. Ouse was fortuitous, as I had certainly not expected to be later featuring a small private helicopter to be landing so close to where I was! But, I am getting ahead of myself, I had set off initially to capture the Spring blossom and the landscape adjacent to the river. The cloudless sky with its rich blue can often be less interesting than either towering Cumulus clouds or fast-scudding small puffy ones, but it proved to be the ideal backdrop for a tree bare of its natural leaves, but with a mass of clinging ivy to its trunk.
          The weir was in full flow and the bright sun was again fortuitous in giving crisp texture to the frothy water cascading beneath the walkway that was such a contrast to the calm water surface before the drop, that barely disturbed the reflection of the Red Emergency Lifebelt on the far side. The shadows cast by the sun accentuated the various shapes of the railing; the ridges to aid good grip when operating the lock gates, and the string of green buoys to capture hazardous floating branches and the like. It was pure serendipity that a lone gull should fly into frame to add extra interest. And as if to add further interest to the bland blue sky another gull flew in to draw attention away from the flat top of the Cedar! Perhaps the gulls arrival drew a group of passers-by to ascertain whether the gulls meant this spot was a good one for human Anglers?
          Close by a currently, very stark tree set back from the river bank by a narrow green sward stood a tower that I presumed might be a test for climbers with a viewing platform at its top. The trees by the bridge were typically stark for this early season and made even more so by the cloudless sky! And a man was exercising his dog by playing Fetch and throwing a stick into the river. Then as if on cue, a boating couple paddled slowly by and seemed to acknowledge my recording their efforts! As did a braver man who stood upright on his far steadier wide paddleboard.
          My further observations of this stretch of the river captured the stark wreck of an abandoned blue, decidedly Off road vehicle and further on an even sadder sight of a seriously damaged memorial stone to some loved, passed parents at presumably their favoured spot for watching the Wood and River Life from a roofed bench.
          At this early season of the year, when the sun is shining, it brings out the textures with its harsh light, of tilled fields and stark, leafless trees and gnarled bark. And then as it looked as if I had finally run out of subjects of interest for my camera, I hear the light sound of a small helicopter approaching to land! What a splendid way to finish my day’s shooting. I hope it gives as much pleasure to those who follow my blog; all the action took place correctly chronologically, with only early mention of the helicopter providing a teaser, being out of place timewise!

Bedford Walk & Capture

     

The sun and warmth of this Autumn day drew me to visit the banks of the River Great Ouse in Bedford, with the desire to capture the activity of some of the wildlife. On this occasion, I had my hopes set on a heron that I had photographed at the weir behind the Cinema, but it turned out to be on a fishing trip by the wider weir, offering a cooling walk in shallow water further along the path. I was to spend some time before my wish was granted on the other side of the main road, photographing some very sleepy ducks, some interesting fungi on the bark of a tree, backlit leaves, and bunches of berries, before returning to the weir and walking further.

I had chatted to some of the anglers during that period, one of whom was a photographer who ran a Camera Club, he copied my details to his phone, so we may well meet up again in the future. I noted where the heron was in passing it, but the view was both distant, and heavily obscured by fine branches, so I spent some time walking beyond, crossing a bridge further down the path, and returning to narrow the distance between us and doing my best to obtain a view that was less obscured. The heron was very aware of me, and was leisurely moving to other spots from which it could observe its potential prey without a care as to whether I might have a clear view of the action! This meant often I would have to seek a new spot every few minutes, during which I had to move considerably further round. I was however rewarded by having differing backgrounds and finally by capturing its success over a substantial meal, however it downed its catch out of my sight, but I could see a slight bulge in its neck for evidence!

Currently the bird I really wish to see at some of the spots to which I gravitate, is the Kingfisher. This year my trips to the one lake that in the past has afforded me the chance of photographing this beautiful little bird have been unsuccessful — this is the lake at Marsworth, the spot where in the past every visit by me was reciprocated with avian visits, and by that I mean not just kingfishers but several other bird species, even though my raison d’être for the trip was undoubtedly the Kingfisher.

