Another Session on the Stumpy

As Heather was keen to get in the saddle again, we decided to go off road and ride the first part of my ride from yesterday.  It was yet another bright and sunny day with still no rain.  After the floods of the winter our next crisis on the weather front will be drought.  As awful as the coronavirus situation is the media and government can think of nothing else and I worry that eyes have been take pf the climate emergency ball - until some disaster befalls us that is.

Our route was a slight variation on yesterday as we went out through Scartho top otherwise it was the same.  We saw all of the same plants and took great joy in them.  We also enjoyed watching a group of four swallows swooping and settling on a telegraph pole by Bradley ponds.  I have still seen no house martins of swifts, though.
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Dixon's Wood

Looking back to Bradley Woods

Looking back to Bradley Woods

Cowslips on the trail heading back to Bradley from Barnoldby

Cowslips on the trail heading back to Bradley from Barnoldby

Cowslips on the trail heading back to Bradley from Barnoldby

Early Purple Orchid, Bradley Gairs

Cycling and Meditation.

I unleashed my mountain bike, the much loved 'Stumpy', for the first time in a few years.  As it is so dry and the ground bone hard I decided that now was a good opportunity; less people on the trails too, a big consideration at this time of social distancing.  Although I covered 14 miles, I stayed close to home riding both sides of the village as far as Bradley Woods and Barnoldby to the west and to the east across the Horsefield and around Weelsby Woods.  It was great riding, but there was that bitter easterly wind again.  

It was good to ride through the woods full of bluebells, wood anemones and stitchwort and catch glimpses of cowslips and early purple orchids on the ditch banks.  I saw plenty of swallows and heard skylarks too.

As part of my daily routine I do an online meditation session which helps to calm the mind at the beginning and end of the day.  Currently we are asked to consider who or what we appreciate and meditate on the answer.  The who is easy; I am blessed with a loving and caring wife who worries about me constantly, whether my heart or my back or keeping me away from people as I am 'vulnerable' at this time: over 70 and with underlying heart problems.  Mind we nearly came to divorce earlier today when she asked me to cut the back of her hair for her!!! 😂  I am very lucky, as I am with my children, who also worry, and all of our wider family and friends.  The what is easy too, especially in this time of coronavirus lockdown.  I am able to get out either side of the village quickly either on foot or by bike and enjoy the changing seasons and wildlife, both observing and photographing. Although it is good to see rare plants and creatures one of the things that I take delight in is the common, everyday aspects of nature and its intricacy and beauty Like everyone else, though I look forward to being 'let out' and can't wait to get back to the caravan and see the children.
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Herb Robert

Early Purple Orchid

Early Purple Orchid

The Stumpy on the trail from Barnoldby to Bradley Woods.

An Amble Around the Woodland Burial Ground with the Birding Lens

Again it has been a clear sunny day with that same bitter east wind of the sea.  Quite strong again as well.  Latish on I decided to wander around the woodland burial ground as I felt that it would be failry sheltered.  I had thought that I might catch some butterflies but the only one was a rather worn speckled wood.  I did get views of a pair of sparrowhawks soaring above, though, and a blackcap sang well.  The hisghlight though was a very confiding chiffchaff which I maganaged to photograph; one of several I heard singing.  

Sycamores and horse chestnuts are now in full leaf with lime and silver birch just beginning to green up.  In direct line of flight our house is not much more that 100 yards from the limes and so I hope that I might get lime hawk moth in the trap soon.

I have just been outside (9.08pm) to observe Venus which is incredibly bright n the western sky.  At the same time I was delighted to spot the starlink satellite train passing over from west to east.  I saw 8 but it can be dozens of tiny satellites move across the sky in a train-like straight line.  Starlink is the name of a satellite network created by a private spaceflight company called SpaceX.  The mission of the project is to provide remote locations across the world with low-cost internet.  Tonight is also the peak of the Lyrids meteor shower, but unfortunately at 4.00 am.

• Robin
• Crow
• Chaffinch
• Chiffchaff
• Blackcap
• Sparrowhawk
• Herring Gull
• Blue Tit
• Great Tit

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Chiffchaff

Chiffchaff

Red variety of hawthorn

Herb Robert.

Robin

Go West Young Man

We decided to have a change today and head west over to Bradley and Dixon't Woods rather than the usual Horsefield walk.  It was again a cloudless morning as I walked down to the doctor's for my warfarin blood test, Heather joining me when I had finished my appointment.  We continued to the edge of the village before setting out over the fields to Bradley Gairs wood.  I was looking forward to this excursion as I knew that the wood anemones had been out for a couple of weeks, bluebells were appearing and I also hoped for more early purple orchids.  From this side of the village we were able to look out over the coastal marsh to the Lincolnshire Wolds.  We commented that we could see a wood on one of our favourite walks in the Wolds: Stock Furlong.  We love the way that we can pick this wood out from many places, including the P&O ferry when we are sailing over to Zeebrugge or Rotterdam.  The bright, vivid yellow of the fields of oilseed rape could be seen dotted all the way to the Wolds.

