Covid Capers at Carsington

Carsington 

October 8th 2020

As the grey clouds and rain cleared six intrepid babes and two very excited dogs followed  Jo’s instructions and gathered at the Sheepwash Car Park, social distancing was very carefully observed. Unfortunately Lynn and Helen J weren’t able to make it but at least that meant that we didn’t have the problem of walking in relay teams to keep to the rule of six.

Betty and Bob were very disappointed that Eddie wasn’t able to join us but then he is only a pupppy and might not have been able to keep up so perhaps he will make it next time.

We made the decision to set off walking and see how far we got, there was much to catch up on as we hadn’t managed to meet for some time, no foreign travel tales to tell but lots of explorations of various corners of our own fair island to share.

No one felt important enough to occupy the big chair or was it just that they weren’t certain how recently it had been sanitised!

The pace setters seemed determined that Betty and Bob shouldn’t always have pole position and of course humans don’t have to stop and sniff stuff and leave their scent at regular intervals.

A stop for elevenses was a good opportunity to remove layers and bobble hats as things had warmed up considerably. This was the point of no return and we had to make the decision whether to turn round or complete the circuit, feeling full of beans we voted to carry on.

Bob seems to be taking social distancing extremely seriously - he could certainly teach Betty a few lessons!

Spot the birds - we had to keep reminding ourselves that we had been set the task of a good haul of birds for our bird list - if only some of us could be bothered to get our binoculars out of our backpacks! At least some of our feathered friends are easy to spot with the naked eye, although perhaps Julia needs to make a return to Specsavers after she posed the question ‘are those people or birds?’ 

We were also careful to follow the advice of a friendly twitcher and watch out for migrants - hopefully he was referring to the feathers types.

Thankfully we had Maggie’s flask to help us identify any birds that we were unsure about. Although Jo took cheating to another level and shamelessly chatted up all the birders that she came across.

After almost losing Pam at the visitor’s centre we made it back to our starting point for a late lunch, much to the relief of Alison who is a firm believer that lunch should be eaten at midday.

 Maggie was a little worried that she might have to jog to make her rendezvous with Chris but we all stepped out and we’re back in good time but no sign of a white Skoda!

Please can I have a bit of your sandwich.... hard to resist that face!

Here is our bird list for the day:

Mallard

Canada geese 

Greylag geese

Great crested grebe

Tufted duck

Robin

Magpie

Coot

Moorhen

Pochard

Black headed gull

Black swan

Cormorant

Jackdaw

Bluetit

Little egret

Common gull

Lesser black backed gull

Mute swan

Siskin

Pied wagtail

Chiffchaff

Black cap

Bird of the day is the black swan.

A lovely day was had by all and really good to be able to catch up with everyone. (Hopefully  Maggie isn’t still waiting for her lift home!)

Wettish Wirksworth Wanderings

We've Mist Each Other

8th July 2020

The rules and weather kept changing, so a last minute decision was made by Pam, leader of the pack for today.  Helen J and Jo met at Pam's for a quickish tour of their lockdown garden which has produced enough space for a new shed and a chance for Pam to try out willow basket making in the winter months. Setting off down the path, a cheery chap waved us off.

Wonder if he would like his beard fettled too? 

Pam chose the direct path up the hill, through fields of meadow brown butterflies until we could hear Julia, Maggie and Alison who had been instructed to meet us by an old landslide in Little Bolehill by a very pretty cottage. 

It was a bit difficult to tell who had recently been to the hairdressers as three were wearing hats, but it can be revealed, although she didn't, that Julia is sporting the latest trend, 

the bobble hat hair cut! 

To help unload the weight from our rucksacks, a few birthday presents were exchanged.  Some of us were not entirely sure it helped keep the weight off our backs but in one of the presents, this fact might have been helpful a few months ago:

Leading the way with her trusty stick (well at this stage it was), Pam led us up the lane towards some bucolic (not bubonic) views

Socially distanced sheep

I love to kick ass!

At this point, we had all been very good about keeping 2m apart but as we hadn't received the wisdom from the other Dales, we sometimes found it a bit of a challenge

Can't do it, 'cos we haven't got 9 red squirrels to show us how

So, we did our best until we were distracted by a rather lovely wildflower bombed verge which tested our knowledge and Helen J's latest plant app.  However, it can now be revealed that we saw a lot of red poppies, pink corncockle and a family member of the Brassicaceae....

probably a white honesty... so the app says!, not the phlox, pox or stocks.

