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...and all that. I spend a considerable amount of time walking through woodland, luckily this is not difficult in most parts of New England as we're blessed with easily accessible forestry even in the more densely populated areas. Had many a brush / glimpse of wildlife over the years and today was another, though rather unusual occasion. Crawling down the expressway in the supreme command vehicle, we'd just crossed the Boston / Milton boundary line (which is a river) and were passing through the heavily reeded tributaries that abound around there when I noticed a strange object approaching my truck. Can't usually focus on anything but the road when driving, but this time the slow progress of traffic and path of the oncoming bird gave me a super clear view of a Peregrine Falcon carrying a fish half it's size clasped between its talons. Apologies for boring the non 'outdoorsy' types.
Lovely thread, enjoyed all your posts so far. Living in central London the visible wildlife is limited, but foxes seem to be everywhere now. A few weeks ago I was having dinner at a friend's place in Kensal Rise, with the dining room door open to the garden. Halfway through a vixen trotted in, bold as brass, came right up to the table, had a good sniff round and trotted off.
We used to have a flock of siskin visit every year to bathe in the shallow pool that would collect on the derelict building behind our house. It felt like a privilege to see them, but then they knocked the building down and that was the last I saw of them. Of course magpies, pigeons, seagulls and those pesky parakeets abound. Crows, blackbirds and thrushes are just about hanging in there.
But I spend a lot of time in Cornwall which is rich in wildlife, particularly by the coast. It's glorious to swim while a flock of young pied wagtails race past, a pair of curlews calling as they skim the waves, or seals bobbing in the surf. Jackdaws, stonechats and even choughs call from the cliffs and, of course, the many varieties of gull, screaming during breeding season and dive-bombing you if you're not careful. There are egrets established now, having arrived from France about 20 years ago, and the magnificent kites that circle the skies all over Oxfordshire have made it down there too.
But of all the wonderful things I've seen in our glorious British countryside over the years, my favourite is the vivid black and orange fire salamander that we saw weaving through the long grass beside Redmires reservoir near Sheffield in May this year. They're not supposed to inhabit this country, but there was no mistaking it.
Think I have been very fortunate in my travels around the globe, see loads of beasties and birds in Australia that you would only normally see behind bars or in cages, had some close encounters when 'bush walking' but getting up close too so many especially when walking in the NSW national park was both brilliant as well as scary at times.
St Lucia watching the hummingbirds within a few feet feeding from the flowers something else as well while having breakfast from the veranda of the villa was staying at.
Also swimming amongst a group of turtles off a beach that was relatively devoid of folk.
And the one that will never forget was when in Cronulla, lovely beach, and I wondered why a helicopter was flying in small circles just off the beach, thought Isee this big dark shape in the water only a few yards away, the lifeguards on the beach yelling at everyone to get out the water, was a bloody massive shark, reckon I would have qualified for the Olympic swimming team the speed I covered getting back to the beach.
Lake Louise is a spectacular place. There's another lake further up the mountain and a stunning waterfall. I did a trek around Canada's national parks through the Rockies 22 years ago. I'd love to go back there and take my wife and kids. It's obviously bear country and we camped out every night at various places. Banff,Jasper to name a couple of places. Saw a bear on the other side of a lake about 60 yards away, some cubs in a tree near the roadside while we were driving but the closest was when we had a visit on our camp site while we were in our tents. All our bags had to be roped up to tops of trees to stop the bears rummaging for food. Saw loads of chipmunks, elk and also saw the northern lights one night. Fabulous place Canada. If I could move to another country it would be there.
Lake Louise is beautiful but I did find it a bit crowded around the lake and on the main trails, if we did it again I'd only do a day trip from Banff on the roam buses. Although this may be because some of the trails are shut or not recommended at the moment.
You're a braver man than me to camp out here, I'd be too scared of getting attacked by a bear while I sleep but can imagine that it's a great experience to stay out under the stars and wake up each day in nature. We had originally planned to come out here in 2020 and go to Jasper and finish in Vancouver but when we rebooked it this year we didn't have a big enough window to do that but it's a great excuse to come back again soon.
