Kingfisher flying up to its nest

I've put a couple of pictures of a dipper in my 'Extra photos' today. Within about ten yards I also filmed a pied wagtail, a thrush, a blackbird and heard a jay above me in the canopy but didn't spot it this time.

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I woke early this morning despite having been editing documents until about midnight, after the steering group meeting last night.  The sun shine which greeted me on opening the curtains was delightful.  I even offered to make tea and drive Helena to work again.  I quickly sent my documents to my colleagues so they could get on with their contributions and then got dressed and we headed off.  I took my camera and after dropping Helena I went to have a bite of breakfast at Waitrose, did my shopping and then headed off to the river Frome where it flows under Capel's Mill railway viaduct.

I stood in my usual spot wondering whether I would see a kingfisher, but then decided to concentrate on photographing the white throated dippers that are nesting nearby.  I'd spotted a couple of them flying along the river, and then alighting on some rocks close to me.  They 'dipped' under the water and came up with a mouthful of food and then flew off to their nest beneath the footbridge over the river.

I then tried to film them flying up into their nest and stretched myself on some old stones which are part of the old Capel's Mill building's mill race.  The light was very dark as it was not only beneath the footbridge but the whole scene lies in the shadow of the huge viaduct.  I had to bump up the ISO considerably which was worth it to be able to test the shots.  Now i know they don't work.  I will need a flash, but i'm a bit wary of scaring the wildlife by using one.

While I was lying down a woman crossed the bridge above me with her dog.  After a short whole i heard a voice and turning round she pointed in the opposite direction and asked if I wanted to photograph the kingfisher.  I quickly got up and moved a few yards to where she was standing and saw the kingfisher on a small tree branch in the river.  I raised my camera slowly and just as i got it ready to focus, the kingfisher flew off and up towards its nest in the soft earth of the bank opposite.  I managed to get this shot and one other before it disappeared.

I chatted to Nicola and we talked about how lucky we are to have s=this wildlife sanctuary so close to our homes and the town.  It is managed by the Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust and a team of their volunteers appeared today to do some maintenance work a little bit further downstream.  

Soon after Clare M, appeared with a colleague to visit the Wildlife Trust volunteers.  She is the Chief Executive of the Stroud Valleys Project who are involved with many good environmental projects around Stroud and she is also on the Steering Group of the Neighbourhood Plan.  She told me that dippers are likely to become a protected species, so we are very lucky to have several pairs doing so well right here. I was delighted when I sat on the ground and a dipper came to stand on a small rock in the river only about four yards from where I was.  It didn't seem disturbed by my presence, which is something I've noticed before.  The fact that so many people walk around these footpaths and along the river banks seems to have got them used to human contact.