Being back in Essex for a day the nice weather suggested a trip to Gunpowder Park near Waltham Abbey. The traffic noise from the nearby M25 is intrusive but it is still a nice place to wander around. Part is still farmed and mixed hedgerows have been replanted. These have been growing well and are now being properly layed. I think that the deliberate mixed planting may confuse anybody trying traditional hedgerow dating methods in a few years time. The only thing of note on the birding front was the skylarks. There were at least three in different parts of the park.
Once upon a time you could find me birding on the Thames marshes almost every weekend through the winter. For various reasons I am now seldom able to travel to good birding sites. I am lucky, however, to live in the beautiful Chiltern Hills and this blog is to document the birds that I see on my own patch.