The Famous Grouse - on guard

After a smooth journey we arrived in the Forest of Bowland in the early afternoon. We ate a rather windblown picnic lunch near the Jubilee Tower, which has fantastic views towards Lancaster and Morecombe Bay. Unfortunately a heavy haze hung over the low lying land, meaning that we had to use our imaginations.

As it was rather chilly we decided to move to a more sheltered car-park at Birk Bank. This corner of the Forest is very varied, with fine heather moorland, a splendid mire with sundews and other bog plants, woodland, crags and a cascading stream all in close proximity. We climbed up towards Clougha Pike, which involved scrambling over steep rocky terrain - quite a work-out. Unfortunately there wasn't enough time to reach the summit, as we were meeting someone in the early evening.

As we headed back towards the car-park we saw a number of grouse, including this rather bold bird who was unperturbed by our presence and even allowed me time to to change lenses. I managed quite a few decent shots, even though the light levels were very low, but liked this rear view as it shows the beautiful patterning of the feathers and the rather cute white- feathered feet, perfectly adapted for a cold upland environment. I hope the trusting nature of this bird doesn't lead to its early demise, as most of the Forest is managed for shooting.