Pensthorpe is a fabulous place. About 15 miles away from us, just outside Fakenham, it's a delightful nature reserve, with beautiful grounds and amazing birdlife. (Oh, and a very agreeable cafe and shop, too.)
This morning we went on the Dawn Chorus Walk, led by Steve Cale. This started at 5:00 am, and therefore involved getting up at 3:15 am - makes Easter Dawn seem like a doddle. It also means that you lose half the day when you get back, as staying awake just wasn't an option, and we crashed out for about two hours!
However, in a period of heavy rain, we were lucky enough to have a reasonably fine (if cold) morning, and had a great time. Steve's knowledge of birds and their birdsong is unbeatable, and how he can pick out the seven different types of warbler is beyond me - especially when several of them are singing at once! Not to mention chiff-chaffs, blackbirds, wrens and of course robins, amongst many others. And we finished up with a full English breakfast to warm up...
As my digital camera doesn't have a powerful zoom, I haven't taken any photos of the birds themselves, but here are a few of the beautiful place.
a beautiful dawn
listening to reed warblers across the water
through the bluebell woods
a very confused slow-worm
