The Pleasure of Cycling

 Activity wise, well this week has been a quiet one with the arrival of cold weather curtailing nature in its tracks, and keeping my indoors when I've not been shivering and getting wet on my bike rides to work amid the snow and hale we've had, often at the same time.

But the weekend before that was glorious, and I seized the opportunity to get out on my Raleigh hybrid bike for the first time in months. 

I did two rides, totalling just under 50km in all, firstly on a loop out to Elston on Saturday, and then to Norwell and Muskham on Sunday. Compared to my hack work bike, the hybrid goes like a bomb although skinny tyres make for a rough time on some of the cratered local roads. 

It's a good fitness activity too, and feeling warm air rushing past your skin is you scoot along at 30km/h is joyful, not to mention the vitamin D you are getting after the dark days of winter. Aboard the bike my tourettes is controlled, and my general anxiety about the world is lessened, although occasionally my anxiety about bad driving isn't. 

I intend to get some more riding in this spring and summer, nothing heavy, nothing Bradley Wiggins, but just to see the local villages and find some nature sites.

And maybe get some tan lines as well, the mark of any proper cyclist!

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 02.03.22

Around the Villages by Bike

After a wet, miserable day yesterday where there was barely any light to take a photograph all day, today was rather better and despite quite a fresh wind I was determined to get out on the bike and have a bit of a ride around.

I say determined, this wasn't quite the reality. I like riding my old mountain bike, but some days I'm a bit nervous about it - Will I puncture? Will any of the roads be dangerous? Will I get rained on and end up like a drowned rat with an annoyingly wet backside?

I decided I would be OK, and headed out in the opposite direction from normal, out to Kelham and the villages to the north of Newark. There are some narrow roads and some nasty blind corners, but I took it easy, taking in the views of the lowering sun and the  power station, the hills around Kelham and the various churches on my route.

I only did 20km, but you take in the villages of Kelham, Little Carlton, Bathley, and North and South Muskham on this route, and there's stuff to see all the way along; folk like to have cute summer houses in their gardens in these villages, and there are birds to see; fieldfare in the hawthorns, crows in the fields, and an echelon of big waterfowl overhead; no idea what these were and my photo will not help identification!

I had a look at North Muskham Lake, where a cormorant was doing its pterodactyl wing drying thing out on a raft in the middle of the water, and compared those waters to the sterile building site that are the waters of the former sailing club.

I hate what the fishing club done to that place.

Si

All text and images copyright 02.12.18

Cycling into Stress

Well, I'm sort of on holiday now, and so without any cricket to play and the rain gone, I was able to head off on my bicycle - back is a bit stiff to run - and decided to head out North, in search of a lost cricket ground.

It isn't really lost, I suppose, as it is still there, a pretty little ground with fungus fairy rings and a nice pavilion out at Little Carlton. But it is now marked out as a football pitch, and of the square and pitches there is no sign at all.

It's been lost to cricket for serveral years sadly, so my mission to see if it could be used by my club as a potential outground was pretty conclusive - it can't! But it is a very pretty village, and a nice ride out on quiet lanes. I followed the road round to Bathley, and then to North Muskham for a look at the nature reserve and lake; very quiet indeed.

The trouble began when I cycled home and did a little shopping. Somewhere, somehow, my wallet fell out of my pocket, a fact I only realised a couple of hours later, and oh boy, did I panic like a mad thing.

Horrible, cold sweat panic!

Luckily, I heard that it had been handed in at a pizza takeaway near where I had stopped, and full of happiness went to pick it up. Of course, the cash inside - not a mega amount, but not what I'd ever want to lose, had been stolen, and in a tizzy I realised I'd have to cancel my cards as they could easily have copied all the numbers.

Grrr. More faff and stress. Or maybe it's just someone's way of telling me to spend less money.

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 04.09.16

Hirundine Hunt

Today, although colder, was at least dry, so I was able to get myself going a lot easier, and a lot earlier.

I had decided to visit Muskham Lake and see if there were any swallows or sand martins about. Well, I regretted it a little when I found myself trying to cycle head on into a blast chiller northerly, but it was only about 5 miles and I was able to keep on chugging on.

No goldeneye or any other fancy waterfowl, but I was happy to see that about 20 sand martins were skimming the water in their characteristic fashion. Photographing them was a matter of pure chance, but I got, ahem, lucky, in a few shots.

Cycling home, a swallow swooped overhead, and then a lovely kestrel flew towards the reserve from the village. No chance of a shot of these birds, far too fast moving. But the birds of Kilton Raptor Rescue, in town once again, provided a far easier target, and this time, I had my big camera with me.

Barn Owl:

My favourite "scowl owl":

Ferruginous buzzard:

Harris hawk:

Tawny owls:

And finally, the super cute scopps owl:

Operation Egret

I started off the day with this militarily planned attempt to go and photograph some little egrets today, at a spot next to the River Trent near South Muskham where I often see them fishing from gravel spits at the edge of the water.

Unmilitarily, I had forgotten that the river is rather high at the moment; sure enough, when I cycled by, there was a whole lot of water and no egrets.

However, Operation Egret turned out not to be a washout, for as I passed the A1 Fishery between the two Muskhams, I noticed 3 little egret, and a greater black backed gull about the size of a car door sailing in front of them.

My first ever opportunity to photograph these snow white birds! Operation Egret was a success.

However, things got rather more exciting as I cycled on to the reserve at North Muskham lake, for among the usual tufted duck on the water, I noticed a rather similar looking, but smaller, bird energetically diving near a small reed bed.

At first I thought it might be a little grebe bobbing about, but when I got closer, I wondered what it was I was looking at, a smart looking black and white duck with a prominent yellow eye.

Revelation came when it joined up with the stunning male. It was a goldeneye, the James Bond duck, and for me, a so called "lifer".

I know. It's not much of a lifer, they are common in winter! But I've never seen one before for definite, let alone photographed one!

It was a great day's birdwatching, for there were fieldfares that might actually be mistle thrush, and a buzzard watching me from a haystack!

Hopefully this is a good omen for the year.

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 01.01.16

Little egret

Two little egrets

Tufted duck flotilla

Pochard

More pochard!

Mrs goldeneye

The happy couple

Mr goldeneye

Heron

Not a fieldfare

Wondering if these birds wandering around a field were actually mistle thrush. They look a little large to be song thrushes

Buzzard

Watching from his haystack