Etherow Country Park

Mandarin ducks

It still didn't feel like December. The robins and collared doves were billing and cooing and although it was a grey and cloudy day it was still mild. Mind you that wind had an edge to it. Only the length of the daylight and the colours of the landscape betrayed the month: there are greens and rusts and inky dark browns unique to this month, either because of the light or their being obscured by the other colours of the year. That peach overtone to the sky will soon be succeeded by that January mixture of cerulean blue, acid lemon yellow and vermillion I can never quite capture in photographs or paintings.

I'd had a seriously bad night's sleep where I sincerely considered giving it up and getting up at five with a view to a five and a half hour journey out to North Wales to try and add the bufflehead at Foryd Bay to my life list. In the event it was as well I didn't as it had done a runner overnight. A visit to Marshside was a more sensible option but I dozed off and missed the train out. 

Mute cygnet

Tufted duck

So I went over to Etherow Country Park to have a look at the mandarin ducks and see if I'd have any more luck with dippers than I've had the rest of the year. 

River Etherow 

The river was riding high and fast, too fast for the comfort of dippers, ducks or wagtails. The mandarins were all loafing amongst the drowned willows on the mill pool.

Mandarin duck and mallard

Mandarin ducks

Keg Wood 

I had a quarter of an hour's dip into Keg Wood, my knees weren't up to the rollercoaster ride and it was very quiet so nothing tempted me to push on further.

Keg Wood 

Etherow Country Park