Tag: heath

August 26th – The same ride, and my deer magnet was clearly functioning well. Late afternoon, four red deer on the north heath of Chasewater, two adult hinds and their two young fawns. These are the first of this year’s youngsters I’ve seen and they look fit and heathy. For the time of year, their coats, too, were in surprisingly good condition. 
I still can’t quite believe these animals roam free here; they always leave me in awe. We’d never have imagined as kids that seeing such fine creatures in Brownhills would be remotely possible. 

June 5th – In virtually the same spot as the deer, I spotted a kestrel hunting. It did that thing they seem to do; floating, almost static in free air, studying it’s prey on the ground with a gimlet eye, before thinking better of it and returning to it’s pylon perch. These are lovely, graceful birds that seem increasingly populous here. Or maybe I’m just noticing them more. Either way, they’re wonderful, and like the deer, I could watch them for hours.

April 8th – It’s all about the cows, lately. Cattle have been introduced to the heaths at Chasewater for a few years now. They were brought in to manage the heathland – cows hooves churn up the soft earth, and their grazing and cow pats stifle the bracken and more voracious plants , giving the heather and more delicate specimens a chance to grow. The brown an white Chasewater animals – five in total – are supplied by a local farmer, and the young beasts look in fine condition, and don’t seem to mind the public too much. 

Today, I also noticed someone was keeping a small herd of black cows in the field on the common behind the derelict Rising Sun pub. This is a new development, and I haven’t seen cows here for years. Wonder whose they are?

March 13th – Chasewater was great tonight. It was slightly chilly, but there was a lovely, hazy softness to the sunset that was really captivating. I swung round the dam works via the bypass path and headed over the boardwalk to Fly Bay. The really great thing about this place is that I keep finding bits of it that I didn’t know existed. Halfway over the bay, I found this boardwalk bridge and steps, leading to the bench and fingerpost overlooking the north shore. I hoped to see some deer on my return over the heath and down the railway causeway, but sadly even the cows were in hiding. A lovely end to the day.