Dreich

Huddersfield Narrow Canal, Mossley 

It's shallow of me, I know, but I'm a bit browned off with the weather. This time of year it's asking a bit much to ask for two sunny days in a row but two or even three dry days would be nice especially at the fag end of what has been a very long, very wet Autumn. Yesterday I really couldn't be bothered and got a shop in. Today it was wet but very mild so I took the opportunity to give the house — and the cat — an airing. (The cat doesn't go far, she sits on the front doorsteps telling passersby what an awful person I am.)

The spadgers have been conspicuously absent this past couple of days, leaving the feeders free for the titmice to lounge by all day. Even the coal tit wasn't bothering to take any sunflower seeds off to cache. I'm only seeing the one coal tit lately, I think it's the male by the peach tones on its flanks. I hope his mate's still about. The dunnocks are in full frisky mode and the male is annoying the robin no end in the process. It's a wonder dunnocks don't get greasy hair and acne.

The spadgers weren't the only absentees: despite all the rain the usual lunchtime crowd of gulls on the school playing field was today just a handful of black-headed gulls and a herring gull.

Lunchtime arrangements fell through so I decided to get some exercise. There wasn't the time, weather, or to be honest they inclination, for any serious birdwatching so I played train timetables roulette and got the York train from Piccadilly, getting off at Greenfield which is as far as my travel pass takes me on that line.

Dove Stone Edge from Greenfield 

As I walked down Chew Valley Road the jackdaws were already cawing in the trees up the hill, those that weren't paired off and building nests in chimneys. I dropped down onto the towpath of the Huddersfield Narrow Canal and set off for the short stroll into Mossley.

Huddersfield Narrow Canal, Greenfield 

Chaffinches chased each other around the trees. Robins, blackbirds and song thrushes sang. A couple of great tits illustrated the old adage that if you hear a small bird call you can't identify it's likely to be a great tit. Blue tits rummaged in hawthorn bushes and long-tailed tits hunted in the tall trees. Each block of canalside gardens had its singing dunnock.

The loafing mallards on the canal were mostly drakes, which I hope means there are ducks about furtively making nests in cabbage patches and hanging baskets. The Canada geese weren't obviously paired up, singletons loafing on the banks and small groups cruising down the canal like extras from West Side Story. A lone mute swan cruised the mill pond where Well I-Hole Road crosses the canal.

The river Tame was running fast, in contrast with the sluggish course of the canal. It was running high, too, so I wasn't surprised not to see any bankside wagtails.

Huddersfield Narrow Canal, Mossley 

I got to Manchester Road and called it quits. I had five minutes to wait for the 343 to Stalybridge, including a panicky couple of minutes making sure I was on the right side of the road — the buses on the side labelled: "Towards Stalybridge" go through Mossley on to Oldham, the ones on the side "Towards Greenfield" go to Stalybridge and Hyde, there are no buses to Greenfield from here.