CHEDDAR RESERVOIR - CHEW VALLEY LAKE (HERRIOT'S BRIDGE - THE DAM - HERONS GREEN- HERRIOTS BRIDGE) - CHEDDAR RESERVOIR - CATCOTT LOWS
WEATHER: clear sky, all day sunshine, a cold breeze. Temp -3C for most of the day
i can't believe that we have had three brilliant, sun-shiny, winter days in row! It has made this trip so much more enjoyable despite the very cold temperatures. The light has been fantastic and the colourful sunrises and sunsets have been out of this world, I can't tell you how much I have enjoyed this trip so far.
Redwing taken at Catcott
The birding has been great too, despite missing some of the 'goodies' we have had our fill of exciting finds and excellent sightings. Today we drove to Cheddar, departing the Farmhouse at 8am and arriving some twenty minutes later at the Cheddar Tower Car park at the Reservoir.
There was was a chilly wind in our faces which made viewing the water somewhat uncomfortable, but we soon got used to it. In front of us streched a circular man-made body of water, it was covered in birds. Probably 5000 Common Coots were the most abundant species, with a good variety of ducks, grebes and cormorants thrown in.
our view of Cheddar Reservoir at 8:30am this morning looking from Cheddar Tower
We searched for Black-necked Grebes and Greater Scaup, niether of which were in view from where we stood. We did see Common Pochard and Common Gull, which were both new species for the trip list. After a while we decided to drive around to the Axminster side of the Reservoir, there we would have shelter from the wind, but we still had to contend with looking into the bright morning sunshine.
The woodland behind us provided more entertainment, we saw Treecreeper, Mistle Thrush, we heard a Green Woodpecker, we added Grey Wagtail and Meadow Pipit to the tally. However, we could not find our two target species out on the water, but a Goldeneye was a good find. We gave up after an hour.
Our route to Chew Valley took us through Cheddar Town and then up through the famous Gorge, a Peregrine Falcon was spotted sitting on the top of a tree in the gorge. The wide open sheep fields above the gorge produced sightings of Redwing, Fieldfare, Green Woodpecker (leader only sighting) and Lapwing. Further along we found a huge flock of Golden Plover sitting in a field with dozens of Lapwing, they all looked great, truly golden, in the morning sunshine.
Golden Plover near Chew Valley Lake
At Chew we visited three main sites and viewing areas, the first of which was just east of West Harptree, called Herriot's Bridge. From the roadside we saw more Goldeneye, we added Goosander to the list and we had good views of Reed Bunting, Chiffchaff, Grey Wagtail and Pied Wagtail. Distant birds on the water included Tufed Duck, Common Pochard, Shoveler, Teal, Gadwall, Wigeon, Common Shelduck and Great Crested Grebes.
At the Dam and main visitors centre we added another Goldeneye, Goosander and Lesser Black-backed Gull to the day list. Some of the group grabbed a quick coffee at the cafe.
taken fronm the dam car park at Chew Valley Lake
We drove around to Herons Green viewing point and found several more pairs of Goldeneye, then we struck lucky and found a RING-NECKED DUCK, this bird came failry close to us as it associiated with a gang of Tufted Ducks, at last I got the whole group onto this rare American winter visitor. We also added Raven to the list at this point.
two shots of the Ring-necked Duck at Herons Green Chew Valley Lake
Stopping in west Harptree we collected lunch supplies, most of us bought a pastie and a hot drink, we then drove around to Herriots Brdige to eat it. During lunch we had great views of Chiffchaff, Reed Bunting, Grey Wagtail, Pied Wagtail and a Marsh Harrier.
After lunch we drove back to Cheddar Reservoir for another shot at seeing the Scaup and BN Grebes, along the way we added Red Kite to the day list. At the reservoir we finally found the Scaup, two females, but we dipped on the grebes.
We then drove back to the Levels, we parked in the small car park at Catcott Lows Nature Reserve and enjoyed great views of both Fieldfares and Redwings. A Kingfisher delighted the group, we watched Chiffchaffs in the bushes and Common Snipe flying around. The marsh at Catcott was still mainly frozen, we had hoped to see a Glossy Ibis but it didn't turned up. We waited around for 1 1/2 hours enjoying the beautiful sunset the and frequent bird sightings.
Fieldfare in the car park at Catcott
A Merlin sat high up on a pylon, unusual for a Merlin, but it took off and flew towards us giving excellent views, it swooped down fast into a meadow and then dashed over a line of trees and was lost to sight. A Kestrel, Marsh Harrier and Common Buzzard were also seen there. We waited until 4pm before we left, the sunset was amazing, unbelieavable colours were painted across the sky.
sunset at Catcott
We called it day an drove the short distant back to the Farmhouse, but our birding wasn't over as we had an incredible spectacle waiting for us at the farm. An almighty gathering of Starlings filled the sky above us, clouds of them could be seen to the horizon and back. They formed vast flocks, twisted and turning, forming patterns as they murmurated, giving us a personal show! Who needs Ham Wall Starling Roost? It was one of those birding moments, an unforgettable experience embedding a treasured memeory forever in our minds. The starlings eventually drifted off towards Shapwick Heath to their roost site.
just a tiny amount of the Starling flock taken from the Farmhouse
End of day 3, and I must say, on quite a high!!