Lake Louise is beautiful but I did find it a bit crowded around the lake and on the main trails, if we did it again I'd only do a day trip from Banff on the roam buses. Although this may be because some of the trails are shut or not recommended at the moment.
You're a braver man than me to camp out here, I'd be too scared of getting attacked by a bear while I sleep but can imagine that it's a great experience to stay out under the stars and wake up each day in nature. We had originally planned to come out here in 2020 and go to Jasper and finish in Vancouver but when we rebooked it this year we didn't have a big enough window to do that but it's a great excuse to come back again soon.
Its a popular tourist spot but wasnt too crowded when we went. Maybe your right about the other trails shut having an effect.
Yeh i didnt give it much thought sleeping out in tents in bear country when i was 24 but not sure i could do that same trail now. It was pretty heavy going looking back, plenty of mozzy bites and camping for nearly 3 weeks but it was an absolute blast . The trip changed my life around actually.
They're quite rare these days and I haven't seen one for ages. I know you're from the Bracknell area, there is a small children's play area on the Forest Park side of Martin's Heron railway station and on the path between that and the sewage works - yes, I know, very glamorous - someone has created some habitat designed for stag beetles, using lots of deadwood including some old logs part buried in the ground. They like that sort of thing, apparently.
PS: Thanks for the curry recommendation, Shahidas do a brilliant takeaway mmm curry
I know the area well where you're talking about. Funnily enough its probably the last time i saw a flying stag beetle was when i lived over that way by the stream. Thats well over 10 years now!
The organic smallholding we've got in the Cambrian Mountains is turning into a right old wildlife sanctuary,Red Kites,Kestrels,Ospreys,Curlews.,Pine Martens,Herons,water rats...a semi tame pheasant called Albert with his concubines - can't half shift when the mood takes him,scuttles along like the Roadrunner.Ducks aplenty and there's even a Otter who visits the pond occasionally,named Harry of course.We had an exquisite little fox cub who used to come and tap on the window for food before the neighbouring bastard farmer shot it.Since then it's been a home for any species that wants to stay and they get royally treated and fed - experts say Red Kites don't like bread,but they do y'know. .We're expecting Golden Eagles in the area soon as we're exporting our surplus of Red Kites to Spain.Kites were commonplace in London at the time of Pepys and John Evelyn,wonderful creatures. The rarest beast I've seen around here(Pontrhydygroes) probably Bill Oddie.
In Libya there were countless scorpions (yellow) to be seen, we also saw the biggest ticks in the world on camels (the size of your hand) various lizards but worst of all were apparently deadly sand vipers and flying beetles that were enormous. Whilst in Arizona visiting an ancient Indian burial ground the guy in the museum told me to look out for the golden eagle and also find a long stick and from a distance turn over a large stone and you'll more than likely find a rattle snake, got to be honest I saw the eagle but only from a distance, I gave the rattle snake operation a swerve. When In Western Australia I went with me sister to her friends, they run a kangaroo sanctuary--the bloke took me into where they bring the sick or run over roos back to health which is in a large caged off area, It was fascinating for about ten minutes until the bloke said suddenly we gotta get out quick which we did, once outside he explained that he'd seen two king brown snakes not far away from us, the previous week their dog was bitten by one and promptly died. If you wan't insects flying or crawling then jesus wept try Bangladesh, they are there morning noon and night absolutely huge multi legged things climbing up the wall, It gets even worse when the monsoon starts. Back home It's been many a year since I've heard a woodpecker, where we lived in a village in West Bershire you could hear them most evenings in the water meadow down by the river that went through the village, you'd often see moor hens on the wing chasing red kites. We planted two large trees when we moved to our new house (magnolia and silver birch) and a few smaller ones as there was no bird life at all, but after nearly two years we've got a regular robin visitor and a host of other bird visitors, we've got two bird boxes and an Insect house that is regularily used and a hedgehog tunnel and a whole host of flowers and veg growing.
