More Moor

Friday dawned cold but quite bright, with me yet again not going after that Sparrow. Coming straight off a night shift and then trying to get over to Calshot as early as possible didn't sound like a great plan, and it was still quite windy. Instead I decided a nice weekday on t'Moor was a better plan.

I went up to Fernworthy, thinking to stay among the valleys and trees if it was too windy and 'orrible, but to get up on the tops if it wasn't. The forestry was well sheltered and quite balmy in the sunshine - and there was some serious sunshine, albeit with big showers stomping around - I'd wrapped up and was a bit on the warm side, even. Getting out of the compound and onto the moor proper, I found it nicely damp underfoot, with some interesting changes wrought by rain. The Moor does that, it changes quite drastically. In this case a stream formerly not more than a foot or so deep now had bits that were deeper than my hiking pole fully extended... Still only two or three feet wide and full right up to the grass. Nasty accident waiting to happen, there. Holes happen. The track in Steeperton Gorge not too many years ago suddenly showed itself to have a hole about four feet deep under it - thin layer of rooty gravel on top... Now its all filled in. Probably. A ford on the Teign now has pebble banks in it where before it was calf-deep right the way across. Many slopes have huge gouges cut in them by the runoff from heavy rain - usually where some tosser on a bike has cut a furrow and the water has taken its opportunity - the grass ends in a big step down to a surface of uncertain soil; will you sink?

Anyway.

I went up to Sittaford Tor via the beautiful twin circles of the Grey Wethers, finding one of those lovely spots where the wind blows past. It rained, but thanks to the wind and the outcrop it rained past me not on me :D Taking a patch of blue sky I pressed on to Quintin's Man. More a ridge-end than a hill, with a cairn, a range flag pole and a couple of army huts, its quite out of the way but with a nice view. In this case of a big black cloud. Army huts are very useful cover when cairns are too low to hide behind, and I stood and grinned as it snowed past me!

Very interesting weather, with a textbook illustration of high level clouds visible above the showers, the sun being surprisingly warm for January, and the wind blowing a fair hoolie. The waterways were all up, and I didn't feel like yomping up Hangingstone Hill [let alone Whitehorse], so I headed back to Fernworthy in the hope of more birds. Oh yes, the birds! On the Moor, a distant and shifty flock of ~25 Golden Plover was the best. Among the trees, there were a fair few small groups of Crossbills, though only one male showed well, with two groups of Redpoll and the usual Tits and 'crests. A very dark Buzzard [looking almost like a dark morph vulpinus] was interesting and both Great Spotted and Green Woodpeckers were heard drumming. The reservoir was quiet, a few early arriving Herring Gulls, a Little Grebe, 5 Teal...

I had a most pleasant day, hardly a soul about [for some strange reason, can't think why...?], though I still managed to pick up a sandwich bag full of litter - a load of balloons lying around for some reason?!? - but what can you do?