The King saves the day

After the rain stopped, we headed out to Yarrow Valley Country Park. We've not been since February and I know they've been having some issues with the water levels on the reservoir due to a leak which have been ongoing for months it seems. Nevertheless we decided it was worth a visit - last year there were opportunities for fungi and small birds like goldcrests, coal tits and nuthatches. 
It was quite a dull afternoon, and the only birds we saw initially were the ducks and gulls on Big Lodge. We walked up to the mere and saw very few birds which was quite a surprise. They used to be all along the path by the river. We watched jumping fish at the weir, but they were impossible to photograph and then on the way back we saw the little bank voles which were cute. That was going to be my blip, until we were heading back to the car via Top Lodge where I was amazed to spot a distant kingfisher.  He was just sitting on a reed, minding his own business and continued to do so for the next 30 minutes, only once diving for a fish and then disappearing around the corner.  It's always a thrill to see a kingfisher, even of they are not doing anything :)