A difficult decision was then needed.  Whether to continue up to Alport Heights-in-the-mist or have lunch.

Decision made.  It's that way.

Through yet another narrow gap without touching anything!

Each with our own lunch and a log or wall perfect for resting our flasks, we discussed the challenges of shopping safely, sourcing plastic-free goods but safe in the knowledge that our current clothes will come back in fashion at some point.

However, Jo, is still a little hazy about rules for taking a group photograph during a pandemic. So here they are:  Do not ask for someone else's camera. Do not ask the farmer to take a photo. But she gets there in the end.

This is not a selfie, this is a pile of logs

This is a selfie with a different pile of logs.

This is a group photo without Jo but on Jo's phone!

We spent so much time laughing that we decided to give Alport Heights a miss and set off down yet another very muddy path..  Fleet-of-foot Alison shows us how to get downhill and stay dry whilst three of us end up with soggy bottoms, but only one of us landed on one...

a graceful recovery, but not sure about the trusty stick now.

Jo demonstrates another way to avoid having soggy bottoms.  Just tuck your trews into your socks!

Fungi supper... again!

A familiar view comes into play as we zig-zag down the cattle-trodden fields to the relative safety of a narrow lane. 

Where it all began...

Then the delights of Gorsey Bank, a complete discovery for some of us!

A conversion into one house!

A place to converse, or even, convert.

And finally, we are on the flat checking up on whether are any signs of life beyond the fence. Pam looks wistful and misses Julia's impersonation of a bear.

Grr... no Pam, you don't need to help out anymore!

At this point we get a full update on the state of Alison's thumb. Whilst it is a lovely shade of goth black it will hopefully be sorted  by the time she gets to ski next year. The rest of us are not thinking of travelling quite so far and mobile units are back on the agenda, or perhaps we should let the train take the strain. 

Ooh... look where this train is going! 

And whilst we are on the topic of Wales...

Wet here too!

And through Jane's window

Another lovely  garden.

Meanwhile over in Staffs.  Not entirely sure who this little flower was, the app was applied and it turns out she is not recognisable at all.  She's bloomin' lovely though and what

a lovely set of cushions!

Up North, in the other Dales, where the weather looked a bit kinder.

Guess which one has had her locks lopped!

And in another type of Dale...

Dry indoors having a lovely grandma kind of day.

Awww...

26 birds for the day (Wirksworth take note!)  Thank goodness we didn’t specify which Dales the birds needed to be from.  Well done Helen M… you are bird of the day

blackbirds (2)

blue tit

canada geese

chaffinch

chicken

chiffchaff

coal tit

crow (2)

curlew

goldfinch (2)

great tit

greenfinch

house martin

longtailed tit

magpie

mallards

mistle thrush

nuthatch

oystercatcher

pied wagtail

red kites

robin

song thrush

swallows (2)

swifts

wren (2)

Two's Company

Bubble Couples and Mystery Guests

10th -ish June 2020

The oak tree: a symbol of strength, morale, resistance and knowledge . 

 All things we have coped with over the last few weeks. 

At the time of organising the June activity, there was still some uncertainty about what we were allowed to do and what really met the scientific evidence.  Three choices were given: stay at home but dress up, meet a friend or go to Durham for an eye test.  Whilst there was some temptation for a day trip to Durham, being who we are, we settled to meet a friend.  Pairs were decided by nearest  distance and each pair had to sort their own day and weather out, see birds and provide bits for the  blog.  This is what happened exactly as was sent to me, honest!😉

 Maggie has grown very long arms enabling a socially distanced selfie, whilst

Alison gives the thumbs up!

Carsington Reservoir, the scene of many a previous GB get together had very kindly decided to partially open just in time for these two (and I am told a mystery guest).  They walked anti-clockwise from Sheep Wash, dropping below the dam wall through the woods as an extension to the circuit. 

Keeping two metres apart at all times, whilst stopping for drinks and snacks they caught up on a lot of news and collected litter along the way.  

Alison is still giving the thumbs up!

And the reason for that is because over the last three days, as a result of an act of extreme stupidity, Alison decided it would be fun to close the car door whilst her thumb was still in the lock.  However,  the upside of attending hospital appointments during a pandemic is there is no waiting!

Three and a half hours later.  Have they run out of things to talk about? 

And who is the mystery guest?

Meanwhile,  the Helens,  not sure if they would recognise each other after such a long time, played safe and met at the newly opened Mitchell garden where it was all too much for Betty in much need of several mad hugs! After a lot of laughter, particularly about their social life (or lack of it) they set off to Stanley Common.  Along the way, Helen gave Helen a private tutorial about plant identification

Buttercup meadow with grassy bits.

