Ice, snow, bikes and birds...

I don’t know about you but I’m getting just a little bored with the weather so far in 2010. Ice, snow, sleet, slush and even a touch of rain today, I’ve put up with it all over the past week and I’m ready for a change! Problem is, it looks like we’ve got at least another week of it to come. Great!

Cycling.

My cycling year started off steadily and then got even more steady. The roads and cycle paths on Monday, and again on Tuesday, morning were very icy. By Tuesday evening I was cycling home in snow. On Wednesday morning things had deteriorated to such an extent that Lynda didn’t like the idea of driving to work - we both chose to walk.

The walk to work.

Lynda, enjoying the snow!

On Thursday, Friday and Saturday I was back on the bike and actually starting to enjoy the adrenalin rush from riding on packed snow and ice. The minor roads were not so good but the cycle paths were not only smooth but offered a surprising amount of grip from the packed snow. By the end of the week I’d clocked up 60 miles. It’s not my best mileage for a week's commuting but at least I’ve been able to get a few miles under my belt.

Birding.

This morning I was faced with a decision - get out birding for a couple of hours or stay in the warmth of the house watching the snow fall and the freezing cold wind batter the trees, and anything else in it’s path. I rather enjoyed my walk, even if it was cold and a little thin on the ground bird wise!

As pretty much all still water is now frozen solid in the Trent Valley I decided to spend a little time in search of woodland species. With the roads still not fully free of ice in places I chose to head to Elvaston Castle - it’s close to home and I could reach it easily on roads that had been gritted. In a little over 2 hours of birding I managed to locate a total of 31 species, five of which were new for the year.

Elvaston Castle, and the frozen lake.

With the two lakes being almost completely frozen over, as expected, waterfowl were very thin on the ground with just Mute Swan, Canada Goose, Teal and Mallard being recorded. Sparrowhawk, Buzzard and Kestrel each gave brief views but didn’t hang around for long and the only gulls were a group of 36 Black-heads that were roosting on the ice of the main lake. Robins were much in evidence with at least 12 being noted; no doubt making the most of the food that people put out around the woodland paths here. A number of Redwings also showed well as they feed in small groups around the woods and allowed much closer views than usual. Three Treecreeper were busy searching for food until they all met up on the same tree. They then seemed more interested in the territorial battle that ensued than finding food to help them survive though yet another freezing cold day and night.

On reaching the bridge over the main lake I set up my own mini feeding station for the birds and put out a mix of seed and crushed peanuts. Within moments the birds were queuing up in the trees waiting for me to retreat to a safe distance. In total, 11 species came for food - Wood Pigeon, Dunnock, Robin, Blackbird, Coal Tit, Great Tit, Blue Tit, Nuthatch, Chaffinch, Jay and Magpie. A single Goldcrest was flitting around in the trees here and a small flock of Long-tailed Tits moved through without stopping. The nature reserve within the park was a little quiet but it did hold 2 Grey Heron, 6 Teal, a single Kestrel, a pair of Pheasant and 3 Bullfinch.

The nature reserve.

The addition of Coal Tit, Treecreeper, Goldcrest, Jay and Nuthatch takes the “10-Mile List” onto 69 species.

Something's out there!

November in a nutshell...

It doesn’t take much to work out that things have been very quiet here for the past month - no news means no blogs. But, as the end of yet another month is just around the corner I guess I should make a bit of an effort to keep the page up to date. So, here goes...

Lynda and I were both off work for the first week of November and, although we didn’t have too much planned, the poor weather meant we spent much of the time indoors. Monday was spent over in Nottingham walking around the shops. I can’t really say we went shopping, as the only things we purchased were chocolates! Admittedly it was very nice (and slightly expensive) chocolate but that was the sum total of our purchasing! Hotel Chocolat does, however, come highly recommended in this house!

Nottingham Council House.

Nottingham Market Square.

Whilst in Nottingham I managed to get my cycling fix by spending a little time looking around the Evans Cycles shop. Somehow I got out of the store without spending money, a rare event indeed these days! We would have looked around Nottingham Castle too, if it had not been closed. I guess Monday would be a good day to try and storm the castle if the need arose - nobody would be home!

Robin Hood - the only one left at the castle!