Definitely this visit’s highlight for me was undoubtedly to see the heron, especially as it kept me on the move which to me is always preferable to sitting in a hide with a comparatively static background and on this occasion, I definitely got my exercise quota as well as a ‘warm fuzzy’ from the heron and its excellent catch!

Early Venue Change — a New Lake

Initially, and fairly early in the day I load the car with camera gear and head for Brogborough Lake, only to find it open, but bereft of any windsurfers! I head for Sam to enquire whether he anticipates many sailors, and learn that he knows of no visitors yet, but has opened just in case any turn up. Whilst we chat a van turns up, but as the driver steps out, he recognises me and hails me with a wave. He is not a Windsurfer, but an Angler, and we have met on other lakes.

After a return wave, I close my conversation with Sam and walk over to him; during the subsequent chat, I enquire whether he knows of opportunities to photograph one of my favourite birds, the kingfisher, and that and the non-appearance of windsurfers led to a change of location — I learned of Willington and it’s lakes, and that there was one area that was preserved for Anglers with entry only by key.

That conversation decided my destination for the day, and with brief directions from Marc on how to reach the lakes, I took a look at a map, set my SatNav and headed off. Close to the end of my directions, I spotted a man walking a dog, so pulled over, got out and asked for directions — the somewhat surprising response was: “You have come upon the Bailliff!” He pointed me in the right direction of the gate, and I drove on as he followed on with his dog going to right and left, rather than heading in one straight line.

This visit was to get some idea of the layout, and just what I might find, and I stopped to chat to another angler, who handily told me where he had spotted  kingfishers which was music to my ears.

Before setting off, I captured various information boards, so I could study these in more detail, having got some idea of the overall layout.

Marston Lake Walk, and 'Swims'

 

 

Rather late in the day, I will decided I would see whether the wind I had in Marston Moretaine was also blowing at Brogborough, but even before reaching the turn-off, I could see by the stillness of the trees I was passing there was not even a breath stirring the leaves on trees! As I came upon the gate to the Windsurfers’ parking area, it was firmly locked. I pulled into the small lay-by opposite the entry to the Anglers area, locked the car and wandered to the water’s edge to see whether there was any activity on the lake, and confirming there was not a soul or even a ripple on the surface, and strolled further along the shore to see if there were any walkers or birdlife, and having rounded the bend to see the full stretch, turned around and headed for Marston Lake.

Approaching the lay-by close to that lake, I crossed the road and parked so that when leaving I would be facing in the direction of Marston Moretaine. I had brought some crisps and a biscuit, so before grabbing my kit, I had a bite to eat. Just in case there was some birdlife around, I decided to take my long lens in its bag over my shoulder and belted to my waist. With the benefit of twenty-twenty foresight, I should have made the decision to forego that choice and relied entirely upon the EOS 5D and it’s 24-70mm lens that I had taken along, just-in-case! I did however take along my monopod having extended it to use as a walking stick, because my back was still weak from my last trip with the heavy Benbo tripod and the Sigma Sports 150-600mm!

I had decided that since the low light from a clear blue sky really enhanced the colours of the lake and the threadbare trees along its margins, I would be able to gather views of each ‘swim’ as I understand this to be the correct term for where anglers cast from. It struck me that putting together images of each and every spot around the lake might well be of interest for the club to promote itself either in print or on the Web. And purely from my angle it meant that the images would hang together as an entity when the gallery was visited.

I managed to cover just short of half the perimeter path around the lake before I realised that my back would probably give out if. I went too far, so I cut short my trip as the added (superfluous!) weight of the heavy camera and lens in the bag, meant I had a very good chance of doing myself further harm! The sun seemed to confirm my decision as being correct, as when I turned to retrace my steps the sun dimmed as the clouds began to slowly cover it and it began to head ever closer to the distant trees.

