Northern Experience Wildlife Tours

Month: December 2009

Sloe and steady

After the completion of the thaw yesterday we woke this morning…to a fresh covering of snow 🙂 Now, I make no secret of the fact that I love wintry weather. I’m invigorated by it, my photography is inspired when we’re in the grip of bone-chilling temperatures and a blanket of snow on the ground fills me with joy. I struggle to understand the media apoplexy that greets snowfall each winter. Well, that’s the usual response if that snowfall is anywhere other than Northumberland…

I often wonder what the national media thinks lies between Leeds and Edinburgh? Today was no exception. The national weather forecast on the BBC was concerned with snowfall in the northeast of Scotland. And that was it as far as snowfall was concerned…my only problem was that as we drove up the A1 just north of Morpeth there was a good couple of inches of freshly-fallen snow on the road and we were in a blizzard that brought near white-out conditions. Sarah took this shot using my ‘phone.

Nowhere other than Scotland eh?

The lorry that you can see ahead of us spent most of his journey veering across the carriageway as he lost traction. The cars I could see in our rear view mirror were having similar problems. And us? We were in a proper vehicle 🙂 No problems, just a steady drive to make sure we were a safe distance behind the lorry. That’s the thing about wintry conditions, as long as people understand that things are different there probably isn’t a need for the panic and the mayhem.

We arrived at Lee Moor, and the covering of snow on the ground wasn’t managing to lighten the gloomy conditions a great deal; 09:30 and the sky was as darker than it had been at 8am. Our small group assembled and we set off around the farm trails. The birdwatching was good; a big mixed flock of Yellowhammers, Reed Buntings and Tree Sparrows allowed a close approach, Kestrels and Buzzards passed overhead, a solitary Lapwing sat motionless in a snowy field and a covey of Grey Partridges flushed from a well-managed headland. Throughout the frozen woodland Brown Hares were regularly encountered and voles appeared from, then disappeared back into, their snow-holes. The covering of snow also made it easy to follow the tracks of Roe Deer and Red Fox. Back at the farm, Ian provided a delicious lunch of home-made soup, warm bread and mince pies. Then he produced a bottle of Sloe gin. It was a shame Martin was driving as he had 2003, 2004 and 2009 vintages! Sarah enjoyed it…and reminded us that we had a bottle in our drinks cabinet at home…

Lee Moor Farm

In the bleak midwinter

An 'interesting' footpath

Ian, a wooly hat and one of them old-fashioned film camera thingies

That’s it for 2009. Have an enjoyable Old Year’s Night and see you in 2010 🙂

31/12/2009
Along the valley

I must have driven the A69 between Throckley and Haydon Bridge over 1000 times. Working at that corner of the county for three years meant that I had the return journey at all times of year and in all weather conditions. It also meant that I could check out birdwatching sites along the route (at least whenever I set off early enough in a morning…or extended the journey home).

Today we drove that familiar route, traversing the county from east to west, with the snow-covered North Pennine hills away to the south, past Little Owl sites near Ponteland, a couple of fields with Roe Deer (where I first saw them in 2001), several Common Buzzard territories and a Peregrine territory, where there were two birds today – scattering Jackdaws and Lapwings as they went. Astonishing sight of the day was a Fulmar making it’s way E along the valley! I’ve seen them inland before (even our garden has 2 records – and a Fulmar shearing along the allotments is a pretty bizarre sight) but this was almost as far from the sea as you can get in the Northeast. Lapwings were dotted around the snow-covered fields, Fieldfares and Redwings were in the roadside hedges and Kestrels were hovering intently over the verge.

Eventually we arrived at our destination, Poltross Wild Bird Foods, where we caught up with Martin and Jose and had a chat about the ongoing battle to save the Red Squirrel. With a car boot filled with bird and squirrel food we drove back east and set about replenishing all of the feeders. Almost immediately the garden filled with birds, including 8 Long-tailed Tits and a dozen Chaffinches. The predicted return of bitterly cold weather is likely to lead to a daily re-filling of the feeders. Maybe we’ll even resurrect the Choppington Woods feeding station, although I think ourselves and all of our neighbours are providing an adequate supply…and the feeders are safer when they’re in our gardens 😉

