Another Bedford Park Visit

Thursday was a sunny and warm day, and I decided to visit Bedford once again; the intention was to find a spot on the River Great Ouse I had visited on twice before, but on this occasion, to turn left to follow the river bank from the short distance from the main road, where on two previous times, I had turned right once I had reached the bank side path. However, once again I failed to find that start point!

 I did arrive at a spot where parking is unrestricted, and as I was parking the car, my eye caught sight of a grey squirrel searching for nuts, and taking short spurts from one spot to another. I had taken the LUMIX camera from the boot, and as I quietly moved closer to the squirrel, I turned it on in anticipation of being able to get close enough to get some shots whilst it was away from intervening bushes, and in reasonable light. I had moderate success, but it was not long before it decided I was best avoided.

It soon decided to climb a nearby tree with a branch that hung over a wire fence, and though I did not have a totally clear view, it did reach a spot where it was clear of intervening branches, and the sun was streaming through a thin veil of leaves, providing a golden glow as a backdrop which was very appealing. Having generously provided me a few clear shots, it decided I had taken my allocated quota, and it climbed higher and beyond view. I then headed up the road and crossed under the main road towards the backs of several Industrial units, where I caught sight of a young heron atop the weir.
This presumably is a good spot for fresh fish for herons, as I later caught sight of an older heron by the cascading water, but from my observations these fish are bite size morsels, downed in a single swallow. I spent a fruitful time there before returning to my car where, on the stroll under the main road, I took shots of some of the wall artwork, and some front garden blooms then in a final flourish, I got a last few shots of another squirrel, thereby book ending the gallery.

A Tringford Lake Visit

It seems quite some time since visiting Tringford Reservoir, and having had a brief chat with its Water Bailliff, I decided that despite some occasional light rain, it was worthwhile travelling down as apparently they had been visited by a fair number of Egrets, a bird I have had less opportunity to record.

To get close enough to the activity on the lake I needed to be at the far end of the lake, and for that I needed to enter the woods over a bridge across the stream and make my way through to the shore with my heavy Benbo tripod and set up in the soft mud of the entry stream to the lake, and even then I would still need the 1.4x Converter and some further cropping later! Fortunately the EOS R with its extra pixel density handles this surprisingly well. And certainly in many instances that crop was quite extensive! Up till now I have shied away from using more than the 1.4x crop, but with this body and the Sigma Sports 60-600mm I have it attached most of the time. I will certainly be considering the 2x Converter because it would seem very good sense to use for wildlife and possibly for some Sports work.

As an indication of just how well this lens combo functions, the third picture in this gallery is a full-frame uncropped, and two frames further is a seriously tight crop, capable of an A4 colour print with great detail! Sigma have built a superb lens with fantastic capability which is a real joy to use, and the EOS R is making the most of its capabilities. The Benbo tripod supplies the necessary stability for use at the long end of the range, that I was pushing the envelope on this occasion. For most of the time I was operating at the maximum available aperture as well.

As a further indication of the sheer versatility of this lens, the shot of the mating dragonflies in frame 37 is also a tight crop at less than the full focal length at f/6.3, and that will definitely achieve a Super A3 print, and yes, I would have liked to have been closer, but knew that was simply not practical!

This camera and lens gives me so much joy in use, but it also makes me realise how much I need a more powerful Mac to lessen the post-processing time that invariably follows any outing I make when using the kit to its full potential.

My prediction is that for ultimate quality still images the next step will be a dual processor to accommodate both viewing and shooting as separate, parallel operations to allow for meaningful panning in Sports and Wildlife situations where currently these currently work against each other; my short term way of coping is to use multiple short bursts, but it is a compromise. What is life without a challenge?!

Late Spring in Herts and Beds

Home Counties fieldscapes are a testament to how the weather has adversely affected our crops, and a reminder if ever we need one that food prices later this year will be higher than before. The rape fields in Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire show large barren areas and overall patchy coverage quite clearly, and the long cold spell has left the bees keeping to their hives. I have tried to do my bit, by picking up weary bees that have been near no vegetation outside, and carefully placed them near wild flowers, and inside in just the last couple of days helped trapped ones indoors to reach the outside. One way I have learned that can help is to place a small saucer or somesuch with a few pebbles and water near to where they frequent – they need water, and the pebbles will ensure they do not drown.

Whilst photographing in country lanes and woods, I am really saddened by the numbers of plastic drinks containers, crushed cans that abound maybe we should have days when we hold littergather days and give out prizes for the amount collected within designated areas, and also have a star grading for areas of natural beauty that remain clear of our detritus.

Sunday was cool but bright and the kerbside near Studham caught my eye with its clusters of opening fern fronds, gorse bushes with Cow Parsley entangled, bluebells and really surprisingly: white bluebells. It would seem from information I have gleaned these are native, as their pollen appears to be creamy white.

