Lisa G Saw • March 5, 2023

Alpine Stream

I couldn’t ask for a better day – a cloudless azure sky, only a slight cool breeze caressing my skin and the sun shining down on this beautiful white wintery scene high up in the French Alps. I can feel the warmth of the sun on my face. The fresh mountain air fills my lungs and I smile. It’s so good to be here again.

 

The lake behind me is frozen and hidden beneath the snow that covers the whole valley floor. In contrast, the green fir trees stand out on the slopes around me, uncovered by the white stuff. Evidently, it hasn’t snowed a great deal recently and the sun has melted much of it away.

 

I’m sitting on a rock beside a stream and I can see the sun glistening on the water like diamonds sparkling brilliantly. The sound of the water is so relaxing as it gently moves down stream. I feel the calm wash over me, that lovely familiar feeling as I let all thoughts drift away and I remain fully present in the moment. Small clusters of foam bubbles swirl and dance on the surface as they navigate past a rock that lies in their way. Just to the left, below the surface, reddish coloured roots of something growing in the stream protrude outwards, gently moving slightly as the flow of water glides by. Beside me, the snow has melted from the riverside slightly, exposing flattened brown grass, revealing a fragment of the world that lies beneath the snow.

On the other side of the stream the snow meets the water and I notice a thin shelf of ice seemingly hovering over the edge, not quite dipping into the water. Young bare trees poke out of their temporary white blanket. I spot animal footprints trailing across the snow. My eyes follow their path up the mountain until they disappear.

 

I’m sitting quietly, sipping hot chocolate, so content I don’t want to leave. I let the seconds and minutes pass by in stillness, feeling relaxed and happy. I barely notice any of the other people walking around, also taking in the tranquil scene. There aren’t many. There’s so much space here.


Reluctantly, I leave, grateful for the opportunity to appreciate the beauty around me and to relax for a short while, breathing it all in.

Spring in Yorkshire - Other Wildlife

By Lisa G Saw • September 12, 2026
Our original plan for our trip up to Yorkshire, was to drive direct to Buckton, with rest breaks along the way. It wasn't until we were actually driving north on the A23 that Bob suddenly wondered about the possibility of detouring to Glapthorn Cow Pastures. It's a site in Northamptonshire that is known to be good for Black Hairstreaks - a rare butterfly species in the UK. As I was navigating, I had a quick look on my phone and saw that it would only had about 40 minutes to our journey. Since I'd never seen this butterfly species in its natural woodland habitat - the local colony in East Sussex is of questionable origin, and has most likely been introduced - I was eager to visit this new site. I like being spontaneous and I think Bob was surprised I agreed. In the end, it was the perfect place for us to stop and have lunch and enjoy some time in a beautiful quiet woodland. Of the few people there ahead of us, most were about to leave when we arrived. Bizarrely, I recognised one of them too from back home! It was quite easy to find the ride where the majority of Black Hairstreaks were nectaring. Since it wasn't sunny to begin with, it wasn't too tricky taking some photos as they weren't too flighty. I couldn't believe how many I was seeing. There were several flying around in one small area, and as we ambled up the ride we saw many more - about 30 in total. I saw more in that hour than I had in total prior to that occasion. For the majority of time it was just the two of us in this small stretch of the woodland. It was so peaceful. For the most part, only the sounds of the birds and bees could be heard. It was heavenly!

Spring in Yorkshire - Seabirds

By Lisa G Saw • August 31, 2026
At the end of May, when we had that first bout of warm spring weather, I headed up to Yorkshire with Bob for a week's holiday. We stayed in lovely self-catering accommodation in Buckton where I'd stayed before on a previous visit to the area, but in a deluxe static caravan instead of one of the cottages. The location was fabulous as it gave us wonderful access to the RSPB nature reserve, Bempton Cliffs. It was only a 30 minute walk to the coast, to the northern end of the nature reserve, or we could drive to the various access points not only at the visitor centre nearby, but further eastwards towards Flamborough Headland. Unfortunately, the good weather only lasted the first two days. Having said that, we were lucky the rest of the week because even though it was windy at times, cloudy mostly, and we had some wet spells, we managed to work around it. As always, we try not to let it affect us too much and we both had an excellent time away. Bob's back was still causing him some grief, having put it out a month prior, so we were careful not to spend too long out on walks, or avoid carrying too much equipment. It was actually lovely having a bit more chill time at the accommodation relaxing and reading. The seabirds were the main draw to the area, and there's a good number of them at Bempton Cliffs. They host over 200,000 breeding seabirds during peak season (March to October). Despite the crash in numbers last year due to bird flu, overall the colony seems to be doing well and bouncing back. It's one of the best places in the country to see Northern Gannets, as it is the largest mainland colony, with an estimated 11,000 to 15,000 breeding pairs.
Scarlet Darter

July 26

By Lisa G Saw • August 26, 2026
WILDLIFE HIGHLIGHTS It's been another mega month for wildlife sightings for me, with most of the focus being on dragonflies and damselflies. The summer is a great month for seeing these amazing insects, that dart and flit about erratically catching other smaller insects. Though mostly found by ditches, streams, ponds and lakes, they can also be found in woodland some distance from water sources, where some mature before returning to the place where they emerged. Whilst I still have much to learn about their life cycle, I'm enjoying seeing each of our UK species and learning to identify them. But, to start off this month, it was a butterfly we went in search of. Not just any butterfly, but the Queen of Spain Fritillary - a rare migrant usually found in Northern Africa and mainland Europe - and one I've never seen before. With the warmer summer we've experienced, there have been a few sightings of this gorgeous orange butterfly in the south of England. One of our friends, a fellow butterfly enthusiast, found one in Stoke Bottom, West Sussex. Sadly, when we visited the place, we didn't see any. However, it was a fabulous day out all the same and I was very happy to see not only a mating pair of Small Whites (photo) but also a mating pair of Large Whites too.
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