A local jay visiting the garden

After a mid-afternoon snack, I went out into the garden which for the first time in ages seemed dry, although it was still heavily overcast with some bedraggled sunlight peering between layers of cloud in the distance beyond Minchinhampton. I walked down to the end of the garden for my first view across the Horns Valley towards Weyhouse, as the fall of the leaves has revealed the winter views again, one of the advantages of winter which I love. The green patch behind the branches here is where the ruins of the Weyhouse reside, on the far side of the Lime Brook, and it is only about a hundred and fifty yards away 'as the crow flies', and there are quite a few of them that do that every day.

I had my camera with me and snapped a few shots including some walkers trudging along the hedgerows opposite. I was surprised to see that there was a band of yellow in one particular hedge near where the badger sett lies in the steep bank. I must presume it is forsythia, which has blossomed far too early as I don't remember having seen it there before.

When I returned up the garden towards the house, I tried to stand still and blend into the scenery so that the many small birds flitting about the elder tree and the rowan might let me get close enough for some good shots. I did manage to get reasonably close, but I didn't get any worthwhile pictures, because of the gloomy conditions and the mass of branches which they were keeping in the middle of.

So my shot of the day is from when I first stepped out of the house and saw a jay flying across the neighbouring gardens towards the sycamore tree at the bottom of ours. I assumed that they wouldn't be any good as my panning is known to be useless and the camera was set to take fast shutter speeds. But luckily this image of when it was stalling to prepare to land on a branch and it shows its splendidly colourful plumage fanned out against the blurred branches.

Woodpeckers tells me that she loves jays too, but doesn't see them very often anymore, although she often hears their distinctive chatter. Perhaps they are also more obvious now the leaves have gone; another wintry bonus.