A visiting heron

As I was making a call at my desk I saw this heron flying up the valley and then land gently on the top branches of the ash tree at the bottom of the garden. It has been coming here fairly regularly this autumn (and as I write as dusk closes in, I have just seen it flying over the garden again).

When I'd finished my call I went downstairs to get my camera and decided to take a picture quickly of it in the tree before changing my lens to get a closer view. Helena was sitting at the dining table and I pointed it out to her and just as I picked up the bigger lens I saw the heron flexing itself and knew it was going to take off.

I quickly returned to the camera and as it flew away from the tree towards the nearby houses lower down the hill I grabbed this shot through the double-glazed patio door. As I said above, it will be back. In fact our neighbour recently asked me if we had a pond as he has noticed the heron perched on the edge of our roof.