Leighton Moss

Snipe

After a rough night's sleep with the wind howling down the railway line and clattering the television aerial against the chimney pots all night I didn't really feel like doing very much. I dragged myself out, got an old man's explorer ticket and got on the Barrow train, thinking that if nothing else I could have half an hour's wander at Leighton Moss, get a cup of tea and get the next train back.

I looked at the train schedule and decided to stay on to Ulverston, wait quarter of an hour and get the Lancaster train back to Silverdale, giving me the chance to check out the salt marshes and estuaries that side of Morecambe Bay. It turned out to be a good idea: I spent a grey and rainy morning on the train and arrived at Leighton Moss just as a grey lunchtime was turning into what became a lovely afternoon.

On the way in the effects of the recent weather were very conspicuous. Even accounting for the high tide the Ribble and Lune were running very high. Flooded fields were legion North of Lancaster (none of them had any ducks or gulls on them which struck me as odd). The pools at the coastal hides at Leighton Moss were awash and empty save a handful of black-headed gulls and a dozen wigeon.

It was an angry hide tide that we crossed at Arnside, the wind-driven waves lapping at the viaduct. The salt marshes at Grange-over-Sands were inundated; shelducks, carrion crows and black-headed gulls did as best could on the patches of high ground. The first little egret of the day was at Kent's Bank Station where the salt marsh sits a lot higher. Passing Cark and approaching the Leven all the bone dry creeks and dips of Summer were full to the brim and the river was so high there were no roosting places for wildfowl, just a pair of wigeon bobbed out on the water.

Looking inland on the trip back I had more luck. Eiders and wigeons took advantage of the shelter provided by the viaduct over the Leven. The flooded field drains on the way into Cark were busy with mallards and teal. Little egrets rummaged about in fields, though the ones at Meathop had given up and gone into roost to wait for the ebb tide. The golf course at Grange-over-Sands was mostly underwater and a flock of greylags provided an additional hazard for the hardy golfer. And as we steamed over the Kent the train disturbed a hundred or more redshanks which flew upstream out of its path.

I got off at Silverdale Station which was very busy with birds. Blackbirds and song thrushes were tucking into Ivy berries, chaffinches and house sparrows were rummaging about in the bushes and blue tits were busy on the feeders on the old station house.

Leighton Moss 

Arriving at Leighton Moss I was surprised to be told that most of the reserve was passable, judging by the fields outside Arnside I expected most everywhere to be underwater. I had a quick nosy at the Hideout and bumped into the first of the half a dozen marsh tits I'd be seeing today. None of them were up for having their photos taken.

The view from the Sky Tower 

It was standing room only at Lilian's Hide. Rafts of coots, gadwall and tufted ducks drifted over the pool while mallards, teal, shovelers and snipe dozed on the small patches of mud that had survived the rains. I had better, though more distant, views from the Sky Tower. Mute swans drifted in and out of the reeds, a pair of wigeon chugged across the pool and there was a pair of goldeneyes amongst the tufties.

Long-tailed tit

Long-tailed tit

Treecreeper

A very diffuse mixed tit flock worked its way through the willows by the path to the reedbed. A pair of marsh tits took exception to me and did that low churring buzz that is the willow tit's usual stock in trade. The blue tits, nuthatches and goldcrests weren't remotely bothered and a treecreeper flew down to check me out. A pheasant in the field beyond kept an eye on me, too.

Pheasant

Grey squirrel

I looked at the depth of the water on the path through the reedbeds, remembered I had what were the second-best boots on and thought better of it. Walking back I had another look in at Lilian's Hide, found it a lot quieter and sat down to take some photos while the light was bright and golden.

Teal

Shovelers

Gadwall

Snipe and teal

Leaving Lilian's Hide I bumped into another mixed tit flock feeding in the bushes by the dipping pool. Blue tits, coal tits and marsh tits accompanied the only great tit I saw all day. There were plenty of chaffinches about but no signs of goldfinches or siskins in the trees.

Walking to the causeway 

I walked down to the causeway which was astonishingly dry, just a few puddles. It was also busy with people and quiet with birds, just a couple of robins and a reed bunting flitted through the reeds.

Coots

The water on the causeway pool was very high, the island that's usually the haunt of cormorants was underwater. More mute swans cruised the pool and a large raft of coots swam close to shore. Further out a pair of crows escorted a male marsh harrier out of the reed beds.

The causeway pool 

On my way back the only Cetti's warbler of the day (and the month so far) took a violent exception to something in the reeds. For the life of me I couldn't see either the warbler or the source of its annoyance.

Leighton Moss 

I'd had a couple of hours' wander in the sunshine and felt the better for it, the more so as I caught the train and got home without any hassle along the way.

At Lilian's Hide