30/12/2009
A change in the weather

The feeders in our garden have been busier in the last couple of days than at any time during this winter. No less than 6 Blackbirds have taken up residence, 3 or 4 Robins are posturing and defending territories, a steady stream of Blue, Great and Coal Tits, along with our 2 regular Willow Tits, are emptying the feeders rapidly and a flock of 8 Long-tailed Tits are putting in daily appearances. Chaffinch numbers are way down on previous winters, but Greenfinches are now almost ever-present during daylight hours and three pairs of Bullfinches are never far away. It’s interesting that, even on a very short-distance scale, there’s such a noticeable movement of birds from their ‘normal’ habitat (Choppington Woods) to the gardens around the edge of the woods whenever the weather turns colder. Birdwatching doesn’t get any easier than sitting in the kitchen, glass of port in one hand and a slice of Christmas cake in the other 🙂

First thing this morning everything was frozen solid again. However, by lunchtime when Martin took Dad to the railway station there was a noticeable thaw – even though the thermometer was showing the temperature having only just crept above freezing. Then it started to rain and most of the remaining patches of ice and snow vanished. The birds were still around in the numbers of recent days though and, if the weather forecasts are anything to go by, we’re in for some more very hard winter weather at the end of this year and the start of the new one. Wrap up warm.

29/12/2009
Skating on thin ice

After seeing my photos appearing in Martin’s blog posts for the last couple of days, I thought I’d turn my hand to writing today’s blog.

I started the day by taking my father-in-law for a birdwatching walk around Choppington Woods although, with everything frozen solid, there were very few birds to be seen. We did find a couple of distant Roe Deer but, on the whole, the walk consisted of a consistent attempt to not fall on the ice. With the partial thaw and heavy rain of yesterday, followed by another hard freeze overnight, all of the footpaths were covered with a treacherous layer of transparent ice. A couple we passed were complaining about their new walking boots not being any help to remaining upright.

Back at home, lunch was home-made vegetable soup, baked ham and a selection of cheeses. Just the thing in this weather. Martin had spent the whole morning in bed with a sore throat, ear-ache and a splitting headache; probably the outcome of having a puncture on the Landrover late last night and being outside in the bitter cold…without a hat or gloves! I have to wonder sometimes…

He did perk up a bit once lunch was ready though, and then spent most of the afternoon processing and backing-up the images from the last few days. Tomorrow the plan (weather permitting) is to try and photograph Kingfishers, and to get closer shots of Roe Deer. Good job we’ve got two cameras 🙂

28/12/2009
I prefer snow…

We set off for Holy Island this morning with a clear objective in mind for the journey – photograph a Little Owl. Many years ago one of my fellow photography students produced a series of excellent images of Tawny Owls and explained his technique for finding the birds. Needless to say, the hard work was done in the dark. Finding Little Owls in daylight isn’t uncommon although I’ve realised in the last couple of weeks that, especially when all the trees are bare of leaves, it’s easier to find them at night. We stopped off at one of the sites I’ve been watching regularly and there, in beautiful light for photography, was a Little Owl. Sarah has been developing (no pun intended) as a photographer, so I manouvered the Landrover into position as she took the shot…with my new D300s.

Who are you looking at?

The highlight of the remainder of the journey north was a large flock of Linnets, with a few Brambling mixed in, swirling backwards and forwards as a male Merlin darted across the field they were in. A covey of Grey Partridges sat tight just long enough for Sarah to fire the shutter again.

Partridges…nowhere near a Pear tree

As we neared Holy Island the rain began, and by the start time for our walk it was icy and heavy. Not the highlight of the day.

Well, with today’s images processed and added to our ‘Northumberland in the Winter’ presentation we’re on our way out now to entertain a group of holidaymakers who may need cheering up 🙂

27/12/2009
Winter walks

There’s little that’s better than going for a walk with snow on the ground. On Christmas Day I took dad for a walk around Choppington Woods, mainly so we weren’t under Sarah’s feet 😉 Today all three of us walked along the River Blyth and through the dunes in Druridge Bay. The traditional boxing Day pheasant shoots in the woodland of Druridge Bay provided an ‘interesting’ aural backdrop. I’ve had some fascinating conversations about hunting recently, with wildlife photographers and with friends who have hunted for several years. What some people may find surprising is that two apparently disparate groups have much in common; not least a love and appreciation of the countryside. Wildlife- and birdwatching with a camera may have a very different outcome (certainly for the wildlife) from hunting, with the only thing getting fired being a camera shutter, and the only things getting shot being images of wildlife, but there’s a lot we can learn as photographers and wildlife watchers, from the techniques employed by hunters. Wildlife crime may still be a major issue in many areas, but that’s a topic for another blog on another day.

