Mild, dry but a very overcast day.
Day spent shredding the last of the Oak & Bean Tree branches. All shreddings now spread on the shrub borders. Bet tomorrow there will be 50% on the lawn. The Blackbirds love to scratch about in fresh shreddings.
Picture 1 - Shredding.
" 2 - Wormery looking very healthy.
Pretty good day today although it did lack sun.
Morning spent at Citroen Wokingham having the C4 tracking checked after after the little width restriction incident last week. Thankfully no damage to tyre or tracking, still as new and no charge. Thank you Citroen.
Busy afternoon, some Oak tree branches cut down, shrubs trimmed and heaped ready for shredding. My Gtech gizmo is just so good for cutting such branches. Weather permitting tomorrow, shredding will be the order of the day.
Where have all these Starlings come from, more than I experienced during late spring. Have they followed me back from last weeks Murmuration? Spending more time in the Swift nest box so could be I have to invest in another box for the Swifts?
Good to catch up with my walking partner of late. Long phone call this afternoon catching up with our respective wildlife stories and a little reminiscing. Good on you Boyo (Doug).
Picture 1 - My own Murmuration.
" 2 - Starlings taking over the Swift nest box.
" 3 - Woody returns in all his glory, not the tongue.
" 4 - Sack of cut sunflower stalks cut ready to hollow out ready for the bug hotel.
" 5 - Cleaning out the sunflower stalks.
" 6 - Oak tree trimmings ready for shredding.
Overcast and dull but at least dry.
Driving lesson for Wifelet today in the new C4, pretty good actually as so different to drive with all the electronic technology.
During the afternoon there was time to sweep up a few more leaves and strip a few sunflower heads of their seeds in preparation to dry out.
What an afternoon for birds, 12 Long Tailed Tits were on the feeders, most I have ever seen. By the time I had my camera ready I was only able to capture five. One of my fav' birds.
Bit worried about the Starlings, they appear to have taken over the Swift nest box. At one point three starlings were in the box.
Enjoyed a Christmas evening at Henry Street, good talk on the latest Garden/Christmas lights now available. As ever HS finished the evening with good food and mulled wine.
Photograph shows the LTT with a Blue Tit.
Cold frosty morning leading to a good, sunny autumn day.
Funny ole day - morning spent shredding some of the branches cut down yesterday. Shredding spread over the wildlife part of the garden.
Now the fun part of the day.....plan was to meet with Janet and Colin at the Leathern Bottle for mid-day lunch and a pint. Ended up as a pub crawl! Ordered food and drink at 12.15pm, by 1.45pm we had enjoyed two pints for the boys and wine for the ladies but no food despite reminders on numerous occasions, was even offered yet more drink (on the house) as an apology. With no sign of food it was decided to leave, no charge for the drinks but no apology for the appalling service.
Next stop was the Bull at Barkham, on the menu was 'Ridiculous Burger', seemed an apt choice given the previous experience! Drinks were offered of course but by now we were well watered!
Good service, good food, will return again in the future.
Back home to relax with coffee and to reflect...?
Colin, being a techno' man, was very useful in helping me understand a bit more of my iPad. Now have iTunes, flipchart, BBC news and flickr. Thanks Colin.
As I said earlier, a funny ole day.
A rather dull, cold miserable day.
A few more branches cut down this morning, shredding beckons tomorrow.
Good to see the return of Woody this morning, will have another attempt at leaving out some monkey nuts. Six Long Tailed Tits were on the feeders early morning, sadly no photograph.
Interesting to see a Blue Tit using the Dovecote as a dining room. Was eating berries from a nearby shrub.
Enjoyed an afternoon with Lulu and Clive at the Cunning Man catching up with respective holiday stories. Lulu and Clive recently returned after driving from Lands End to John O Groats in their 'old' MG.
Picture 1 - Blue Tit in Dovecote.
" 2 - Woody returns.
Another dull, miserable day but at least dry.
Ideal day to wash the C4, perhaps white was not the best colour to choose?
Had washed about a quarter when I was aware a care was across the drive with a couple grinning from ear to ear. What a gob smacking surprise to see Steve and Tina, our neighbours in the last century! I could not believe it. Steve and Tina left in 1996 for pastures new purchasing a free range poultry farm of 8000 chickens in Cullumpton. While talking in the drive Steve said that the best memory of his time here was the neighbourly bbq's around the fire.....he was thrilled that this tradition was still ongoing!