I only stopped awhile as I was heading for Hudnall and Nettleden, I wandered for a short while in the woods where there were surprisingly few bluebells, and at one stage spotted the towers of Ashridge College, but the most stunning wildflower that I do not remember seeing before, was in abundance here, and I spotted it in three different stages – I now know them to be ramsons; it has broad floppy leaves, and what look like seed pods, but these sheaths protect the flowers till they are ready to emerge and then burst open to display a cluster of white six-petalled flowers, and I saw bumble bees hanging precariously from these fragile flowers, obviously enjoying the nectar they provided. One area was simply a green and white carpet surrounding a tree trunk. Above in a canopy of green, backlit from the sun, a chaffinch sang its melodious heart out out.

By my feet I spotted a tiny butterfly, which I took to be a grizzled skipper, but this one had unusual ‘roundels’ dotting its wings, and when I first spotted it, it was amazingly well-camouflaged, as only the flick of its wing gave it away, and if I glanced away, it took a while to relocate it. These woods had numerous stone-built walkways and bridges, and there was new brickwork and fencing going in in places, I came out of the woods and returned to my car by road, spotting tiny blue creeper flowers clinging to the ancient walls of the building opposite to where I came out. When I arrived at Nettleden, Yew Tree Cottage sported a new flowering of Wisteria lending a chocolate box air to this delightful 16th Century building, and the road that led from its side uphill sported some more colourful gardens. I then drove towards Tringford, so that I could visit the Grand Union Canal and the Tring reservoirs.

I parked up and walked almost the entire distance to Bulbourne Lock taking in what I could of the wildlife and occasionally chatting to members of the public along the way. It became obvious that this was the time for chaffinches to be singing their hearts out for a mate. I also spotted a young Mallard family out for the afternoon away from the reeds, and some slightly older ones in a mad dash for some food offered by some of the public along the bank. The anglers were also out in force, but the conversations I overheard did not suggest they were having much success. The locks on the other hand were working overtime and considerable energy was being exerted by young and old alike to keep the boats flowing in both directions.

I found one spot near Lock 40 to sit and watch what was happening on Marsworth reservoir, and was greeted again by a chaffinch, and then a young robin approached, and a kingfisher flew by at high speed three times, and coots, mallard and grebes came close and after watching one heron land amid the reeds, another pair appeared and flew by, and the few common terns that I saw seemed successful to a degree in their swoops for food, as did the swallows, the flies were out in profusion which seemed to be handy snacks for the chaffinches.

Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire fieldscapes, chaffinches bluebells, white bluebells, woods, common tern, grebes, coots, Marsworth reservoir, Grand Union Canal, herons, Canada geese, mallard ducks, Hudnall, Ashridge, Oilseed rape, Nettleden

Interesting Tringford Friday

Once again I cleared all I could by early afternoon, and decided that I had not been in contact with Bob the Bailiff at Tringford Fisheries for a while, and a restful afternoon at the reservoir is quite appealing on a day that had the possibility of autumn sunshine. I put in a call to check Bob would be there, and set off, with every intention of taking some paperwork to my accountant in Ampthill at the end of the day, having also called her to see that was acceptable.

I arrived at the car park and walked along to the jetty, and no sign of Bob. I returned to the car to collect my camera and relaxed on the end of pier with my 300mm, occasionally taking shots of a gull that was circling at the top end, and heading into wind towards me keeping an alert watch for fish below the surface. Having watched this unfold for a while I called Bob and learned he was in a meeting. As I got up I was amazed at what I saw in the shallows only a few feet in front of me the brilliant colours of a large freshwater crawfish! Even though I had no polariser, and was faced with the wind creating constant ripples to the water surface, I was determined to record this because I reckoned this specimen was a good ten inches end to end!

I heard the clang of the gate and went back to the car park expecting Bob, but it was two other anglers who explained a friend had joined Bob at the Anglers’ Rest Public House and so he had stayed on! When I used to work at Pelling & Cross (now Calumet) their local hostelry was the ‘Doctor’s Surgery’ and their custom was such that the landlord moved with them! So much for Office Meetings!

I should show more respect for  my friend, as when he returned he made good his offer to row me down to the bottom end of the lake which gave me more opportunities to gather shots of herons. When we came back from this trip, I offered to take Bob home, and in Cheddington we stopped off at the Three Horseshoes, where I imbibed a half of bitter shandy, and we chatted to his local friends at the bar. A while later another local entered and hailed Bob, I looked up and it was a face that was extremely familiar to me, fellow photographer, Kevin Sansbury – neither of us knew we both knew Bob! What a small world! I stayed longer than intended, which meant my trip to the accountant was not made till Saturday! My life seems governed by serendipity, I plan very little to an exact timetable, and I had no idea how this trip would end – colourful crawfish and learning Kevin and Bob knew each other!