With NEWT events on Holy Island, in the Harthope Valley and around Lee Moor Farm before the end of the year, and places to go and things to photograph on our days ‘off’ in-between, we’re looking forward to the last five days of 2009. Here are a few images from today:

It may be a cliche…

Captured in the split-second before it noticed me

Northumberland's iconic mammal

Dashing through the snow

Roe doe and Roe buck

26/12/2009
A traditional Christmas

One of our favourite events at this time of year is the Friends of Choppington Woods Christmas Walk.

First today though, we had the little task of finishing our grocery shopping. We took delivery of a fantastic goose yesterday, and most of our shopping had been completed a couple of weeks ago but there were a few things outstanding. Sainsbury’s opened at 06:00, so by 07:15 we were standing in their carpark listening to Robins and Blackbirds singing, and Redwings flying over. Soon we were on our way home with the more perishable ingredients for the next few days…but no Mince Pies as they had sold out of them already!

After a warming bacon and egg sandwich, we gathered for the walk, missing a few of our regular attendees; ill-health, the treacherous conditions underfoot and a recent family bereavement for one committee member had all taken a toll.

The two of us, Glen Graham (FOCW Secretary since the group formed), Barry Wilson (NCC Woodland Management Officer) and Heather O’Neill (Northumberland Wildlife Trust) set out from the main entrance to the reserve, with the aim of combining our walk with a good look at all of the improvements that have been made to the reserve this year. We raised £10k in grant funding, but we’ve got a lot more value from it than would normally be achievable with that amount of money.

A stunning viewpoint, woodland ride clearances, forest tracks and multi-user path surfacing, boardwalk and pond-dipping platform, hibernacula for reptiles and amphibians, wildflower meadows and an education pack for the local primary schools all add up to the most successful year for the reserve since it was designated in 2003.

The pond was frozen solid…although none of us risked venturing onto the ice. A set of animal tracks across the frozen surface generated much discussion before we concluded that they had been left by a Red Fox. Evidence of some of our other mammalian neighbors was in evidence too. (and we had a Pygmy Shrew Sorex minutus on our patio this morning , but that’s another story…).

Much of the vegetation on the reserve was still encased in ice and snow as well (although the thaw started during our walk), but the white fruits of Common Snowberry Symphoricarpos albus stood out amongst the bare branches.

After our journey through the woods we arrived at Glen’s house, where Karen had prepared a delicious chili and there was a pan of mulled wine heating on the stove. Inspired by this we warmed another bottle ourselves once we were back at home, ready for the arrival of Martin’s dad, and one of us (the one with a PhD in Medicinal Chemistry) hit on the bright idea of ‘enhancing the oranginess’ with a good shot of Cointreau…

24/12/2009
Snow on the sand

I’m lucky enough to not suffer from SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder). In fact I look forward to the winter months – I’m a bit dysfunctional in very hot weather (that’s one of the reasons I live in the north of England, and why I enjoy winter holidays in northwest Scotland so much).

Our very wintry Lindisfarne Safari on Monday was just about my ideal day out; bitterly cold, inspirational winter light, hardly another person to be seen anywhere and plenty of wildlife.

That inspiration manifested itself in a repeat visit to the Lindisfarne NNR yesterday. I had two goals in mind; photograph Pale-bellied Brent Geese, and capture an image of Bamburgh Castle as the light faded.

The geese were some distance away, due to the state of the tide, but I managed to capture the distant birds in the shadow of Lindisfarne Castle, and a small group as they flew along the tideline.

Lindisfarne Castle and Pale-bellied Brent Geese

Pale-bellied Brent Geese

The light was fading rapidly so I drove to Bamburgh, along roads that resembled a ski run, and made my way down to the beach. Frozen rock-pools and a beach dusted with snow aren’t a frequent occurence so it was an unusual opportunity to photograph the castle in these conditions. The big, thick gloves that were keeping my hands nice and toasty were too bulky to let me operate the camera so I had to suffer for the image. And it was suffering; just a few seconds with my gloves off and my hands were protesting at the cold.

