Cheery (well it is) tree walk

A fairly dismal morning as forecast but it cleared up in the afternoon allowing the sun to come out briefly, enough to light up this very pleasant path through the flowering cherry trees alongside Bearsted Church in the Woodland Trust.


A very interesting walk took us past Mallards Lake yet again. The lonesome female swan was not to be seen, perhaps she's found another mate at last (her mate died as a result of eating bacteria ridden bread) and has left with him to start a new life. We do hope so.

New life was all around, the coots were feeding their chicks, whom were all of different sizes. Rather disturbingly they were feeding the chicks with bread. The geese had one chick that we could see, a little bundle of green and yellowish fluff and were fiercely protective of it engaging in skirmishes with any bird that came near the nest accompanied by much honking and frenzied wing flapping. A moorhen was sitting in a next in the branches, a few feet above the water, identified only by the red shield on her forehead. I've included a couple of shots of the birds as extras

The morning, being dull and wet, was not so interesting but quite satisfying in its own way. Filed no end of papers that had been building up in my inbox for months, chucked away loads of leaflets and detritus that we'd collected over the years and sorted out my filing system again.

A day of contrasts.