Bowood 2015 #33 (Friday 10th July 2015)

The Spotlight Kid joined me for today's visit to the Bowood Estate. By employing both our cars we were able to walk the footpath from the entrance in Derry Hill down to the southernmost exit at Pillars Lodge. It was a beautiful sunny day and we saw two red kites circling above the Lake with a buzzard.

Sheep shearing was in operation and there was a great deal of bleating from the very large herd that was being shepherded by men on quad bikes and an unconventional looking sheep dog. At one point we appeared to be facing down a stampede from the woolly mammals.

I was pleased to see a pair of swans with two cygnets as I had only seen one of the swans over the last few months and had no idea they had successfully bred. This was taken from our picnic spot. While we were there two kingfishers sped past, as did a green woodpecker in the other direction a little later, a baby coot called from the opposite bank and a black headed gull and a pair of common terns flew up and down the lake hunting for food.

We walked close to the heronry and saw one perched in the tree there (see Extra), as well as several others at different points along the walk.

Afterwards we drove up to the Treehouse Café at the entrance to Bowood House for coffee and cake on a table outside.

I took a bunch of pictures but it'll be a few days before I'm ready to upload the rest and link to an album, but I have just added the Marwell Wildlife set to my blip of last Saturday.

Edit (11.7.2015): Have now added the completed set of Bowood pictures link on the journal page for Tuesday's blip.
Edit (12.7.2015): The set of pictures taken on the Caen Hill Locks walk has now been added to Thursday's blip.
Edit (13.7.2015): Have now added the link to the completed set of Friday's Bowood Estate pictures to this journal page, so am up to date.

L.
10.7.2015 (2127 hr)

Blip #1612(#1862 including archived blips)
Consecutive Blip #002
Day #1935
LOTD #846 (#967 including archived blips)

A Footpath Walk Across The Bowood Estate, 10 July 2015 (Flickr album)

Bowood 2015 series
Bowood series
Bowood 2013-2015 (Flickr collection)(Work in progress)
Landscape series
Swan series
Outdoor Places I Have Sat In series

Lozarhythm Of The Day: Bob Weir and the Grateful Dead - Cassidy  (recorded January to March 1972)
Written a month before it was recorded for Bob Weir's album Ace, but not performed live until 1974, Cassidy was "named after Cassidy Law, who was born in 1970 and was the daughter of Grateful Dead crew member Rex Jackson and Weir's former housemate Eileen Law. The lyrics [by John Barlow] also allude to Neal Cassady, who was associated with the Beats in the 1950s and the Acid Test scene that spawned the Grateful Dead in the 1960s. Some of the lyrics in the song were also inspired by the death of Barlow's father." - Wikipedia

One year ago:
Lacock