Wednesday, 10 April 2013

Chew Valley Lake and Blagdon Lake

I had a morning free last Saturday so I drove the 40 or so minutes over to Chew Valley Lake to see if I could see the Ospreys that had been report from there and Blagdon Lake over the previous several days. I also took my new camera hoping for some Osprey fishing action (optimistic is my middle name) (-:  As it turned out, having tried both Lakes, I didn't see any Osprey at all. I did take a few photos of more obliging birds though.  At Chew Valley Lake this Great Crested Grebe was fishing reasonably close to shore. Click on any of the photos to enlarge.
A Coot was even closer. I love the disruption to the reflected reeds making a beautiful pattern.
A smart looking male Tufted Duck showing off that lovely purple sheen on the head and his quiff!
Blagdon Lake is just 15 minutes drive from Chew Valley Lake (shorter as the Osprey flies I'm sure, not that I'm bitter)! (-: Although no Osprey turned up, I was very pleased to see my first Common Sandpiper of the year feeding along the edge of the dam end of the Lake. 
On the way home, I stopped off at Edford Woods to see if the wild Daffodils were out. I'll post about that next time.
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7 comments:

Roy Norris said...

Super shots of the Sandpiper Jen.

10 April 2013 at 23:47
Anonymous said...

Lovely collection of photos Jenny, though that second Great Crested Grebe is very nice indeed :-) Shame you missed the Osprey :-(

11 April 2013 at 09:43
Jenny said...

Hi Roy, for a long time the Sandpiper stayed in the shade, but eventually made its way into the sunshine. Patience does work out sometimes doesn't it!

Hi David, I guess if I missed seeing Osprey this spring, I'll have another chance down on the Somerset Levels in the autumn. They're usually quite regular there! HOpe so anyway! (-:

11 April 2013 at 12:29
Pix Under the Oaks said...

As I started to type this I heard one of our wild turkeys gobble in the yard.. :) We watched an Osprey nest when we lived in Northern Virginia on the Potomac River. It was a wonderful experience.

11 April 2013 at 13:44
Mary said...

I love that grebe! Nice to see the sandpiper, too. I may have missed when the waders migrate through here.

11 April 2013 at 22:38
ShySongbird said...

It was a shame you didn't see the Ospreys Jenny but it sounded like you had an enjoyable time anyway. A lovely collection of photos and yes, they do look particularly nice when enlarged.

I am already turning a delicate shade of green in anticipation of the wild daffodils. Sadly, there are not too many places to see the truly wild ones any more.

11 April 2013 at 23:13
Jenny said...

Hi Pix, I'd love to be able to watch them on the nest. I think the nearest ones nesting to me are somewhere in Wales which is still a long way for a day trip.

Hi Mary, I'd have thought you should still be getting waders (shorebirds) on passage over there. HOpe so.

Hi Jan, I did have a good time. That's the joy of birding, it's always unpredictable! (-:

13 April 2013 at 21:37

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