[Post edited 28 Jun 2022 20:26]
My Father had a profound influence on me, he was a lunatic.
It’s those surprise moments that really get me. Something too about predators in the wild (although owl sanctuaries are up there with roman forts for first date options... Partridge?). Ospreys are the birds most recognisable with fish, but I’ve been told that a hungry peregrine will steal or pirate a fish caught by an osprey. New England on the list Boston - covid scuppered attending a wedding near Camden, Maine in 2020 but we’ll get across one day.
After some thought...I probably misidentified the hawk in question. The more I thought about the way it flew, which I'd originally put down to the weight of its catch, the more it dawned on me it was not the swift gait of the Peregrine but the more laboured look of the Osprey. A far more informed neighbour of mine, upon hearing of my close encounter, asked how the fish was being carried? As soon as I described its torpedo nature, she exclaimed "Osprey", apparently, they are able to grip prey differently to most raptors. I believe her, she's very attractive.
In Libya there were countless scorpions (yellow) to be seen, we also saw the biggest ticks in the world on camels (the size of your hand) various lizards but worst of all were apparently deadly sand vipers and flying beetles that were enormous. Whilst in Arizona visiting an ancient Indian burial ground the guy in the museum told me to look out for the golden eagle and also find a long stick and from a distance turn over a large stone and you'll more than likely find a rattle snake, got to be honest I saw the eagle but only from a distance, I gave the rattle snake operation a swerve. When In Western Australia I went with me sister to her friends, they run a kangaroo sanctuary--the bloke took me into where they bring the sick or run over roos back to health which is in a large caged off area, It was fascinating for about ten minutes until the bloke said suddenly we gotta get out quick which we did, once outside he explained that he'd seen two king brown snakes not far away from us, the previous week their dog was bitten by one and promptly died. If you wan't insects flying or crawling then jesus wept try Bangladesh, they are there morning noon and night absolutely huge multi legged things climbing up the wall, It gets even worse when the monsoon starts. Back home It's been many a year since I've heard a woodpecker, where we lived in a village in West Bershire you could hear them most evenings in the water meadow down by the river that went through the village, you'd often see moor hens on the wing chasing red kites. We planted two large trees when we moved to our new house (magnolia and silver birch) and a few smaller ones as there was no bird life at all, but after nearly two years we've got a regular robin visitor and a host of other bird visitors, we've got two bird boxes and an Insect house that is regularily used and a hedgehog tunnel and a whole host of flowers and veg growing.
[Post edited 28 Jun 2022 20:26]
Jesus Christ after reading your post I am never leaving my house again Ted I got sucked into watching some lunatic trying to catch the 10 most deadliest snakes in the World on You tube a few years back and still have the shakes .That Australian brown is in the top 3 I think and this crazy dude picked one up by the tail if memory serves or with that tongs .Not for me thank you
Quite a soothing thread this one. Being at home a lot more over the last 2 years has led me to really appreciate the local wildlife here on the mean streets of the motherfcukin' Chonx (ok, Chiswick).
Also some great knowledge on here - I'm far from an expert and would like to be able to do a better job of identifying various birds by their song - I've got a friend who runs a centre up north for the Wildlife Wetlands Trust and usually send recordings or photos to her:
- "Whats 'at?" - "Kingfisher" - "Ah right of course"
On the photo front I went a bit mad and got a longer lens (150-600mm) a few months ago. We're on the 4th floor and there's a sort of natural clearing out the back between the end of the communal garden/carpark and the adjacent large gardens of the affluent. So there's a good amount of bird, squirrel and fox spotting to be done. On more than one occasion I've leaned out and got a nice photo during an otherwise very boring 'Teams' meeting - got a nice shot of a fox on top of the garages the other week - nobody on the call was any the wiser and it helps keep the old sanity in place. What the neighbours think of this behaviour I have no idea.