As soon as we entered Bradley Gairs we found violets, stitchwort and swathes of bluebells; thankfully English and not Spanish.  As we left the wood we were pleased to find plenty of early purple orchids.  We crossed Bradley Road and wandered down the farm track for a quarter of a mile before turning right and heading towards Bradley Woods themselves.  Once in Bradley we followed the perimeter path enjoying the spectacle of wood anemones, violets, stitchwort, bluebells and orchids carpeting the woodland floor.  

Stopping to photograph the wood anemones we then crossed the road and continued on the perimeter path around Dixon's wood, floristically just as spectacular.  I was highly delighted to come across a common male fern (Dryopteris felix-mas), having burst out of it's knuckle and the fronds beautifully unfurling.  This is one of my favourite wild life photography subjects - I just think that it so beautiful.  I am also fascinated by the knuckle of the fern, looking like a closed fist just before the fronds beginning to uncurl.  Interestingly I wrote down relatively few birds; I think with it being so windy bird song was not so noticeable.

All too soon it was time to leave the wood and head back across the fields and home for lunch.  All told we had walked 6 miles and were ready for a sit down.

• Great Tit
• Blue Tit
• Blackbird
• Chaffinch
• Wren
• Robin
• Crow
• Skylark

• Violet
• Greater Stitchwort
• Bluebell
• Wood Anemone
• Cow Parsley
• White and Red Dead Nettles
• Wild Arum or Lords and Ladies
• Starwort in the ditch after leaving Dixon's

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Bluebell

Bluebell

Early Purple Orchid

Early Purple Orchid

Early Purple Orchid

Early Purple Orchid

Wood Anemone

Wood Anemone

Male Fern

Heading towards Bradley Gairs

Bradley Gairs

Bradley Gairs

Bradley Gairs

Looking over rape to Bradley Woods

Bradley Woods

Bradley Woods

Dixon's Wood

Dixon's Wood

Dixon's Wood

Dixon's Wood

Dixon's Wood

Dixon's Wood

Dixon's Wood

Leaving Dixon's Wood

Leaving Dixon's Wood

Leaving Dixon's Wood

An Excellent Ride with Heather.

Still blowing a cold wind off the sea today, but it was cloudless ans sunny, so Heather and I had an early lunch and then, taking  hot cross buns and a flask of drinking chocolate we set off on our bikes.  We wanted to ride through Grainsby Park but not quite so far as the last ride where we rode to Wold Newton.  Instead from the roundabout on Ashby Hill we turned south on Barton Street, the A18.  Normally this ride is somewhat like a race track with motorists in a hurry 'cutting off the corner' to avoid Grimsby and get to the A16 Louth Road.  In this time of lockdown, however, it was much quieter enhance by the fact that the road is closed at Laceby.  So, we were able to cycle along without the polluting irritation of traffic and the risk to life and limb.  The view from the Wold Edge out over the coastal marsh to the Humber Estuary was wide and expansive, the clear air giving superb views.  Fields of oil-seed rape painted the country side with colour contasting strongly with the blue of the sky and green of newly emerging leaves.  In the far distance the wind farm in the North Sea beyond Spurn was clearly visible.

At the top of the hill down to Grainsby we turned off and sped down the swooping descent into the park where we stopped and had the second course of our lunch leaning against a fence basking in the sun.  Lunch over we retraced our steps for half a mile before turning off along the bridleway to Ashby-cum-Fenby.  We thoroughly enjoyed this mile or so of off-road riding, although if we do much more I shall need to deploy my mountain bike.  Imagine our delight however when we came across a ditch whose bank was thick with coswlips, violets and early purple orchids.  There must have been 200 individual orchid; they made a splendid sight.

On reaching the road again we rode through the village before turning back onto the road back home.  Altogether 16 miles.  Brilliant.
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Never More than a Mile Away From Home.

Although I walked 3.27 miles today I was never more than a mile away from home at Peake's Tunnel.  Despite being a grey, overcast, cold day, while I was out the clouds cleared for a while and the sun appeared, however, there was yet again a cold wind off the sea.  In fact the east coast is the coldest part of the country at the moment.  My daughter, in West Bridgeford, is relaxing in her garden in the hammock while we wear winter jackets.  I think for this reason there were very few butterflies about.  Later on, I still persevered with the moth trap, however, as it was forecast to stay reasonably warm (i.e. 8C rather than below zero); my count the next morning was a measly 2 individuals, although one, a shuttle-shaped dart was a new one for me.

Back to my Horsefield adventures, though, I had taken my birding lens with me and had high hopes of some bird photographs.  Initially I was disappointed but then I noticed when walkers disturbed linnets in the hedges and brambles they flew calling grumpily as is their wont out onto the field.  I found that by careful stalking I was able to get close enough for some photography and was pleased with the result.  In the same way I was able to capture images of the skylarks on the field.

Making my way home, I was delighted when a chiffchaff briefly showed itself well in the trees on the edge of the woodland burial ground.

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Dandelion

Ink Cap

White Dead Nettle

Skylark

Skylark

Linnet

Chiffchaff

Shuttle-shaped Dart

Shuttle-shaped Dart