Swarms of midges over the heather for them.
Dense fog on the tops this morning but on arrival at Leeshaw reservoir the sky was bright with large blue areas and odd banks of mist moving through. Dead calm conditions at 7 degrees and fog higher up to the east and north.
Just one early skein of Pinks very distant and heading >W with plenty more reported over the Queensbury, Ogden and Calderdale areas but none till late morning and very little after midday.
Odd to see a small flock of Coal, Great and Long Tailed Tits fly over the water stopping briefly in one of the only 2 trees present then off over the moor >W.
Small squadrons of Starlings were moving >NW whilst a single Dipper was in the beck.
Late afternoon and a planned trip to Fly Flatts was aborted when I stopped at the top of Perseverance Road to check the sky situation to find a thick bank of fog spreading a full 360 degrees around the horizon and hanging low with blue skies above so I decided the best option was to stay put on Soil Hill which would be a good vantage point if any more geese were on the move.
Conditions were good for viewing though the habitat on the summit is now very poor and overgrown. Nothing overhead apart from around 500 big gulls over the Col circling round very high and noisy above the Oxenhope reservoir roost with at least 2 Great Black Backed present.
A pair of Teal were on the NK pond along with Mallards whilst 2 Meadow Pipits and a single Skylark were on the west summit.
A nice group of 8 Stonechat were at the top of the west slope around the heather where there were swarms of midges in the light easterly breeze.
A weekend and beyond of light east and south east wind meaning a good chance of more fog with Queensbury in dense fog tonight and even now folk are setting crackers off which seems a waste of brass, thall noen see t'rockets once thiv getten past peak o tha flat cap, as they used to say up here in hill billy country.
Leeshaw
32 Pinkies.......................>W
16 Lapwing
4 Lt Tit, 2 Gt Tit, 4 Coal Tit......>W
2 Cormorant
1 Dipper
34 Starling...............>NW
+ usual sp.
Soil Hill
3 Stock Doves
8 Stonechat
c 500 Big gulls
2 GBB gull
2 Mipits
1 Skylark
12 Mallard
1pr Teal
+ usual sp.
BS