Peak District

So I went to the Peak District on Sunday, got the train to Edale from Sheffield and decided to have a bit of a wander before I start my camping excursions. Well I found the scenery absolutely gorgeous and can't wait to get all my gear together to spend a night or two there.

First I found this stream

Then I went through the village to the Nag's Head, the start of the Pennine Way

Followed the signpost to the Pennine Way

Then promptly got lost. Looking back over Edale

Found a quirky bench to sit and have a sandwich on

You'd think he'd never seen a hiker before...

There were plenty of little waterfalls along the way

Looking back along the path I'd walked

My camera really doesn't do the place justice though. 

Drystone wall

I finally found out where I'd been walking for the best part of four hours

Definitely going again soon, might have to make it a regular Sunday thing (the train fares are cheaper on Sunday for some reason lol). However, all this walking (6+ hours) didn't half hurt my thighs and shoulders for the following two days, I'm well out of practise. The weather was fine for most of the day, apart from three showers of hailstones, the third shower lasting a lot longer than the other two and resulting in me taking shelter in a telephone box

Not this phone box though, it was one in Upper Booth

Had to jog back in time to catch my train home or face a two-hour wait, oh look wonderful, it's started raining. Ah well only twenty minutes to wait for the train :-/

Pictures from Scotland

I went to Scotland in September last year with a BTCV holiday. I was just looking through the photos and thought I'd pop them up on here.

Where we stayed (mine's the blue tent!) a few miles far from Inverness

Little stream near the site we were working at

Some rhododendron I was about to chop down

Burning the rhododendron

Quirky little mushroom

And I couldn't resist taking some photos out of the window of the train on the way home...

Mountain

Pretty little scene

Bit of a forest...wish I lived here!

The scenery was so amazing...the plan is to eventually go wild camping in the Cairngorms, but I have to "practise" in the Peak District first! I wasn't the only one taking photos out of the train windows :-)

Close Encounters of the Bird Kind

I was out and about in the garden yesterday making a start on this year's gardening tasks. I finally got my pea netting up (God I hate that task, will have to keep it up this year to save me a job next spring). Planted onions, potatoes and some early carrots whilst being watched over by my cat

Bagheera checking my work

Made plans to have a mini-pond near my veg patch, and a little "Hedgehog Inn". I love my hedgies and put food down for them when they wake up in spring, which incidentally my cat also eats. Problem is the rain, I use a ceramic bowl for them at the moment and the food is bloody expensive so rather than fork out for a special ground feeding tray with the tiny holes in from my pet shop, I came up with the idea of using the rest of the wood from the dog kennel I destroyed as a roof over the bowl, whether or not this works I will have to let you know, pics to follow.

Wooo after all that thinking I have to sit down and have a rest, and as soon as I did "my" robin appeared, no doubt to guzzle up the bugs I've unearthed with all my digging.



Is it safe? Ah, I'll come a bit closer then





This is my best side, work it, work it!



Don't worry by this time Bagheera was safely in the house, and the rest of the birds seem to know too...



Long-tailed Tits



These long-tails are not too timid, getting quite close at times which is nice for me, but not so nice for them if Bagheera manages to catch one! I get the usual collection of birds in my garden: blue, great and coal tits, chaffinch, goldfinch and the occasional greenfinch. Oh, and I can't forget the blackbirds, magpies and house sparrows. Not many birds but a nice variety to watch flitting round the feeders.

Right, back on with the gardening. Pull up a cabbage for mum's dinner tomorrow...

Won't win any prizes but it was my first time growing them, and mum says it was delicious, compliments are always welcome lol. Also dug over two of my three patches...

Then Bagheera heard about the long-tails visit and decide to come and see them for himself. Luckily they were long gone since then.









Old Moor RSPB

I visited Old Moor a good few months ago, and just never got round to putting the photos on here for some reason. Located between Barnsley and Wath, this is a nice place and definitely on my list for this year along with the Peak District and Potteric Carr. Here's a few photos from the day out. I went in July but it was quite a muggy day; still, really enjoyed it :-)

One of the many ponds.

A shockingly bad photo of Little Egret spotted from one of the hides. Quite a number of these around on the day.

Some of the artwork around the reserve.

Something for the kids too. Old Moor's playground.

I also saw a kingfisher (yay!) but just as I loaded the camera ready it flew off. Would have been an amazing click. Loads of lapwing and waders about, also saw my first oystercatchers (I know, I don't get out often). All in all a lovely day, next time I'll take sandwiches and make a picnic day of it.

Through the woods

I did drag my fiance out the other day, just haven't put the pictures up here yet. We didn't find anything special, though we did hear a green woodpecker who refused to show his face. Heard the usual pheasants and song birds. Here are a few pictures of the woods:

Still looking very bare and scraggy after the hard winter we've had,

We did make a few friends though. Out in a field on Breck's Lane, after you find your way out of the woods, are a few horses. Well, I love horses, and the fact that one was a foal just made me all the more eager to stroke them:

Garden Visitors

Haven't been out and about much since I lost my dog :-( But the wildlife has been coming to me. Here are a few of the recent visitors to my garden:

He really wants those peanuts! Might have to invest in a squirrel feeder.

Sorry about the poor-quality photos. They were taken through my bedroom window.

Will definitely have to go to the woods tomorrow, if the weather is good. I'll drag my fiance and his camera with me so we might have a few decent photos between us :-)