Longendale

Grey wagtail

Despite its being a fitfully sunny sort of a day I struggled to do anything with it. I wasn't short of plans and had mapped one out in the wee small hours when I couldn't sleep. My birdwatching map this year stops abruptly West of the Pennines, and I haven't gone East of Manchester City Centre yet this month. Roundhay Park, just outside Leeds, has been hosting an Iceland gull for a while. I thought I could go over and try and add it to the year list. Additionally, I have photos of Kumlein's gulls (not good ones, but photos) but not of nominate Iceland, it might be an opportunity to rectify this. Cometh the hour, cometh the man and I couldn't be bothered. Another day, perhaps.

Eventually I badgered myself into making an effort. It's harder to do the SW/NE cross-Greater Manchester journey these days now my local train doesn't stop at Deansgate anymore so I can't get the tram to Victoria Station. I decided I'd see how far round the clock I could get from the immediately available connections from Oxford Road and ended up getting the Stalybridge train from Salford Crescent. Stalybridge is ESE from home but it's a start. It wasn't the weather for getting the Carrbrook bus and visiting Stalybridge Country Park or do a bit of Reservoir watching up that way and there was an age to wait for the Oldham bus so I ended up getting the 237, getting off at Hadfield Station and having a short potter along the start of the Longendale Trail.

Hadfield was full of the calls of jackdaws, the twitterings of goldfinches and the songs of great tits and robins while woodpigeons galumphed in the treetops. I joined the trail and walked down the old railway cutting. Wrens churred in the undergrowth and magpies rattled as I walked by. A pair of grey wagtails were startled as I passed and flew into the tree next to the drain they were ferreting about in. The rain of debris from overhead was caused by the fires in the blood overtaking the squirrels.

Longendale Trail 

Passing the road bridge, greenfinches and goldfinches bustled through the trees and bushes on the sidings while chaffinches and bullfinches sang. A chiffchaff squeaked to tell everyone I was passing by but didn't venture into song. 

Peak Naze

Bottoms Reservoir 

I'd decided I was only going to go as far as Bottoms Reservoir, a decision confirmed when the path emerged into the open country above the reservoir and the wind started biting. About a hundred black-headed gulls loafed on the reservoir, dozens more passed overhead into the hills. Scanning around I could find a couple of pairs of goosanders but of the usual crowd of Canada geese not a sausage.

Above Bottoms Reservoir 

I walked back to the sound of singing robins, chaffinches, dunnocks and wrens. I spent the five minutes waiting for the train back being chaffed by blue tits and long-tailed tits for being on their station platform.