Well I've not done any fishing for a while or Cycling, to be honest, I've been getting stuck into the Photography since the purchase of the Nikon D500 and the 200-500mm Telephoto Lens, seriously it been a game changer in the quest for decent Photos of wildlife, and I can honestly say that
the combination is a Joy to use! (and utterly addictive!)
Anyway on the Cycling and fishing front watch this space..I need to get my finger out!!
Been out wandering around Weir Wood Reservoir quite a lot recently, its a very beautiful place, and you never know what Birds or Mammals will show up, I recently went for an early morning walk on the back of the South Bank, never really paid attention to that area much...big mistake, I shall be getting up there a lot more..!
Anyway a couple of photos   

.....It was early morning and not a breath of breeze, a lovely atmosphere could be felt.

Mornings like this puts life in perspective, we all feel hard done buy at times, but while standing taking these photos, I realised how privileged and lucky I was to be standing where I was at that moment!

   
I carried on walking for a while and came across a ploughed field there were the Usual Crows strutting around but a lot closer to me was a Pied Wagtail (female) having a good root around. Quickly got a good Image of this young lady and all of sudden from nowhere came a dozen or so Swallows, swopping in every direction, and this one landed very close to where the wagtail had been, so not to miss the chance I snapped away..  

They also landed on the Telephone lines above me, the sleek lines of these speed machines are clear to see!!

As fast as they came they were gone again, so I was pleased to capture these two shots, I love seeing them, as far as I'm concerned when they arrive after their long Journey from Africa, it must mean summer has Arrived!

After walking a little further and not seeing but hearing an incredible amount of songbirds I was on a bit of a timetable to be home. I saw in the distant corner of a field that had a view of the expanse of the Reservoir a few Canada Geese, I was slightly surprised the moment I came across them they took to flight, after all the distance between us was a lot, this however gave me a chance to get these shots, the second one shows them heading down to the Water.

I carried on making my way back to the car, when I got to the destination, even though I was on time I decided to quickly go to the Dam, and I'm very glad I did as I was witness to a hatch of mayflies, I've fished the Reservoir countless times and never seen this spectacle before so was glad I made the decision to grab a little more time in this special place!

  Its not a great life being a Mayfly, Its a bit all or nothing, your whole purpose is to hatch, breed and Die, your lifespan is at best (very best!) Twenty Four hours,..most don't even make that, for most I would say a couple of hours is their lot! 

...Wish every morning was as satisfying as this!!   

Ah...I remember days like these, running and playing around with my mates without a care in the world!

Talk about Luck, was in my car the other evening, on the way to attempt getting some pics of an elusive Owl that I've seen Once, and driving slowly in a small lane out of the corner of my eye spotted these guys playing at the edge of a field, a quick stop to seize the moment, and this is some of the results!
I watched/Photographed them for roughly Ten mins, very enjoyable, brought a smile to my face, the natural world at its best!! 
  

....Well, what happened?
For some reason, I've allowed this to slide away!
It seems a waste so I'm going to start it up again, I intend to just add those little adventures that mean nothing to most, but I seem to have little events that for me mean the world is still a great place, if you go out looking for it..here's a couple of examples taken a few evenings ago...

Goldfinch...I never tire of them.

Barn Owl,...so Exciting, found a perfect area for Owl's to hunt and first go at staking the area out ...Boom!!!

Since writing the last few posts I've got into a bit of Road Cycling, as well as enjoying going out on the Mountain Bike, I've upgraded a lot of my Camera Gear towards wildlife Photography, and wow, has technology moved on from my Canon 350d!..I own several Cameras but the Nikon D500 is just something else!
I go out Dog walking almost daily, and the Camera and a Nikon 200-500mm lens nearly always comes along when out in the fields and forests in my area, Its a slightly frustrating way to catch decent Photos as you are always on the move (I prefer either static approach or a slow walk!)...but hey end of the day Millie the dog needs a walk, so I can live with it!
I'm planning on putting up photos taken by myself of as many birds as I can find, all the common ones and hopefully not so common, however in some circumstances I'm afraid to protect the Wildlife, exact locations will be omitted, due to simply their protection...and to start this off here's a Robin with Breakfast, taken while out on an early morning walk at Amberly RSPB site came round a corner in the undergrowth and this little fella was just sitting there contemplating life..cute eh! 
   

......Strange sort of Day Yesterday, arranged to meet up with a good friend ..Kev (also known as Gruff in other circles)
on a Piking trip.
I got up very early, well before first light, to be greeted by the sound of heavy rain and wind battering the windows....not good!
spent an hour eating breakfast and the rain never relented...so went back to bed!!.....I felt really tired, oh the joys of shift work (I arrived home just after midnight after a 12hour shift)
I got up a few hours later to go and meet Kev but decided to not take any tackle with me so I could have a natter with him and not be disturbed by Pike while we chat!!
Had a great couple of hours chatting and laughing, I just love spending time in great company, quality moments that just cannot be brought!
Kev even had a couple of dropped takes ....I have a feeling "Chub" are the culprits...kevs not convinced, we beg to differ, and time will tell when kev makes contact with one of these "snatch" takes.
Anyway he did not blank a 4.8-5iber graced the bank and gave a great show in its attempt to shake the hook, if we had not landed him we both would have assumed a much bigger specimen.

