Late March Snow

We had quite an early covering of snow this morning to say farewell to March giving us two seasons in one for some pictures of blackthorn blossom and snow falling. The snow thawed and then refroze to give large crystals on the cowslips and other plants in the garden

Treescapes in the Snow

Bradgate Park has some wonderful old and newer trees. Here some images of them after the snow during my recent visit to the area. 

Bradgate: Red Deer Crossing

The Red Deer often make the river crossing from the wooded area of Bradgate up onto the grazing hillsides in the evening. When I was there on Monday, I saw a large herd approaching out of the trees and start to cross the river just as my phone rang with a call I had to answer - so I missed much of the action. However, one of the stags stayed on the woodland side watching the last hinds scamper up onto the hillside before he crossed. He got as far as the Mute Swan who attacked anything that came near, took fright and reversed  a bit before bravely rushing past him to join the rest.

 

Dusk and Dawn at Trowell, Nottinghamshire

I was staying at the Travelodge on the M1 at Trowell and went straight out on foot on arrival back there on Sunday afternoon from the trip to Blacktoft Sands - it was almost dark but managed one photo with the colour still in the sky and a blueish tinge to the snow. The next morning I headed out again before sunrise and took the same scene but now the colours were reversed with some pinkish light on the snow and a blueish sky. The next photos are in time sequence as we got nearer to sunrise. The next set will show the landscape once the sun had risen.

Blacktoft Sands Landscapes

A few images of the landscape etc of Blacktoft Sands which lies on the south bank of the River Ouse, where the waterway widens to become the Humber Estuary. Reedbed covers much of the site and this is England's largest intertidal reedbed. There are six shallow saline lagoons with hides, an area of grazing marsh and a small area of mudflat. Scrub between the hides attracts a great variety of warblers and a thriving colony of tree sparrows.

Grey Heron at Bradgate

Always a delight to photograph, this was a particularly photogenic bird at Bradgate, both in the snow and in non-snowy conditions.