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Saturday, 25 April 2026

Rather Warm Cold Edge Dams

Picked the wrong layers of clothing today. Just had enough stamina to do the walk from Wainstalls up to the ruined building and back.

Pr Lapwing ditto 🦪 catcher. Kestrel. 1each Pied Wagtail Reed Bunting & Stonechat. 5 Curlew, 6 Swallow.



5/6 WW ditto Chaffinch. 4 Blackbird. 5 Tufted Duck and the assortment of Geese.


Friday, 24 April 2026

Local Long Route Trek

A warm dry sunny session. Good to have a natter with BS en route.
2 Curlew, 6 Lapwing. 1 Greenfinch ditto Whitethroat.
5/6 Swallow few Chaffinch & Goldfinch. 1 Grey Partridge in flight,1 Skylark.

1 Grey Heron, 4 Greylag Geese pr Tufted Duck. 3 LBBG.
Singing Blackcap besides a couple Chiffchaff & WW.

1 Mistle Thrush. Green Woodpecker & 2 LBBG at last venue.

Wednesday, 22 April 2026

Ogden Water To Mixenden Res


A dry sunny but very breezy morning which brought some interesting spells at Ogden in particular.


3 Pink-footed Geese were present and looked settled 👍.




Also a pr of Tufted Duck which joined them briefly at one stage.

Quite a few WW, couple Blackcap & Chiffchaff.



It went downhill after that with just a Skylark by the golf course and a few Goldfinch plus a couple WW by the sheds.

I can’t even begin to think about Mixe…🥴.


Monday, 20 April 2026

Cold Edge Dams Trek

A morning that started off very much Spring like then after an hour deteriorated into cold windy misery - again!
7 Tufted Duck on Leadbeater Dam. In the field opposite were 3 Lapwing & a pair of Oystercatcher. 

6 WW 2 Skylark 3 Meadow Pipit & a few of the expected Geese. 4 Curlew heard.
A break in the boredom as I walked up to Cold Edge Road was provided by a noisy pair of Raven in flight and displaying 👍.

Ogden held 14 LBBG & a couple of Herring. 6/7 WW but nothing else. 
Nothing else on Mixenden Res is a phrase that does it too much justice 😢.

A Kestrel hovered over Windy Bank as I returned home.

Friday, 17 April 2026

Very Cold Dams Dammit

After a disastrous outing to Ogden and MixenDeadEnd yesterday I braved yet another Wintry day and traipsed around the dams area.
A bit livelier than Thursday I’m relieved to say 😏.

Pr Stonechat ditto Reed Bunting. A Red Grouse heard.
1 🦪 Oystercatcher. Usual Geese in small numbers.
Singing WW & 2 Chaffinch. A dozen Meadow Pipit & 1 Pied Wagtail. A Buzzard flying over the moor at distance.

I found another pr of amorous Toad. These didn’t make it across the track courtesy of a large set of vehicle wheels.

Wednesday, 15 April 2026

Soil Hell To Ogden Water

Why has somebody extended the height of the hill from Hades by another 600 feet 😵‍💫. My first forage down and up the N slope this year and I certainly knew about it.

Good to see some Perambulator has removed the bucket and heavy stones from the illegally blocked Perseverance Rd entrance 😀. Bad to see another suchlike left the wooden gate at the Quarry Top wide open 👎.
Had a brief chat with JL on the barren stony top before my descent into misery.

Pr Grey Partridge, 3 Curlew similar Skylark. Got about 5 notes 🎶 out of a Whitethroat at the hill bottom. 
4/5 WW in song throughout.

Ogden coughed up another short singer; a Blackcap.
Also a  Chiffchaff & a drumming GSW. 5 LBBG were on the H2O.

Monday, 13 April 2026

Cold Edge Dams To Mixenden

Via Ogden Water making it a long somewhat unrewarding trek 🙄. Cold Edge: 5 Tufted Duck, 1 Swallow, 6 Willow Warbler.
The Curlews had quietened down. 2 Lapwing 1 Oyster 🦪 catcher. 3 Reed Bunting & a few Meadow Pipit.


A single Skylark heard en route to Ogden which was ghastly apart from another 6 WW & a Chiffchaff singing.
A single drake Tufted Duck on the water.

MixenDeadEnd had nothing on the water at all. 
1 each singing Chiffchaff Green Woodpecker & Song Thrush.
Can’t wait for my freshly ordered Knitting Needles and Wool Pack to arrive 😏.