I've seen and photographed a lot of great wildlife in other parts of the world: Leopards on the Serengeti, coyotes in Joshua Tree NP, whales in Ecuador. The stuff I've taken since the pandemic started isn't anything I'd need to fax off to David Attenborough, but it's had a different, more personal feel to it. I think it's got something to do with the subtlety of it, if that makes sense - finding things where you might not have expected them.
Jesus Christ after reading your post I am never leaving my house again Ted I got sucked into watching some lunatic trying to catch the 10 most deadliest snakes in the World on You tube a few years back and still have the shakes .That Australian brown is in the top 3 I think and this crazy dude picked one up by the tail if memory serves or with that tongs .Not for me thank you
Used to chat to a fellah from Clare who lived close to me 15/20 years ago. He was a quiet non drinking type so we never got matey, but my youngest daughter was in his girls class at school and we bumped into each other on a fairly regular basis. Anyways, he rented a house on one of the old (Yankee),family estates we still have dotted around Milton, had free range of the property, which was fairly extensive and for the most part, no human presence. One day he twigged I had an interest in wildlife and invited me into the house to watch some 'home movies'. Long story short, the stuff he'd filmed was first class, my fav being that of a rattlesnake 'snaking' its way through the grass, when a hawk suddenly swoops down and flies away with it. He was up a tree with a camera hoping for a glimpse of some local deer, captured a classic.
Used to chat to a fellah from Clare who lived close to me 15/20 years ago. He was a quiet non drinking type so we never got matey, but my youngest daughter was in his girls class at school and we bumped into each other on a fairly regular basis. Anyways, he rented a house on one of the old (Yankee),family estates we still have dotted around Milton, had free range of the property, which was fairly extensive and for the most part, no human presence. One day he twigged I had an interest in wildlife and invited me into the house to watch some 'home movies'. Long story short, the stuff he'd filmed was first class, my fav being that of a rattlesnake 'snaking' its way through the grass, when a hawk suddenly swoops down and flies away with it. He was up a tree with a camera hoping for a glimpse of some local deer, captured a classic.
I was wondering where that was going when this quiet fellow invited you over to watch a few a 'home movies' involving animals.
Sleeping rough in a Cornish field one summer like you do, I was having a very vivid dream of a steam engine. A real puffing chug-a-lugger sound. Gradually I began to wake and with eyes still closed realised the steam engine sound effects in the dream were real and getting louder and were now almost deafening. I opened my eyes in the pre-dawn light to see a hedgehog right by my ear giving me a thoroughly inquisitive and noisy sniffing.
Its a popular tourist spot but wasnt too crowded when we went. Maybe your right about the other trails shut having an effect.
Yeh i didnt give it much thought sleeping out in tents in bear country when i was 24 but not sure i could do that same trail now. It was pretty heavy going looking back, plenty of mozzy bites and camping for nearly 3 weeks but it was an absolute blast . The trip changed my life around actually.
I was 22 not 24. My wife told me. Lol We've decided to go back to Canada funnily enough. Planning on going in 2025 so we can save up. Looking at hiring a motorhome and doing a tour of the western national parks. Banff ,Jasper, Wells Gray ..etc. Not as hardcore as before but really looking forward to this. The WhatsApp group has been set up and the ball is rolling. :)
Lake Louise is beautiful but I did find it a bit crowded around the lake and on the main trails, if we did it again I'd only do a day trip from Banff on the roam buses. Although this may be because some of the trails are shut or not recommended at the moment.
You're a braver man than me to camp out here, I'd be too scared of getting attacked by a bear while I sleep but can imagine that it's a great experience to stay out under the stars and wake up each day in nature. We had originally planned to come out here in 2020 and go to Jasper and finish in Vancouver but when we rebooked it this year we didn't have a big enough window to do that but it's a great excuse to come back again soon.