His Talents did not end here, we packed up around 3'oclock as my water heater had packed up and trust me in that situation look no further then Gruff!
...Thanks mate you have saved me from more moaning from the good lady wife!

Haven't posted for a while, or for that matter been fishing or been out riding my mountain bike due to a frozen muscle in my back, I've been suffering with it for at least three months, but it really has got bad last couple of weeks and to be honest hobbies are supposed to be fun....try picking up a rod holdall/rucksack or riding a muddy path and ask yourself if you are enjoying yourself!
I suffered a few Angling trips, but it really did get to much and decided to do lots of exercise and attend Physiotherapy which has involved acupuncture and much pushing and massaging at various points around my back....I have been told that some people find this stuff relaxing....I feel that I am slowly getting beaten up!

Anyway I am slowly on the mend and just on my way out with a hope of a Carp or two!
Going to the same place as yesterday with Gruff...lets see the Outcome!!    

A Problem Solved

Well, nothing to get excited about, but a stressful week with a second car I have owned far too long,, and held onto it for a friend that has wanted to buy it, but he has just never got round to it!
Stupidly I have hung onto it, got it serviced, MOT'ed, an even Taxed it for him!
My reason's are simple he been a good mate for more years than I care to remember and the poor guy is going through a divorce and to be honest his Life has been turned upside down by this, and I have found myself being his "Agony Aunt" and it's just been my way of giving him a clean ride, which he does not seem to be getting much of nowadays, everything he touches is always hard work it seems!
I have even told him to pay me when he's ready...but made it clear this offer is not open-ended!
.......The problem for me has been I just thought the MOT ran out on 19th Dec (god knows why!)
but when I checked couple of days ago it ran out on the 19th of bloodyOct!!!!!!!!!
Much stress was suddenly felt on my shoulders to sort out yet another problem , and surprisingly solved without a hitch.
But after obtaining the needed paperwork for another year I decided no more waiting to sort out this" is he having it or not dilemma"
I phoned him and made it clear ..."Pick it up now or it on the open Market"
.....Well its nice to see an empty space outside my house, and a weight of my shoulders,
I'm a softie when it comes down to helping my mates out                                                                          but there is certainly a morale to this post,
I'll let the reader work it out!    

I'm a fanatical Angler,.. no Apologies

I fish for all species that interest me at the time my mood takes me, but I find I tend to get caught up in One species at a time or at most maybe two....At the moment its Carp and Perch.

The Picture above is a favorite spot on a lovely river after Barbel ....just doing my own thing for a while!

Well today was very much a day I've been looking forward to, as I was taking a couple of good mates, Kevin and Jason to a little syndicate which holds a variety of fish with a lot of mystery thrown in on sizes and in some cases stock amounts.
This is a beautiful bit of paradise that hardly sees another angler but today was crowded with five (including us) fishing!......9 times out of I have the complex to myself!
Anyway when I got in the car this morning (0700) the temp gage said it was a heady 1.5 fahrenheit, with a cold NW wind blowing.....great I thought, I had not seen these guys for a couple of years and so wanted them to catch, as I had watched plenty of pike during the summer feeding so had high hopes for both of them to get a few runs .......but in these conditions..hmmmm!!
Anyway I let the guys have first pick of areas to fish as my guest its important they were happy in choosing a sport they had confidence in.

well Jason an I could not buy a take but Kev had a dropped run early on and about half an hour later this beastie appeared :

Well I'm not sure who was more pleased me or Kev
.....first fish from the water 16.8Ibs !!

To be honest I was using these guys,(in a nice way) as never having piked fish this lake before I used them as feelers and I looked at any fish as a bonus today so this day will go down as a success in my book!
I managed a small jack 2-3Ibs and a dropped run but will be down there again in the near future as have plans on catching not only pike but carp, as have this season been mostly carp fishing, and have decided on catching 20's of both species already had summer carp to 22.6Ibs....

       an to catch more like the two above would make my winter angling a real success!
Other aims include Large Perch (had a few already) but thats a subject for the future.

Poor ol Jas had not a take, but he's of the old school way of thinking (like me) an his day will come an just being on the bank in beautiful surroundings more then makes up for lack of fish. (I hope!)

Anyway anyone reading this dont expect to many technical bits or secrets given out most of my fish are hard earnt, and a lot of ground work is carried out to track down the secrets my waters hold, so please don't ask venue names etc as trust me no reply will be forthcoming!

Well a great day seeing some pals again an I must make sure it not two long before I meet up again.
I'm a funny guy when it come to my angling, as most (90%) is carried out on my own out of choice, reasons are simple I can go at odd times an leave when I want to, Many carp trips are 2'o'clock pm till 11'o'clock pm  and many other variables, I rarely fish long sessions nowadays, but try an fit in as many trips out as possible.
This year Carp have been my "bread an butter" an it's been a great summer, but I now want to begin to add pike to the list, fishing early morning sessions when my work starts in the afternoon.