Wood mouse and Foxgloves

Awoke this morning to a beautiful cool day with a slight breeze, just ideal for working in my garden which had become very overgrown with thistles, nettles and yards of goose-grass etc.

So, almost with 'first light' I set to with shears and all the garden tools so necessary for a good garden tidy up, and six hours later had a very respectable heap of stuff for composting.

 Paths and steps are now clear and hopefully I can get some good photographs, maybe even butterflies on the Buddleia.

Its good to be able to just enjoy the garden and not whittle about work that has to be done in it. At least not for a while!!

An added bonus today as I sat with a refreshing drink in the early afternoon sun, a Bullfinch visited the bird feeders and stayed quite a while, to be followed shortly afterwards by  a Wood mouse.

Almost as perfect as it gets!!!

Garden Wildlife

I photographed this Jay in my garden around 6am this morning, I know its not a good photo, fact is I saw it, had the wrong lens on my camera, took a quick shot, changed the lens, and the Jay had gone. Thing is it the first time I have seen a Jay in the valley for a couple of years, which got me thinking!! You just never know when or if you are going to see it again so 'make a note' and I think the occasional addition to my blog is the perfect spot !!!

While I am at it, so to speak I might as well note one or two other things I hope to see again sometime.

Thrush singing from the top of a conifer, also early morning.

Wrens nest , she seems it have used a considerable length from a ball of garden twine which was on the shelf below the nest. There were seven fledglings but unfortunately I did not get a photograph.

Nuthatch, this was wintertime, now I have two which are regular visitors to my bird feeders.

Two Bees on a February Snowdrop

....and a seat by the Bluebells to enjoy it all.

Thank you for looking.

Dawn Chorus at Potteric.

On May 6th I joined a group of people for the Dawn Chorus Walk at Potteric Carr Nature Reserve. It was a frosty 5am start and a great opportunity to see the reserve in the early morning light.

 We visited Decoy Marsh first where we saw, and heard, the explosive call of Cetti's Warbler in the bushes near the hide, then on over the railway to Childers Wood. It was the first time I had visited this part of the reserve, it was quite beautiful, the early morning sun light filtering through the silver birches and very quiet apart from birdsong.

 Our walk took us through quite a large part of the reserve and we finished up at Cottage Drain Hide where I saw the the family of Greylag Geese, the subject of one of my new paintings.

"Cottage Drain hide Early Morning 6th May"

acrylic in stretched canvas 18"x24"

 After a very welcome and delicious breakfast in Low Ellers Cafe I spent some time in Willow Pool Hide where I saw the subject of my second painting, the Moorhen protecting her young from a Coot.

"Defending the Family"

acrylic on board and over  the flat frame 

The two paintings which resulted from that morning are now on display and  hanging on the wall in the cafe at Low Ellers.

I have a wonderful subject for a third painting from that Dawn Chorus Walk, a pair of Kingfishers made an appearance on the Mother Drain under the bridge and I am presently deciding exactly how to compose it, what view to take - one of the most interesting and important  things about painting for me.

And the Dawn Chorus Walk, well highlights included cuckoo, green woodpecker and bittern, a gentleman from Chesterfield had forty birds on his list.

 Now that Bittern, wouldn't that make a great painting ?

(Detail)

My paintings of Potteric are on display and for sale in Low Ellers Cafe in the Field Centre and are listed here:- 
http://sprotbropainter.blogspot.co.uk/p/paintings-for-sale-at-potteric-carr.html

Thank you for looking in on my blog.

Spring Morning at Piper Marsh.

A grey day at Potteric today, no sun, so the colours were rather drab apart from  a glorious clump of bright yellow Marsh Marigolds on the bank of a pool and reflected in the water. Some Hawthorns are in flower, and most of the trees are in leaf in many shades of green, but for me, the biggest difference the lack of sun makes is in the colour of the reeds, all the glorious shades of ochre and gold were missing today.

The cafe was very busy so after a warming drink of hot chocolate I carried on to Piper Marsh Hide. I was hoping to see the family of geese I had photographed last week close by the hide but was out of luck.

I had started a painting of Piper Marsh some weeks ago and although I was quite pleased with the trees in the background I have been unable complete the foreground, however I was in luck today with some good photographs of both geese and herons in action, so, fingers crossed.

Finally, returning across Black Carr Field I noted an interesting moss covered tree stump which has definite possibilities as a subject for painting, so that goes on my 'to do' list !

