A stoat down on the river bank

After dropping off Helena in town this morning, I thought I might have another go at trying to get a 'good' photo of a kingfisher. I have tried several times, as they are one of my favourite birds, as well as being somewhat elusive. So I headed to Capel's Mill, the site of an historic mill, marked now by only a few old stone walls and the remnants of a weir, marked by a footbridge over the River Frome. It was probably a fording point where the various routes up and down as well as across the Golden Valley still assemble. A canal was constructed beside the river and this was followed soon after by the railway line to Cheltenham, which used an elevated viaduct to span all these routes. they all meet at what is still referred to as Capel's Mill.

I have seen kingfishers nesting in the high bank formed by the river which cuts back into the hillside to form a curve in the stream. The incised banks force the river to flow swiftly which provided the motive power for the various mills in the valley. I have also seen them flying up and down the river at odd moments, but because of the thick leaf cover formed by the blanket of trees on the banks it is hard to see let alone photograph anything there.

I sat patiently and then saw a kingfisher fly away from me from a point further downstream, and then realised that the two people walking along a small path by the river had frightened the bird. I then saw a white throated dipper, which is a fairly rare bird which likes feeding from rocks and trees set in the water. It hen flew past me closely followed by another, or possibly the same kingfisher. I managed to grab fleeting glimpses of a white then blue colours but nothing blippable.

After a little while longer i walked upstream into tangled undergrowth between the newly rebuilt elevated canal and the old path of the river. There I was able to keep my presence from the bird life on the water, by sheltering behind the rampant vegetation. I found an old tree stump to sit on and waited. To my delight I saw a pair of dippers frolicking in the water and diving in to retrieve insects in their beaks.

Soon after a lovely yellow wagtail appeared hopping between moss covered stones on the edge of and in the river. I had been taking a lot of pictures as here the brighter sky was providing brighter conditions and the trees were only on the south side of the bank. I heard a strange sound of a sort of rustling, as I followed the antics of the wagtail, and then as if water was being splashed rather gently. I looked away to the far bank where suddenly I saw a glimpse of a small brown animal dashing in and out of the undergrowth by the water's edge.

I was very excited and turned my camera towards it, slowly trying not to let on that I was there. Of course, the animal disappeared from my view, but I could still hear it. then the water moved and I saw it moving quickly into the water for a couple of feet to grab something, as food, before rushing back to the bank. Another gap in time occurred, and I realised it was walking further upstream, away from me. Then a tiny brown head appeared on a mossy stone, followed by the whole body of a stoat.

I kept on taking pictures and watched it look up and down the river before it jumped down onto another stone at half in the water. then it dived in and swam across the river. I felt so pleased to have experienced its normal behaviour without it realising I was there and to be able to record it as well.

I have put the sequence of these images of the river crossing here on the my Flickr gallery, as I want you to be able to share this with me. How lucky I am!

It is worth a Large view too.