I also noted that there might well be a shortcut to my car, but it might prove to be tricky, especially as there was not only mature brambles, but a mound of mud and rubble to negotiate; having my monopod, came in very handy in checking the terrain, and also providing extra and very welcome support as I navigated a way through — successfully! This saved my back considerably as it meant at least four hundred less yards to cover with my unused burden of the heavy camera bag and totally redundant contents!

I felt that despite the additional burden, the images captured were worth the effort, and the exercise did me no harm, and it had been pleasantly warm throughout. I also met and chatted to three anglers along the way.

A Visit to Tring Reservoirs and its Birdlife

          The sun shone hazily when I left from home, but by the time I reached the road towards Dunstable, cloud cover had become complete, and as I proceeded further south, mist came down getting denser till I reached Pitstone, when it began to lift, but any hope I had entertained that sunshine might prevail were dashed, as it simply became a typically dull British day.

          I drove to Tringford where I spotted the Water Bailliff, Bob Menzies  and another angler chatting by the entrance, and before I could get out to open the gate, Bob began doing so for me, allowing me to enter the field to park. Another angler soon joined the group before they all set off to the Pub. Before I could set up my camera and lens I had to close the gate as members of the Public just wandered into this Private Angling Club. I then began assembling the camera, gimbal head and tripod and closing the gate behind me headed across the road to Marsworth Lake.

          My trip got off a good start because the first bird I saw was a grebe, one of my personal favourites — it was at some distance which was a shame, but no worry I was going to be around for a while yet. I was using the Benbo tripod, and so did not close the legs to save time whilst moving along the path between the two lakes. I would stop every so often to change my viewpoint and thus the camera was immediately available. However as I write this piece, having edited the images, it is apparent that was probably not my best decision, as it meant that I was not carrying it well, as I am in quite a bit of discomfort from my back now. I just hope that a good night’s rest improves the situation.

          The tally of different subjects from the afternoon, covers a gull or two, a shoveller, swans and cygnets, a grebe and some pochard. So, considering I also broke off to chat to some other photographers, some of the anglers, and members of the general public, I had quite a relaxing and enjoyable afternoon.

Steppingley Reservoir Red Kite Visit

I had looked at maps to decide on where it might prove worthwhile to take advantage of the sunshine, and settled upon Steppingley Reservoir. I had not factored in the bitter wind, so when I arrived I was not as prepared for the cold as I should have been. Also upon arrival, I realised this was a spot I had previously visited, and had been slightly disappointed, but nothing ventured; nothing gained…

After a preliminary walk to the entry to the fields, the first decision was to add to my clothing, as the windchill was already getting to me! I added a woolly hat and a hooded jacket and my fingerless gloves with silk gloves underneath, then gathered the lightest carbon fibre tripod with the Acrotech head as this would offset my intention to use my heaviest lens, the Sigma 150-600mm Sports. Also, I took along my electronic shutter release due to this tripod’s choice due to the lesser stability.

I negotiated the downhill track taking to the grass alongside, to avoid caking my boots with claggy mud and at first investigated heading towards to thicket to skirt to the left around the banked reservoir, but soon retraced my steps and crossed the brook and headed for the right and some newly dug channels and then climbed the bank and headed right at the top. I came across a couple of anglers and asked how they were faring, and learned they had only recently arrived themselves, they were able to suggest where I might find a good chance of spotting the local wildlife, which they said included deer and in the fields they had just spotted some hares. I thanked them and made my way around anticlockwise, before heading towards the bank on the far side to enter the woods. I passed another pair of anglers, one of whom had caught a single fish which somehow had been considered of less import than having some late breakfast! I left them chuckling amongst themselves and carefully made my way down the bank again and entered the woods.

I had barely entered the path into the woods when I spotted two small muntjacs which immediately took fright and headed deeper into the thicket, I never saw them again. As I once again took to the grass margins of the track, I spotted red kite circling above, and then a small farm vehicle approached me, I hailed it in greeting and the driver pulled to a halt and switched off the engine, I asked whether there was much wildlife to be found hereabouts, and he said there was some, but was not able to elucidate much further and soon restarted the engine and went on his way – at least I learned I was not to be evicted!