Steve and Tina stayed for a couple of hours reminiscing on the early nineties and the time spent as our neighbours, the Parrot escaping, the horse rather than a lawn mower, the gun, the plastic fish, the police no entry sign, bbq evenings, fire eating and the uni-cycle......we have now agreed not to lose touch.
Finished washing the car during the afternoon!
Mild but a rather overcast day.
With no wind it was an ideal day to have another go at sweeping up leaves. A further eight large bags were collected and spread on the wildlife area of the back garden. A full days work.
The number of Goldfinches on the bird feeders has increased somewhat this year, fighting now for pecking order with Blue Tits and Sparrows. Noticeable now that the Goldfinches are preferring sunflower hearts in preference to niger seed.
Another stunning autumn day after a cold, frosty start.
Day spent at Cheddar visiting the cheese factory and cave system.
The cheese factory was the first port of call. Once again it was a one to one with the guide, a most interesting visit. Had not appreciated how labour intensive cheese making was, also heavy work. Each cheese block weighs 25kg and has to be turned daily. To this day the caves are still used to mature the cheese before cutting/sealing ready for sale.
The caves themselves surely must be the 'eighth wonder'? The history here is mind blowing, we are talking about history in millions of years. A skeleton was found (stored at the Natural History Museum) and is in fact the oldest skeleton found in the UK. After a most interesting day in Cheddar it was time for heading home. Chose the scenic route through the gorge, magnificent. Arrived home late afternoon after a most enjoyable few days.
Picture 1 - View from the cheese factory (taken from a leaflet).
" 2 - Wrapping a cheese block prior to storing/maturing.
" 3 - The gorge.
" 4 & 5 - Inside the cave system.
" 6 - Cheddar Cheese maturing in Gough's Cave.
Bitterly cold and very sunny making for a beautiful Autumn day with stunning sunrise/sunset.
Short visit to Glastonbury during the morning before moving on to Wells and an interesting visit to Wells Palace and Cathedral. One of the advantages of visiting places of interest out of season is the one to one you have with your guide. Only four of us for the most interesting history talk and water walk around the Palace grounds. The Swans tugging at a bell when ready for food was amazing. The current caretaker and his wife who live at the moat entrance carry out this role now.
Late afternoon/early evening was spent at Ham Wall RSPB nature reserve near Glastonbury for the murmuration. What an experience, my photography does not do the experience justice. It was a sight to behold. Hundreds, in fact thousands of Starlings looping the loop back to their roosting area, trees or a field of rushes. An amazing sight I will never forget. The sunset added to the atmosphere, at its best it was pillar box red, at the end just a pale pink but still stunning.
Picture 1 - Moat at the entrance to Wells Palace.
" 2 - Wells Cathedral through an arch in the Palace gardens.
" 3 - " " from the Palace gardens.
" 4 - Explanation of the Swans feeding procedure.
" 5 - Swans feed time.
" 6 - Inside Wells Cathedral.
" 7 - I was not the only one at the Murmuration.
" 8 & 9 - The Murmuration.
Left Reading at 10am, weather cold and pretty wet. Arrived in Shaftesbury (start of a 3 day break in Dorset/Wiltshire) at mid-day still cold but in brilliant sunshine.
Good walk to Gold Hill, famous for the Hovis bread advert where the young boy is seen pushing his bike up the hill with a basket full of bread.
Visit was followed by an enjoyable drive through the Dorset countryside to Shepton Mallet and the Highwayman Pub, our home for a couple of nights.
Picture 1 - Gold Hill.
" 2 - Highwayman Pub.
" 3 - View from bedroom.
After a cold, frosty morning it became a brilliant day, plenty of sun, dry and very mild.
Good to meet up with Nigel & Lyn again over a lunch time pie and pint at The Cunning Man. Can't match Nigel's Maserati but was still proud to show off my new C4, think he was suitably impressed!
What a day for birds again, the Wren and Woody have appeared again along with all the regulars. With Woody about I may well have another go at leaving out some Monkey nuts, squirrel beware.
Looking forward now to two days at RSPB Ham Wall, Starling spotting.
A good, dry Autumn day. Not much sun today however. Much colder in the evenings now.
Day spent shredding, the first phase of Autumn pruning now complete. Next phase will be cutting out meaningful branches from the Willow, Oak and Bean Trees. Have just bought a book on Willow sculptures, this to be my next project using home cut Willow suckers.
