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Lisa G Saw • Feb 19, 2023

Last Light Along The River

We’d enjoyed a lovely late afternoon stroll along the River Ouse on a fairly sunny warm winter’s day. We’d been busy chatting, but all the while keeping an eye open for Short Eared Owls flying about. Sadly, it wasn’t to be today. On the return leg, we were more hopeful to see a Barn Owl. It seemed more likely as the day was drawing to a close and the sun was lowering ever closer towards the hills of the South Downs. Soon it would disappear from sight altogether, taking with it the gorgeous golden glow that illuminated the tops of the tall reeds and bathed the bare wintry trees. It’s such a beautiful time of day. It was so lovely having the opportunity to notice everything around us.

 

We dropped down off the bank onto lower ground and stopped talking, standing still for a while. Our eyes constantly surveyed all around us, ever hopeful Barnie would appear. Occasionally, the binoculars were lifted to see into the distance further, but still it was being elusive.

 

The sounds of human life were a distant hum, but ever present. I saw a bird fly down into the reeds to roost, just in front of me. I noticed the absence of twittering birds as the light was dimming and darkness was descending. Instead, I could hear the wind in my ear when I turned my head slightly. I pulled down my hat some more. The cold was starting to creep in, despite my layers. But the stillness, the calm, the peace, it kept me there for longer, enjoying the moment.

 

High in the sky, the entrails of a plane long gone to some far-off place, were breaking up into puffy fragments, still aglow from the last light – a beautiful soft pink set against an otherwise cloudless darkening blue sky. I like to capture these abstract moments. It’s the simple things that can please so much. It didn’t really bother me that much that we didn’t see the owls. There’d be plenty more opportunities ahead. You can’t be lucky every time. If wildlife watching were easy, the rewards would probably not seem so worthwhile. There was plenty to be happy about. We walked the last stretch of the riverbank holding hands, having enjoyed a wonderful afternoon together. These are the moments to treasure.

Autumn Tour of Scotland - Part 2

By Lisa G Saw • 14 Jan, 2024
During the first half of our autumn holiday up in Scotland, we'd filled our boots with sightings of deer. Now our focus switched primarily to Mountain Hares and Ptarmigan. Since both species live at high altitudes, it meant a lot of walking uphill! It would be hard work! But, I felt confident I'd be able to manage it, so long as I simply took it slow and steady with frequent stops. At least we were able to intersperse these challenging days with more relaxing ones. On our first day based in Boat of Garten, we decided to venture up the Cairn Gorm Mountain. The mountain railway was closed, as were the ski lifts, so there was no easy access to higher ground. But, since the car park was located at 635m, we were able to start our walk from a reasonably high point. I was thrilled the top of the mountains were covered in snow. It looked so beautiful, though of course, this meant we'd be walking through the white stuff and would undoubtedly get quite wet. We chose to follow the steep Windy Ridge path up to the Ptarmigan restaurant - the highest in the UK. It was given its name due to the high number of this species on the mountain, which was perhaps a good sign. So, I set off with optimism and very happy that it was a glorious sunny start to the day.
Red Deer stag in the mountains

Autumn Tour of Scotland - Part 1

By Lisa G Saw • 29 Dec, 2023
I love visiting Scotland, seeking out new places as well as returning to favoured locations. Even though I've been several times over the last few years, I've never been up there during the autumn, around the time of the deer rut. I was thrilled to finally have the opportunity this year, even though I knew the chances of actually seeing any activity were extremely slim. As much as I wanted to see the Red Deer up in the Highlands, there were actually two other species that were higher on my 'Want To See' list for the trip - Mountain Hares and Ptarmigan. I've been lucky enough to see them before, but was eager for more wonderful experiences. I knew they'd still be just as potentially challenging to locate and photograph, with declining numbers even in favoured locations. It would certainly make the trip more of an adventure. The fact I wasn't going alone this time, but instead sharing the experience with Bob - on our first holiday together - made it even more special. I really hoped we would get lucky with our target species, especially as Bob had only seen one Mountain Hare before and never laid eyes on a Ptarmigan.
Marsh Fritillary

A Day Trip To Wiltshire

By Lisa G Saw • 10 Sep, 2023
April 2023 marked the end of my quest to see all the butterflies that live their complete life cycle in Sussex. The final species I saw, during the Easter weekend, was the Large Tortoiseshell. Following the exciting conclusion to my adventure, I wrote a post about Discovering the Butterflies of Sussex . In it I mentioned how chuffed I was with what I'd achieved and how I didn't really want to start the next obvious quest straight away, to see all the UK butterfly species. But, with the spring and summer months stretching out before me, it seemed silly not to make a start this year. Bob and I were still in the early stages of our budding romance, and the idea of spending a lovely long day out together was just too enticing to pass up. So, in late May, we headed over to Martin Down National Nature Reserve in Wiltshire, in the hope of seeing the Marsh Fritillary. It would be my first, but not for Bob. He's already seen all the UK butterfly species, except for the Cryptic Wood White, which is only found in Ireland. We woke super early and reached the nature reserve by 8am. Unsurprisingly, we were the first ones there. It was still quite cool and a little windy, but nice enough to enjoy our breakfast sitting on a bench by the car park, overlooking the wildflower meadow and the hills just beyond to the south. We heard a Cuckoo calling nearby - an unmistakable sound of spring. Lovely! It was a great start to the day.
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