Whilst on our way back to the train station we passed Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem, England’s oldest inn. I’d have loved to have stopped off here for a pint or two but as time was running short we had to make do with a quick photo of the outside. At least I now have a reason to go back to Nottingham.

Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem.

The rest of the week was spent relaxing at home and eating out at lunch times. We visited three different pubs for lunch; The Bonnie Prince at Chellaston on Tuesday, The Dog and Duck at Shardlow on Thursday and The Newdigate Arms at West Hallam on the Friday. Wednesday was a healthy day - we stayed out of the pub and went for a walk around Elvaston Castle instead! After all the recent rain I had hoped to be able to photograph lots of different fungi but there was very little showing. We did manage to stay dry for the whole of the walk so that was something at least.

Elvaston Castle.

Much of November has provided a feeling of déjà vu on most days - I’ve ridden the bike to work, often in the rain, and almost always on wet roads. I’ve ridden home again in the dark and often in the rain or on wet roads. I’ve also picked up yet more punctures, two in the space of four days! The first left me pushing the bike the last half a mile home, the second was a slow puncture that saw me ride home, in the pouring rain, at near record speed so that I could get back before the tyre deflated fully. The rain was falling so heavily on that occasion that the air leaking from the tyre was actually blowing bubbles in the water! The bike was thrown in the back of the garage in disgust that evening and I didn’t go near it for another two days. Despite the weather, and also my bike, I have managed to keep adding a few miles to my total each day and have now covered a total of 3,331 miles this year.

That just about brings things up to date other than a few photos taken yesterday at the latest round of the Notts & Derby Cyclo-cross League. The racing took place at Sinfin Moor Park, which is just a short cycle ride of around 3 miles from home. Even after all the rain we’ve had in the past few weeks the course looked to have stood up to it very well and, from my view as a spectator, rode pretty fast. In true cyclo-cross style there was a fair amount of mud around but it tended to be the sort of stuff that didn’t clog up the bikes to any great extent. I’m still waiting for the official results to be posted on the league website but I’m pretty sure that Geoff Giddings, of the Raleigh Avanti team, managed to snatch victory on the line after a very fast sprint finish that saw the first two riders cross the line almost as one.

The charge away from the start line.

Steady on the down hill.

"Scream if you want to go faster!" But maybe take your road reflectors off!

Working together.

Team Raleigh on a charge!

The 1, 2 and nearly 3.

Same old, same old...

Another very quiet week this week, but the weekend has been a little busier...

The weather has continued pretty much as it was last weekend - very clear, bright days with temperatures then falling below freezing each night. This has meant that I have been able to use the bike to get to work every day - something I haven't managed since the middle of last year. With luck, and a few more clear days, I should be able to start and use the longer, riverside route home in the evenings soon as the early evening light improves.

Thursday was, of course, Valentine's Day. I had arranged for a dozen red roses to be delivered to Lynda's work for her - I didn't think that they'd fair too well if I brought them home in my rucksack on the bike!

On Saturday, we had a trip into Derby. After a bit of shopping, and me getting a haircut, we retired to the Standing Order for lunch! After a very nice rump steak each, a bottle of wine, two coffees and also two muffins we headed for home! It was the first time I'd been in the Standing Order and I must say I can think of a lot worse ways to spend a couple of hours on a Saturday afternoon! Luckily, we left the car at home and travelled on the bus... as Lynda said "It's not good is it, this drinking at lunchtime!"

This morning I was successful in talking Lynda into coming out on her bike with me. I wasn't all that convinced she would come out as the weather wasn't exactly warm! Overnight the temperature had dropped to minus 7c and as we set off at 10:00AM it was still minus 2c! Being as Lynda hadn't used her bike in a long, long time I chose a nice easy route, with nothing that could be called a "hill".

A frosted tree in Elvaston Castle Park.

We rode through Alvaston to Elvaston Castle, out to the river at Borrowash and then back towards Derby. We stopped off at Alvaston Lake to have a quick check on the birds there but, due to most of the lake being covered with ice, there wasn't too much to see.

Lynda riding through the grounds of Elvaston Castle.

Riding past Alvaston Park lake.

From there we headed on to Pride Park for a refreshment stop. The newly opened Starbucks could well prove to be a regular stop off in future!

Coffee break!

After our coffee break, we retraced our tracks back to Alvaston Lake before joining the cycle path back home.

Lynda, happy to be heading home!