An update of last weeks activities. Several of the photos were taken in poor light, so I have kept the image size small to compensate for poor quality.
On Tuesday 30th there was a large gathering of Poole birders in the Blue Boar. Mark Constantine had invited his Sound Approach colleagues over from Ireland, Netherlands and Portugal to meet legendary American bird sound expert Don Kroodsma. All together there were 20 of us and we had a excellent time exchanging news and views. Apparently the Sound Approach spent several days with Don. Mark later described the experience of having all his pet theories about bird vocalisations dismissed by an expert as being like the following Monty Python sketch – where Mark, of course, is the guy on the right!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xCwLirQS2-o
On Friday we joined Amber, Kara and her friend Lillie, John, Anita and two of their friends to see a band called the Producers who were playing near Bournemouth Pier
Kara and Lillie went for a paddle in spite the fact it was getting dark and was quite cool
The Bournemouth Eye is still operating even after dark.
The area was packed with holiday makers, either watching the band or waiting for the fireworks to start
Scary rides were in operation ….
It looks like the ride has really speeded up but in reality I just used a slower shutter speed.
The fireworks started at ten but it started raining heavily, so we retreated to the bar of the BIC which gave a grandstand view in the dry.
Both Bournemouth and Poole put on firework displays during the summer months, the ones at Bournemouth are set off at the Pier.
Walking back through Bournemouth Gardens at night
Kara and Lillie love hamming it up for the camera. Kara has damaged her hand whilst doing Taekwondo, its the fifth time this year she has been to A&E, she needs a frequent flyer pass!
We didn’t realise until Monday evening when we visited Janis and the girls that Kara’s friend Lillie is a champion dancer in her age class. Here she is in competition, dancing the paso doble
.. and here dancing the rumba
At 0530 Saturday morning I went down to Lytchett Bay to join the other ringers. Bob and Shaun had put up the nets the night before and furled them after dark. I was surprised to see no-one else there. Then I checked my phone – I had a message saying ‘canceled, meet later to take down’. Apparently at 0400 it was blowing a gale and raining. As it was now fine we hastily reconvened and had a successful morning. If I had checked my phone before departing, none of that would have happened.
Here Bob is using the group’s brush cutter to prepare a new net ride.
Later in the day Margaret invited a number of friends over for lunch and we were later joined by Janis, Anita and John. We spent the afternoon chatting in the conservatory and eating the lovely food she had prepared.
Clockwise: Margaret, Angela, Christine, Jennie, John, Anita and Janis.
Sunday morning was the reverse of Saturday. I was up at 0430 and by 0500 I was at the end of our road waiting for a lift from Shaun to Durlston when he phoned to say he had heard it was blowing a hoolie in Swanage. I suppose I should have carried on and gone seawatching at Portland or Durlston, but I’m afraid I went back to bed. Margaret and I later joined some of our friends from the Phoenix (formerly Nexus) group for a walk.
It was a small group of Nexuns who set off from Ulwell to Corfe Castle on a fairly grey and windy morning.
The walk was from Ulwell gap along the chalk ridge to Durlston where we had lunch and then back. about seven miles in total. There is a fine view over Poole Harbour from the ridge.
Corfe Castle is photogenic from just about every angle, we are crossing the tracks of the steam railway on our way to the Castle Inn for refreshments.
.. and here Corfe Castle can be seen from just outside the village, emerging from the fields of barley.
On the home stretch: Margaret descending the path back to Ulwel. Swanage is in the distance.
Our feet and knees aren’t what they used to be, after seven miles we wished we could get a lift, like Felicity’s little dog does.
On the morning of the Tuesday 6th Shaun and I went ringing again at Lytchett Bay. It was very misty at dawn and the reeds were soaking wet as yesterday’s rain combined with a cool night had led to a heavy dew. we ringed 26 birds, all but one Sedge Warblers. There was quite an arrival of birds on the coast so we might have done better by going to Durlston.
Misty dawn at Lytchett.
A spider’s web covered in dew.
On a serious note the 6th was the 9th anniversary of my first wife Janet’s death. Whilst is true that time is a great healer, I will always mark the anniversary in solemn contemplation of a life so tragically cut short. Incidentally I don’t have many digital images of Janet as I first started using a digital camera a short while before her passing. I have many slides of course, but scanned slides don’t look so good.
Janet in Hawaii in 2003
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