Tringford Sunday Drifting

The next few weeks will see me tied up carrying out a time lapse series of images of the refurbishment of a retail interior, so since the weather forecast was good for a change, I took the opportunity to take a morning in a boat with Bob Menzies on the reservoir at Tringford, knowing there was a possibility I would be tied up giving some advice regarding software and hardware to a young artist in the afternoon.

It was pleasantly cool with a light breeze and the water close by the jetty was crystal clear, so the fish could see and therefore avoid the attentions of the anglers! So it proved for the only angler that took to the water on Tringford that morning, and as Bob and I went out he came in for a break.

We headed down towards the Pumping Station, gently approaching three herons, one of which was on a nest. Although I thought there may be young, we saw nothing in the nest after that heron flew off and circled around. This year has seen fewer heron that last year which is a shame as these birds are the epitome of graceful elegance. Overall we have seen fewer birds on all three of the Tring reservoirs, and this may be due in part to the fierce winter, the amount of rain over the recent weeks and Cormorants depleting the fish stock. We gently drifted around the bottom end looking in the clear water for signs of fish, and saw none, the fish that were to be seen were jumping in the top corner close to the main road, but only one took a sniff at the lone angler's line.

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.

Marsworth then Ashridge

I am basically not an early bird, but when I hear a really positive forecast of a bright start, I am prepared to take a risk and get up before dawn. This makes for a long day, but does not give any guarantees.

I headed first for Marsworth Reservoir and put the 7D with 300mm onto a tripod with the Induro gimbal head and lugged this all the way to the far side reedbeds, alongside the Grand Union Canal and set myself up to wait and watch, there was a great variety of birdlife, some of it very fast, small and close, and due to the large area of reeds, a lot of activity was a good distance away, but this environment was very different from nearby Tringford. This meant the herons were landing and taking off from water as opposed to dead trees, so they looked very different.

As the sun rose the full range of Autumn colours appeared. I stayed patiently in the one spot for a couple of hours, happy with a few new and colourful images, then set off back past Bulbourne Lock, and College Lake, and just before reaching Pitstone Windmill turned off right along a road I had never travelled before. What a revelation! The rolling countryside that presented itself was magnificent, and I soon learned that this gem was far from unknown. I was in Ashridge, an area of outstanding beauty and variety. There was even a car park, close to Pitstone Hill, and this turns out to be the Ridgeway and is jumping-off point for a number of circular walks or trails.

One classic farm amidst this setting was Down Farm and atop a nearby Pitstone Hill the views on such a day were breathtaking, seeing a church spire amidst all that autumn foliage, and a hot air balloon over Mentmore Towers, and all those people enjoying the warm sunshine was a delight. When I took to the road again, I found myself in Aldbury.

Another Visit to the Reservoirs

Getting up early for a change, because of the confident forecast of a bright and frosty start to the day, gave me the chance to visit both Tringford and Marsworth lakes, and being there early gave me a chance to capture swans both taking off and landing. I also got a couple of shots of a grebe’s successful catch whilst on Marsworth.

Back on Tringford the herons were also taking to the air and one in particular caught my eye as it seemed young and also bright white, not grey like most of the others. There were already two hardy fishermen out on the lake, and Bob, the bailiff was busy tidying and cleaning the frost-encrusted boats. I soon spotted Rob’s line was curved under tension, so watched and waited for him to reel in a trout, he later reckoned it to be around three pounds, and he worked hard for it!

To Bob’s dismay the cormorants were on and around the lake in abundance, and he is likely due for a very sore throat as he bellows like a rutting stag to scare them off, but several landed on the water at the far side from the landing stage despite his displeasure. There a few tern flying leisurely but consistently around a small inlet, so I can only presume there was food around.

Bob rowed me out on the lake for a spell as he inspected the banks and the far end of the lake by the pumping station, and for a while the wind dropped somewhat and the sun began to warm us, but that soon changed as the wind direction veered and got up in strength just as we returned to shore and by that time having just drunk a cold coke I began shivering so I called it a day, and it was only half-past one!

I have split the shots into three galleries: Fisherman Rob’s catch with herons and a grebe, A swan taking off, doing a circuit and landing, and another taking off and flying past.

Saturday Afternoon with Tringford Fishermen

Saturday afternoons can be relaxing and rewarding. The robin returned, a tree caught a fly and was later retrieved by the unusual use of a claw hammer and branch, the herons were caught in flight and Phil caught some trout. Bob very kindly rowed me out to the bottom of the lake, an area which is rarely fished with any degree of success. I noted that the herons are now taking to higher vantage points in the trees, and spending less time on the partly submerged branches at the water’s edge.