That was a trip I had planned for my 60th last year, bloody covid! Anyway, about a dozen years ago was in the Lake District with my family and my daughter and I rounded a corner in a wood to see a Red Squirrel sat on a tree stump not 10 yards from us! We managed to stay perfectly still and quiet (no mean feat for us!) just long enough for me to get the phone out of my pocket to take a photo just as my wife and son came round the corner chatting away and scared it off! Couldn’t believe quite how small and beautiful it was, an image that will stay with me forever!
I was 22 not 24. My wife told me. Lol We've decided to go back to Canada funnily enough. Planning on going in 2025 so we can save up. Looking at hiring a motorhome and doing a tour of the western national parks. Banff ,Jasper, Wells Gray ..etc. Not as hardcore as before but really looking forward to this. The WhatsApp group has been set up and the ball is rolling. :)
That would be great - loads of nice spots round there. I've a good friend in Calgary and we once got the ferry from the northern tip of Vancouver Island up to Prince Rupert and camped on the way back down which worked well.
With RVs these days it's the price of it all. We're going camping in Sweden for 2 weeks at the end of August - looked at RVs but ended up hiring a car (at a great price) and buying a very comfortable 4 person tent for the 2 of us - a poor man's RV if you will...
Have had 2 or 3 encounters with bears - one when we were camping only a couple of hours outside NYC - had had our dinner and a few drinks so were in no mood to move but there was a bear about 100 yds away and we knew we wouldn't settle so ended up packing up and hiking back down to the train station. And a couple in California were the bears are often dangerously habitualised to wandering into camp grounds and picking up food. The main issue out west is the type of bear - I haven't camped around a lot of grizzlies but they're a whole different kettle of fish to your average brown or black bear.
That would be great - loads of nice spots round there. I've a good friend in Calgary and we once got the ferry from the northern tip of Vancouver Island up to Prince Rupert and camped on the way back down which worked well.
With RVs these days it's the price of it all. We're going camping in Sweden for 2 weeks at the end of August - looked at RVs but ended up hiring a car (at a great price) and buying a very comfortable 4 person tent for the 2 of us - a poor man's RV if you will...
Have had 2 or 3 encounters with bears - one when we were camping only a couple of hours outside NYC - had had our dinner and a few drinks so were in no mood to move but there was a bear about 100 yds away and we knew we wouldn't settle so ended up packing up and hiking back down to the train station. And a couple in California were the bears are often dangerously habitualised to wandering into camp grounds and picking up food. The main issue out west is the type of bear - I haven't camped around a lot of grizzlies but they're a whole different kettle of fish to your average brown or black bear.
We're looking at the options regarding the RVs . Not sure yet if it's better to do a package including flights or hire independently. We're still early in the planning. But that's definitely the type of holiday we want. There are ones that have tour guides and also train travel but we quite like the idea of just doing our own thing once there and set our destinations. Obviously saves setting up tents every night and gives a bit more security from bears. Especially the Grizzly's. :)
That would be great - loads of nice spots round there. I've a good friend in Calgary and we once got the ferry from the northern tip of Vancouver Island up to Prince Rupert and camped on the way back down which worked well.
With RVs these days it's the price of it all. We're going camping in Sweden for 2 weeks at the end of August - looked at RVs but ended up hiring a car (at a great price) and buying a very comfortable 4 person tent for the 2 of us - a poor man's RV if you will...
Have had 2 or 3 encounters with bears - one when we were camping only a couple of hours outside NYC - had had our dinner and a few drinks so were in no mood to move but there was a bear about 100 yds away and we knew we wouldn't settle so ended up packing up and hiking back down to the train station. And a couple in California were the bears are often dangerously habitualised to wandering into camp grounds and picking up food. The main issue out west is the type of bear - I haven't camped around a lot of grizzlies but they're a whole different kettle of fish to your average brown or black bear.
Hey, Hey, Hey BooBoo, looks like a pic-a-nic basket to me.
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.We're expecting Golden Eagles in the area soon as we're exporting our surplus of Red Kites to Spain.Kites were commonplace in London at the time of Pepys and John Evelyn,wonderful creatures. 