Photograph of a Spider found in the bath, great detail but where on earth do they come from.....?
Another very mild but overcast day.
Busy day trimming the large shrubs, Bay Tree and Ivy hedges with my new Gtech gizmo. Took a gamble buying it, not disappointed, amazing machine. No ladders required as I have done in previous years. Retained as many Ivy berries as I could, no time is a good time to cut Ivy as home to all manor of wildlife, moths, spiders, birds & mice.
Made a start with shredding with the latest Bosch machine, had not appreciated how bad my old machine was.
Birds a plenty today, 7 Goldfinches on the feeder, 5 Long Tailed Tits, loads of Sparrows and Greenfinches, interestingly no Pigeons or Doves today.
Very mild but rather on the dull side.
Lawns cut this morning, wonder if this is the last cut of the year?
More leaves swept up (8 large sacks) from the front garden. deposited on the wildlife section of the garden.
Picture 1 - Nothing like a good cuppa in front of an open fire after a day in the garden.
" 2 - Autumn colours in the back garden.
Wow, another stunning day. Sweeping leaves can wait, could not let today pass without a visit somewhere?
After morning coffee at the Waterfront Cafe at Benson we moved on to the Harcourt Arboretum which is managed by the University of Oxford. The Acers, Beech and Lime Trees were spectacular in colour. Enjoyed the complete walk in beautiful Autumn sunshine.
What happens after you have enjoyed a walk, that's it - a good pint and a baguette! The Coach and Horses at Stadhampton did not disappoint.
Picture 1 - River Thames at Benson.
" 2 - Moored up for winter at Benson.
" 3 - 6 - Harcourt Arboretum.
Mild, sunny, dry day. Brought the Yorkshire weather back with us. hope it lasts.
Almost back to normal, Morrisons for shopping and car washed. Just a few fallen leaves to deal with now!
Another mild, sunny, dry day. What a week it has been, so lucky with the weather again to enjoy the Dales in all the Autumn glory.
So many thanks to Paul and Margaret again for looking after us with good food and drink. Can't wait to return sometime during 2014.
Arrived home at 4.30pm to blocked drains so holiday defo' over! Thames Water turned up within two hours and sorted so well done them.
These photographs taken in P & M garden during the week. Also saw a Nuthatch on the feeder but sadly rather quick for me.
Another stunning day, blue skies, plenty of sun and very mild. Shame the holiday has to come to an end.
Nidderdale today and the village of Nosterfield near Masham. Masham being the home of the Black Sheep Brewery.
We were at Nosterfield to visit the local nature reserve, managed by the Lower Ure Conservation Trust. The reserve is home to all manner of wild flowers, birds, ducks and geese depending on the season. Today we were lucky to see loads of Lapwing, Greylag Geese, Teal and Golden Eye - loved it.
Thankfully Paul is a lover of real ale so would have been rude not to visit a pub! Can you believe most pubs in this part of Yorkshire close on a Tuesday. Did find the Millbank Arms, a Black Sheep pub. Enjoyed a good pint and another baguette.
On the way home we experienced the most beautiful sunset. A perfect day to end the holiday.
Pictures 1 -3 - Nosterfield Nature Reserve.
" 4 - Millbank Arms, cheers.
" 5 - Sunset near Pool Bank (taken from inside the car at 40mph).
Woke to a spectacular frost, the day soon warmed up giving us a very mild, sunny day.
A relaxing walk at Crag Farm on Cukrigge Moor in the ancient Parish of Adel was enjoyed. The farm and nature reserve is now managed by the Caring for Life charity. The 17th century Barn has now been renovated and houses a tea room/restaurant. All food is either grown on the farm or sourced locally. A truly inspirational experience, and only a short walk from Margaret and Paul's house. The charity also have a very strong programme of 'feeding the birds' giving work to local under privileged youngsters. It was great to see them obviously enjoying feeding the birds, brought a lump to my throat to watch them - and what a success with Tree Sparrows, Long Tailed Tits, Bull Finches, Thrushes, Blackbirds plus all the common birds. Will certainly pay them another visit next year.
Picture 1 - Frosty Windscreen.
" 2 - This was spooky, a plane on the roof of a farm building? Optical illusion of course. Leeds/Bradford Airport was two miles away, the barn was in front of me - have to assume the plane was on the runway giving the illusion of landing on the roof!
Picture 3 - Through the farm woodland.
" 4 - Tree Sparrow sleeping after a feast of berries.