Painting Potteric Carr

Since February I have been able to visit Potteric Carr Nature Reserve two or three time a week on 'good weather' days. The reserve covers 500 acres, has 14 viewing hides and one viewing screen and 8km of footpaths, and I have not yet seen all of it.
The YWT website has a very good map of the reserve pathways and hides at:-http://www.ywt.org.uk/discover-learn/potteric-carr-flagship-reserve-doncaster


It will be fascinating to learn about the wildlife on this reserve and how different it is from my own environment Sprotbrough Flash.
The website edited by the Potteric Carr volunteers is very interesting and informative and has stunning photographs  at:-    http://www.potteric-carr.org.uk/


As the weather improves (hopefully) I plan to take my paints with me, I have not painted en plein air before so it will be a new experience and quite a challenge. I have already sussed out some of the views/subjects I want to paint and look forward to the variety of the seasons.


My paintings of Potteric are on display and for sale in Low Ellers Cafe in the Field Centre and are listed here:-  http://sprotbropainter.blogspot.co.uk/p/paintings-for-sale-at-potteric-carr.html


Thank you for 'looking in' on my post, I intend keeping this blog up to date with my progress in learning about, and painting on this most interesting nature reserve.  

Great White Egret, update.

This beautiful bird has been at Sprotbrough for almost a week now and there have been quite a lot of people down here especially to see it, and many scores of photographs taken and words written about it.

 Photograph taken by Hugh Parkin of the Great White Egret in the reeds at Sprotbrough Flash at 15.53 pm today.  

Great White Egret at Sprotbrough.

I feel very privileged to have seen this Great White Egret on Sprotbrough Flash this evening.

According to the books and 'birding' friends it is a rare sight indeed !

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Great White Egret and Heron

New photograph taken by Hugh Parkin on Fowlsyke Flash at 17.02 on 26th October .

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Glorious Autumn Garden Colours.

A real feel of Autumn this morning, despite recent warm weather we are well into the season now, and when the sun is out the colours in the garden are glorious.

Michaelmas daisies, hosta leaves and lord and ladies in the rockery.

A brief spell of sun after rain yesterday and the raindrops on geraniums certainly deserved a photograph.

An Acer in the sunlight .......

...........and a small one in the shade has bright red jewel like leaves.

                              

Clashing colours of mahonia, ferns and
pelargoniums.

These were in flower until snow in November last year.

 Lastly glorious, golden fallen beech leaves.

My Paintings of Barges on Yorkshire Waterways.

"Comrade and Audrey on the Humber" oil 

I recently sold a small oil painting 'Freight for Rotherham" and memories of a time in the 1990s came flooding back. At that time in my narrowboat 'Sprotbro' Painter'  I had a wonderful time cruising around the canal system painting all sorts of waterway craft, these are just a few.

"Afternoon Sailing, Comrade and Audrey off Spurn Point" oil on board 24"x18"

I am a member of the Guild of Waterway Artists and we used to meet up every year and hold an exhibition of our work at Stoke Bruerne, the trip down in our narrow-boat took a considerable time and there were many interesting things I wanted to paint. This next painting, a small oil, was the result of a view I recorded on the River Trent as we passed a barge loading gravel.

"Loading gravel on the River Trent" small oil on board.

To get to the River Trent from Sprotbrough we had to go through Bramwith Lock which lies east of Doncaster. Thorpe Marsh power station which is shown in the background of the next painting is now partly demolished and I am not sure if all the cooling towers remain.

"Littlebeck at Bramwith Lock" oil on board.

An example of the results of heavy rain and floods, seen every so often  on our local waterways, these two barges, moored above the

weir, had come adrift, and had a 'coming together' by the bridge at Aldwarke near Rotherham. (sometime in the 1990s) 

"Floods at Aldwarke" oil on board.

I must say I do miss seeing the old barges carrying freight on our local waterway, the only freight on the river at present is Humber Princess on a twice weekly trip from Hull to Rotherham with fuel. 

She is a very impressive 60 meters long by 6 meters wide and bright red, I think a winter painting of her passing Levitt Hagg could be 'on the cards' !!

"Sprotbro' Painter" 1989-2003 

Herons!!!

A heron flew overhead as I took  my morning coffee in the garden today, an hour later I walked up the towpath and saw five herons standing in the field of stubble on the opposite bank of Sprotbrough Flash vole hunting. It is a very large bird, fully grown around 36 inches tall, they can usually be seen standing in shallow water   patiently stalking the fish, I have also seen them in the winter, on the rocks below the falls.

"Herons Fishing below Sprotbrough Falls"

acrylic on canvas 14"x10"

"Winter Fishing at Sprotbrough Bridge"

acrylic on canvas, small section of a larger painting.

I got to thinking how many times I have painted herons and also included them in my paintings of the local landscape and waterways. They are so much part of the local scenery and such a beautiful bird.

On Sprotbrough Cut last winter.

Herons can off course be seen on  many of our waterways and this next painting is of herons at Aysgarth Falls, in acrylic, painted some time ago.

Herons at Aysgarth Falls 

For me, the most entertaining time to see our local herons is early on a summer morning before there are people around, and if there are boats moored up overnight sometimes a heron can be seen fishing from the roof of one.

"Heron on the Rocks"