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Snowy Sunday
Yesterday we took advantage of the bright sunny weather to visit Druridge Bay and check out a couple of sites in preparation for an otter/badger Safari on Tuesday. We had been out on Saturday with the same intention, but the 35mph+ northeasterly winds, and treacherous road conditions led to an early return home… As we…
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All is quiet
The world around us was cloaked in white as we walked home from The Swan early this morning. A Tawny Owl was calling from the woods, but there was little other sound – muffled as it was by the snow. By the time we woke up, there was a lot more snow than there had been when…
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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…
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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…
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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…
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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…
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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…
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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…
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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…
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Not quite what I had in mind
The hoped-for wintry weather did make an appearance this morning. As I sat in a school governor’s meeting, reviewing all of the school’s policy documents (you have no idea…), a series of snow showers passed over – each one depositing a thin white layer on the ground outside. Almost as soon as it had settled it…