My last post ended....'The best is yet to come'....but after Tuesday's experience seems a long way off.
I'm pretty good at making mistakes, and it was a big one when I decided to walk the coastal path Lancaster - Glasson Dock, it was cloudy with a stiff cold westerly wind.
Along St Georges Quay in Lancaster and on to the coastal path past Keyline where I was lucky to see a Dunnock, Blue Tit, and heard Chaffinch in song. Looking over Freeman's Pools, it did'nt get any better than Shelduck and Coot on the island which appears to look much smaller now than it's original size. But by the time I reached the crossroad to Marsh Point things briefly sprung to life when I heard the first of 5 Blackcap, three of which were heard later within a few metres of each other south of Stodday.
The best on offer at the Wildfowlers Pools was two pair of Gadwall, seemingly the only four birds unaffected by the man in the pick-up driving around the pools presumably to tend to his sheep, and as if to remind me of the unpredictability of birds, the flood was deserted save just 2 Shelduck.
The rest of the route to Glasson Dock had me see 75 Wood Pigeon roosting and squat along the top of a neatly manicured flat topped hedgerow, I heard 3 Chiffchaff and counted 12 Blackbird, otherwise single figures of Goldfinch, Robin, Great Tit, and I heard a Wren by the picnic area at Conder Green where things came to life a little in that I saw a Common Sandpiper, Spotted Redshank, and the pair of Avocet which were in the creeks seen from the A588 south of The Stork, surely a much better food source than Conder Pool has to offer, though last years young bird survived to fledging from what was available there.
When I arrived at Glasson Dock it was good to get the impression it really was spring, with at least 60 Sand Martin hawking over the canal basin, but I think the fact I never heard let alone saw a single Willow Warbler in the five hours I was on this coastal path, says all that needs to be said about my birding on the wrong day, and at the wrong time.
I'm pretty good at making mistakes, and it was a big one when I decided to walk the coastal path Lancaster - Glasson Dock, it was cloudy with a stiff cold westerly wind.
Along St Georges Quay in Lancaster and on to the coastal path past Keyline where I was lucky to see a Dunnock, Blue Tit, and heard Chaffinch in song. Looking over Freeman's Pools, it did'nt get any better than Shelduck and Coot on the island which appears to look much smaller now than it's original size. But by the time I reached the crossroad to Marsh Point things briefly sprung to life when I heard the first of 5 Blackcap, three of which were heard later within a few metres of each other south of Stodday.
The best on offer at the Wildfowlers Pools was two pair of Gadwall, seemingly the only four birds unaffected by the man in the pick-up driving around the pools presumably to tend to his sheep, and as if to remind me of the unpredictability of birds, the flood was deserted save just 2 Shelduck.
The rest of the route to Glasson Dock had me see 75 Wood Pigeon roosting and squat along the top of a neatly manicured flat topped hedgerow, I heard 3 Chiffchaff and counted 12 Blackbird, otherwise single figures of Goldfinch, Robin, Great Tit, and I heard a Wren by the picnic area at Conder Green where things came to life a little in that I saw a Common Sandpiper, Spotted Redshank, and the pair of Avocet which were in the creeks seen from the A588 south of The Stork, surely a much better food source than Conder Pool has to offer, though last years young bird survived to fledging from what was available there.
When I arrived at Glasson Dock it was good to get the impression it really was spring, with at least 60 Sand Martin hawking over the canal basin, but I think the fact I never heard let alone saw a single Willow Warbler in the five hours I was on this coastal path, says all that needs to be said about my birding on the wrong day, and at the wrong time.
Marsh Mutts. Pete Woodruff.
The Mutt Minder made his contribution to my downbeat day with his six hounds disturbing anything and everything on and around Aldcliffe Marsh.
Despite not being your best session, you still managed a few bits of quality in there.
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