For a while I attempted to get some shots from the cover of the woods, but this was far from easy, so I eventually moved to end of the track where it opened onto the field, and found that some of the birds were interested in prey within the field, so were far lower. I wished I had made this decision earlier, as the sun was becoming increasingly hidden by clouds. It was interesting to note that there was a high concentration of pigeons that moved en masse from one end of the track between one tree in the field and somewhere beyond me, every ten to fifteen minutes. Later another observation I made was that sometimes the red kite would adjourn to a clump of trees at the wood’s edge and the crows were not be fazed and remained in the same branches, the only lesser bird I saw chased by the kites was a jackdaw. Part of the reason the kites were often down at ground level was some carrion in the field, and on one occasion I saw one of their number with a small bird that was being devoured on the wing, but I could not be certain where it had been caught.

With the sun increasingly cloud-covered I retraced my steps to the reservoir, and continued widdershins and before leaving, spotted the two anglers I first met so I went to see how they had fared. I learned their names were Paul and Jay, and we chatted and found they had been less fortunate than me, having caught no fish at all. Like me at Marsworth, they had befriended a robin and had fed him some of their bait, so I took a shot of him as he took the occasional nibble. I showed them that shot and others I had taken of the kites and we chatted before I set off back to the car. I made the trip at a good pace which meant I was far warmer when back at the car than when I had set off!

Steppingley Reservoir Visit

Since the sun was out and autumn is almost over, I decided to check out a reservoir near Steppingley, just in case it is another possible location for wildlife; looking at the area using Google did not show a promising area for parking, and I had driven almost the entire area around its location without even catching sight of it or anywhere likely as a spot from which set off after parking, but found myself in a spot that was quiet and very attractive and likely to be above and beyond it. I spotted one of the local residents sweeping leaves from the churchyard and learned that where I had parked was fortuitously the best place to do so, and he gave me directions as to how to reach it.

It looked decidedly waterlogged, but I decided to chance it and grabbing two cameras, one with the 100-400mm and the other with the 24-105mm and made my way into a field and down the hill and soon could make out the lake in the distance. I had been informed there was a footbridge off to my right at the bottom, but I managed to completely miss it and headed off clockwise to the left, but was spotted by the farmer and learned I had passed it and was now on private land – not an auspicious start! On the walk back I did find the footbridge and headed off in the correct direction.

The reservoir is well equipped with stages from which the anglers can fish all around the lake, and I was introduced to two new angling terms I had never encountered before ‘leger’ and ‘swim’ in connection with such positions – they were on a sign by one of the stages.

Although I spoke to a couple of the anglers and learned there could often be wildlife hereabouts, they all informed me it was currently quiet on that front, but there were plenty of ducks! Mainly Mallard as far as I could tell, not quite what I had in mind. I did a complete circuit and returned up the hill and with judicial stepping managed to keep the amount of mud I collected to a manageable minimum. I returned via a different route and stopped to take some shots of the varied autumn colours still to be found by the laneside.

Not the most successful of trips, but the old school called Folly House was certainly of architectural interest and I do now know how to reach that particular reservoir.

Taking a Canalside Wander from Slapton

I decided to take a wander along the towpath from Slapton Lock, heading past the Lock Cottage and down the slope, taking a look at bees hard at work amongst the cottage's blooms and beyond. It was whilst I was concentrating upon bees, that I spotted the minutest daytime moth alight on a nearby leaf that had a wingspan that was barely two thirds of a centimetre across.

The clouds very occasionally parted to show shafts of sunlight on the boats, and it was close, even occasionally looking as if a shower might come.