As leaves were getting in the way, Helen also showed Helen how her new bird app works.  It managed a blackbird and wren combination!

Betty having a quiet moment pre-squirrel siting.

Squirrel spotting, but keeping quiet about it! 

Avoiding golfers, they headed into the woods marvelling at the powerful smell of pine trees, spotted mostly squirrels, some birds and an unidentified flying red thingy (need an insect app now). Then headed back to an outdoor bistro for some lovely soup and sarnies.... each lovingly created by their respective halves.  Helen took her litter home. Mike popped the bowls in the dishwasher. 

The table is two metres wide ... the Helens are really quite tall!

After checking out each other's homemade masks, Helen was treated to a private viewing of a couple of art masterpieces: a beautiful photo of some giraffes and a penguin jigsaw puzzle; the closest they will get to any world wildlife for some time.  In preparation for a camping staycation, Helen is sorted:  she has a pop-up toilet tent and will be able to take a shower from a bucket. Bet no one else talked about that! 

They soaked up the sun (it is a matter of timing!)  and after a tour of a very flowery garden and pond complete with new water snail, they planned our next trip, curtsied and waved. 

Meanwhile, later in the week, after much careful planning, Lynn and Jo met at Black Rocks for a walk along the track towards Middleton incline.

Sniffing beats hugs any day! 

The walk started with some stunning views of wild flowers and a very loud song thrush, and just in case she couldn't be heard the first time, she repeated the phrases. Then another mystery guest appeared in the form of Sharen Thorpe, now a grandmother four times over.  

Lynn and Jo continued their walk and thoroughly enjoyed reminiscing about industrial sites, quarries and megalithic stones. Their next few holidays are now sorted: Rotherham, Sheffield and a field in the middle of Brittany. Clearly exhausted by all the chatter, and looming rain, they were inclined not to go up, but turned down a track where Tali and Bob found an empty crisp packet to share. Obviously, they took their litter home.

Either Tali has shrunk or the spiders are taking back control!

Why these two did not take a photo of each other is a mystery but they obviously had fun trying to take a selfie.  

We're ok Jo, it only took 14 minutes, we have 60 seconds spare but I have touched Bob's lead!

Meanwhile, across the borders, and keeping a very respectful distance from each other (138 miles-ish) a very well co-ordinated collaboration was taking place

C: I've done more washing up than you!

J: And I told you to wear yellow marigolds! 

And the one we have all been waiting for!  An exciting new venture.  A video! It is wonderful but may not work on this blog, so you will have to 

guess who! (it will be shared on WhatsApp if the published video doesn't work)

Not content with sending a video, a Powerpoint with several slides was also sent. Here are a few of them.  

Wonderful view from wherever your imagination takes you!

Ahh... ...pointing out where they might be!

But, has Julia gone to Paris ?

or maybe to Brittany with Jo?

No....she's with Pam and they've been shopping for Breton tops!

Of course, we knew who it was really and where they went. Alport Heights, a good choice in normal conditions but at least the mist and clouds lifted to reveal the sun.  There was lots of chat  around the joys and woes of lockdown and the importance of mealtimes (or just eating and drinking!)🤣.  They also claimed to have seen birds in the mist but were not sure if they were seeing a gull or a buzzard.

However, all the other birds seen do get on the blog and in a reverse of previous lockdown lists, if there is a number beside the listed bird it is because other birders saw these as well as Maggie and Alison and our mystery guest... well done, Carsington did you proud. 

43 is probably the highest number on a single day! 

Barnacle goose

Blackbird(3)

Black headed gull (2)

Blue Tit (2)

Bullfinch

Buzzard

Canada Goose

Carrion crow (2)

Chaffinch

Chiffchaff (2)

Coal Tit

Coot

Cormorant

Curlew

Dunnock(2)

Goldfinch

Great Crested grebe

Great Tit (20

Greylag

House Martin

Jackdaw(3)

Lapwing

Linnet

Little grebe

Long tailed Tit

Magpie (2)

Mallard

Mute swan

Nuthatch

Oystercatcher

Pied Wagtail

Redshank

Robin(3)

Song thrush (2)

Starling

Swallow

Swift (2)

Teal

Tree sparrow

Tufted duck

Willow Tit

Wood pigeon(3)

Wren (3)

And finally, the mystery guest is revealed.  Well, her name is in the title...

Bet you thought I was someone else!