Skip to main content

Not Birding

I took a trip to Bedford today to visit the Bawden and Burges collections at The Higgins. I didn't want to faff about looking for parking in a strange town so I took advantage of free parking at Milton Keynes Coachway and used my pass on the X5.

The view from the coach wasn't inspiring. Mostly of soggy arable fields with hedges trimmed to a uniform low height, presumably so that little Jocasta can safely follow the hunt on her pony.

Even less inspiring is the area around Bedford Bus Station, redeveloped in the new town brutalist school. I had almost lost the will to live when I emerged from the Harpur Centre into Harpur Square.


It was only when I turned round that I realised that the shopping mall had been built behind the grade 2 listed former Bedford Modern School.

As well as being an excellent gallery The Higgins also has an excellent cafe / restaurant. Coming back another belt of bad weather was moving in creating some fascinating cloudscapes. These didn't photograph too well from the coach but one came out without too many reflections.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

No Choice

Taking my usual walk today it was striking how the autumn colours had come on in the last few days. When the sun came out I really regretted not having the camera with me. There wasn't much to see in the way of variety or numbers of birds. A couple of probable skylarks put up on a cultivated field but the gem was naturally a red kite. Circling over the fields behind my house at tree top height it finally came over my head as I reached the edge of the field. Living where I do I suppose that I should be blasé about them by now but when one comes overhead there is no choice. I still just stop and say "wow!"

Sparrows

 I was quite excited this morning when I disturbed two house sparrows on the fat feeder in the front garden. Luckily they did return later. I didn't get a chance to look out of the window but I also heard a great spotted woodpecker call in the front garden. In the back garden we had our first nuthatch sighting of the year which makes three garden firsts for 2022. The redpolls didn't linger this year and I haven't seen the coal tits for a while but we have had the usual regular selection including blackbird, robin, blue tit, great tit, long tailed tit, chaffinch, goldfinch and bullfinch. Out and about sightings have included red legged partridge alongside the A418 near Tiddington, skylark on the fields behind the house and a trip to the Forest of Dean with a far too brief glimpse of a dipper but consolation from a pair of kingfishers along the Cannop Brook.

Not So Quiet

 During September and October the garden normally seems to be devoid of birds. For the last few days there has been a flock of tits on the feeder. At least 5 blues at a time plus two or three long tailed as well as the occasional great and coal. This only takes place later in the afternoon, usually at around 5.