I was passed by cyclists and walkers as I wandered by anglers, separated by around fifty to a hundred yards; some would turn and acknowledge me and I would enquire as to their luck, and on two occasions as I passed I would look back and see a taut rod curved under the pull of the fish versus the angler, and therefore twice I was able to capture that moment as the fish was carefully coaxed towards the bank; one was a Perch, the other a Bream, and yet another a Common Carp, but it was already landed, and I was asked could I take a shot of the catch in the man's hands using his iPhone. Only too happy to oblige, I forgot to try to record the accomplishment for myself, but it was a fine strong fish that a few moments later was free to chance its luck against the fisherman another day.

I continued my stroll in search of the small glimpses of Nature's beauty as couples took their narrowboats through the locks, and I observed that in most cases I observed it was the fairer sex that worked the locks as their menfolk took the tiller and the easy life, so Chauvinism lives on, along the Grand Union Canal! I did however try to redress the balance by coming to the rescue of one lady who had sought her partner's help in vain, and was warmly thanked.

As I turned around and returned to the bridge by Slapton Lock a few desultory raindrops fell and returning home a few more splashed the screen, but it never developed into a shower.

Early Tringford Visit

I was awoken very early by a client wishing to call in to collect some DVDs from me before he went to London, so rather than greet him in pyjamas, I made up my mind to take advantage of the early start as the weather was bright and dry even though on the chilly side.

I delayed him a few moments to show him other examples of my work, then tidied up and set off to be early at the reservoirs. I called at Tringford initially in time to help Bob Menzies with the preparation of a few boats for the anglers to set out on the water, then captured one angler casting. Across on the far side a large group of greylag geese were assembling, so I waited to see whether they would be flying off and just before they did, I received a call on my mobile, so missed most of that opportunity, but not long after I did capture a group of Canada Geese setting off, and they flew very past the very angler who had earlier been casting.

I then headed for Marsworth as there were now only a few coot and a lone grebe to be seen here, as I walked by the reeds I spotted a dragonfly, flitting by, and with great difficulty did manage to get a few poor shots of it in flight. Walking further along the path I heard a frantic flapping of wings and just caught sight of a grebe seemingly simply practising a takeoff, since it never took to the air but made several spurts despite not being chased by any other bird. At the junction of paths a coot was twice spotted dragging reeds to presumably create a nest, and on the bank of Marsworth two mallard were in animated conversation whilst others nonchalently stood alongside.

 I took the right fork to follow the canal and spotted some interesting artwork on the side of one of the narrowboats, that was named after the lady’s Nanny and had been painted by her husband, and towards the lock I spotted two artists facing opposite directions, one sketching the Lock, the other the canal and trees, and behind the bench I walked down towards the lake and some fallen trees in case these would provide any interesting wildlife, but all I found were a myriad of water boatmen.

I returned to Tringford in time to spot one fortunate angler landing a trout! And a wonderful rope ladder cloud formation.

Changeable Weather at Tringford

The forecast seemed to promise showers in the morning with occasional sunshine, but it would close down around lunchtime, and the gusty wind was likely to be with us all day, well we missed the showers in the morning but were treated with a couple in the afternoon and the gusty wind was indeed with us all day.

There were two boats out on the lake each with a pair of anglers, one group was unlucky to catch no fish at all, the other managed three catches. The bailiff chose to try to fish from the bank and the fish just weren’t biting for him either.

We wandered down the stream, to check on the flow and whether this was affected by the fallen trees, but the flow seemed reasonable, but the water level in the reservoirs was very low, due in part to some leakage and a damaged lock gate on the canal. I was surprised to see a dragonfly, and a butterfly, since this has been a poor season for both for me, there were also more herons to be seen, at the bank and in the air. A couple of terns were using a technique I had not seen before, they would land on the water and then leap into the air and promptly dive after only a few feet, sometimes with success, but as often as not, no more lucky than flying and diving, but giving me a better shot at a picture!

I also was surprised to find a freshwater mussel, which had become stranded on the foreshore, so this was thrown into deeper water in the hope it would survive. Bob took me for a spell on the water whilst he fished from the boat, and I tried to get shots of the herons. Overall I think the weather slightly better than had been predicted.