A Small Tort and a Comet

I had a very pleasant two hour walk to Farndon this afternoon, wandering through the Willow Holt nature reserve and back into town along the river. With only two weeks before I return, nervously, to work, I want to cram in as much outdoors time as possible.

The best sight today was a small tortoiseshell feeding off flowering teasel, while in town I discovered that a small colony of sand martins have nested in a spoil heap created by the excavation of the new marina.

Judging by the huge number of swifts now screaming over town, there's been a successful nesting season!

The most exciting thing I've done in the last 24 hours is spotting Comet Neowise. It's an easy naked eye object at the moment, and looks amazing in binoculars. However, finding it required walking up the street in my pyjamas at 330am to the library gardens in order to find a clear northern horizon, as it is a low object to find.

I rather feared being stopped by the police. Worth it, as it's the third best comet I've seen after Hale Bopp and Hayakutake in the mid 90s.

The planets too were on fantastic form, if big spheres of rock or gas can have form, with the moon and Mars close together, Jupiter and Saturn too a glorious pair, and Venus blazing low in the north-east.

It's been a good day.

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 12.07.20