Bamburgh Castle in the snow 22/12/09

The Moon, high over Bamburgh 22/12/09

20 miles back down the road, with gloves on and the car heater on full, my fingers began to warm through…so I decided to extend the journey home and check some of our favourite owl sites, even though that would require some very, very careful driving. A Barn Owl perched on a stack of hay bales was justification enough for that decision and two Little Owls, perched in trees just a hundred metres apart were the icing on the cake.

23/12/2009
An icy grip

I’m resolute in my belief that the winter is an excellent time to visit Northumberland. It’s relaxing and quiet (not that it’s ever really anything else), there’s a lot of wildlife (ditto) and we often get stunning weather that showcases our remarkable landscape at it’s best.

Today was a day when everything came together just the way you hope. As I drove up the A1 Kestrels, Common Buzzards and Roe Deer were all in roadside fields and Redwings and Fieldfares were hedge-hopping from one side of the road to the other.

I collected Tracey, Guy and Connor (and Ghillie – their collie dog) just after lunch, from their holiday cottage near Belford, and we headed to Holy Island. The sea by the ends of the causeway was frozen and a sprinkling of snow covered the dunes. As we crossed towards the island a Merlin flushed from a roadside post and we stopped to admire the beautiful diffused light that illuminated the mudflats. Our walk on the island was on ground frozen solid, and covered with ice and snow. The wind was bitingly cold but Grey Seals, Meadow Pipits, Shags, Curlews, Eiders, Red-breasted Mergansers, Pale-Bellied Brent Geese and flocks of Teal heading towards the mainland all diverted the attention. As we headed back to the mainland a handsome male Stonechat played hide-and-seek with us along the edge of the causeway, but persistence paid off and Tracey and Guy managed some good shots. I love having keen photographers on our safaris – especially ones who really appreciate the quality of light that we enjoy up here – so we made several stops as the changing light produced a series of photo opportunities. I can only hope that we get similar conditions for our first Beginners Photography workshop in January. The rising tide and fluffy pink clouds of the late afternoon combined with Bamburgh Castle in the snow to offer more memorable images, while we were watching Oystercatchers, Turnstones, Redshanks and a Ringed Plover on the frozen beach. The route back was made easier by being in a Landrover, and the steady journey allowed us to pick out Brown Hares in the snow-covered fields – seven in total, standing sentinel-like as we approached. Once I was back on the ice-free A1 and travelling south it was like a different world to the one I’d been in for the last few hours. Environmental escapism at it’s best.

21/12/2009
Another waiting room

With a busy schedule over the Christmas and New Year period, this weekend is our chance to visit friends and family in Derbyshire and East Yorkshire.

I spent most of Friday afternoon filling all of our bird and squirrel feeders. The Jays were around again, screaming at me from the Ash tree at the bottom of the garden. The Coal Tits were rather bolder, perching just above my head and settling into ‘angry little bird’ mode. After all the feeders were replenished, it seems I need to pay a visit to my good friend Martin over in Haltwhistle to re-stock our extension with sacks of bird food 🙂

We drove down to Derbyshire in the snow on Friday evening. The roads were fine, but the carpark at Wetherby Services was a proper nightmare. A delicious casserole and a glass of wine awaited us at the end of the journey. Saturday dawned clear, bright and snowy and we spent the day visiting friends. Saturday evening’s entertainment was a meal in Derby with Sarah’s parents and her youngest sister and other half, followed by a theatre visit to see The Snow Queen. Or so we thought…

As we walked from the car park towards the restaurant, the pavements were glistening with ice. Which is when Sarah’s mum went base over apex and heard her leg break. 🙁 We had an ‘interesting’ 5 hours in the Royal Derby Hospital, followed by a takeaway pizza. The best laid plans…

Now we’re on our way back north, and conditions look perfect for carrying out our next two offshore surveys on Tuesday and Wednesday. Best wrap up warm.

Get well soon mum. And enjoy putting your feet up over Christmas 🙂

20/12/2009