Tag Archives: Winchester

Swift Fledgling

When the weather has been really hot at home, we have had windows open all over the house. I was out of the office having lunch with Nancy in the back of the house and I could hear a bird tweeting that sounded very close but didn’t really pay much attention to it. However, when I went back into my office after lunch, I saw a bird sitting on the window frame. At first, I stopped dead and called Nancy to have a look before it flew off if we startled it.

This was not a problem. The bird seemed totally uninterested in my presence. I am not a specialist on birds, but I think it was a swift and that it was recently fledged. Every once in a while, it would start tweeting which may well have been because the parents were nearby. Then it would go very quiet again. I took some photos and footage of it before returning to work. I figured it would fly off in due course.

This wasn’t the case. By the end of the workday, it was still sitting there. I did wonder at this point whether the open window meant parents couldn’t see where it was. Maybe staying there wasn’t going to be good for it and I would need to close the window at night. I decided to try moving it across the road to a fence post, so it was elevated but also visible. I got some gardening gloves to pick it up. At first, it seemed uninterested in moving but then suddenly it took off and flew across the road, over the fence and into the fields. Later in the evening, our neighbours saw it sitting on the spoke of the wheel of their vehicle. I guess it liked the warmth. However, we didn’t see it again. No idea whether it did okay or not.

Poppies in the Neighbourhood

There was a time earlier in the year when it seemed like, wherever I went, there were poppies in bloom. That included in the area around our house. There were poppies on the earth piled up by the construction crews as well as alongside the paths and roads. They are a bit tricky to photograph because, with their long stalks, they are flexible and, unless it is absolutely still, they are constantly moving. Besides that, I did manage to get a few images. I do wonder whether the red of the petals is one that digital sensors struggle with as they seem to be look more muted than they felt in person.

Wild Flowers Take Over Barton Meadows

The herd of cattle that used to be found grazing in Barton Meadows Wildlife Refuge have moved on – presumably not in a great way for them! With nothing grazing the fields, they have taken on quite a wild look. As I was walking around one morning, I was quite taken by the number of wildflowers that had become established. Wild growth is a big thing in the UK now and I really love it. Hopefully so does all of the wildlife that gets to live within it.

Very Large Moth Comes to Visit

One afternoon I headed out to the garage to sort something out on my bike. As I went to open the garage door, I saw something on the brick next to the door. It was one of the larger moths that I have come across in my life – apparently an eyed hawk-moth. It was huge compared to what we normally see. I assumed it would rapidly be scared off but, no, not only did it not seem to care about me opening and closing the garage door, but it was still there a couple of hours later when I came out. The camouflage looks really good if you are in leaves or on a tree trunk, but I don’t think brink is the perfect background for this species.

How Will I Know the Type?

The airlines have adopted the practice of writing their name on the underside of their planes. I am not sure if it was Emirates that started it but that was who I first noticed doing it and now others have followed suit. I haven’t seen the type written on the underside of the plane before, though. This bizjet flew over home on approach to Southampton. I can safely say I would have known what it was but apparently the owner wants to make sure no one is in any doubt about what type they are operating.

Cattle Scratching an Itch

It had been a while since I had last taken a walk around Barton Meadows and, with all of the things I had needed to do on a Sunday done, I didn’t want to just doze off on what was a lovely day. I thought a couple of miles around the nature reserve would be a good finish to the afternoon. I wasn’t going to go without the camera, though. There was some wildlife to be seen but most things were a bit distant. The cattle were in the field though. Some of them were up at the gate at the top of one of the fields and using it to scratch themselves. I find this very amusing for some reason so switched to video to capture them looking like they were really enjoying themselves. Not quite Baloo in Jungle Book but similar!

St Cross

Head south out of Winchester and you come to an impressive church. It is part of the hospital and alms houses of St Cross and, while it looks like a cathedral, it is just a normal church. Not only does it look good, but it is also situated in a lovely valley alongside the river. We took a walk down by St Catherine’s Hill and then crossed the valley to return up the river. This gave us both a good view across the valley then close up to the church. Here are some shots to show it off. It must be considered picturesque because it is used as the cover photo for the Ordnance Survey map of the area!

Flame Details in the Bonfire

Bonfire night celebrations in Winchester included a big fire and fireworks demonstration in Wall Park. The bonfire was started in dramatic (i.e. fake) fashion with two cannons firing towards it and it igniting. It was quite a spectacle although clearly a bit contrived. The whole thing is contrived of course. As the fire got established, I found myself entranced by the flames. Watching fire is like watching the waves. Every one is slightly different and I can spend a ridiculous amount of time just staring at it.

Getting images that actually reflect what I saw is something I haven’t practised so I was winging it a bit. The brightness of the most intense parts of the flames is so much more than the cooler areas that it is hard to reflect the detail that can be seen without blowing everything out. I went with underexposing to try and show more of what was interesting to me. Then I would look up at the hot particles above the fire as they rose and dispersed. They looked beautiful as they swirled around and cooled.

Bonfire Night Parade in Winchester

Winchester has a large bonfire and firework display scheduled for the beginning of November. It is on the Saturday rather than the 5th specifically. It all kicks off with a parade through the town to the park where the bonfire and fireworks are. Everyone is welcome to buy a small torch to light and carry as part of the parade. I was more interested in seeing the parade than being part of it.

It was quite funny watching how many people had lit their torches as soon as they got them. Many of them were pretty much burnt out before the parade got underway. Probably a bit disappointing but I’m sure it wasn’t the end of the world. The parade came up through the centre of Winchester and there were loads of people there both taking part and watching.

The mayor was at the front of the parade, and a drum band was close behind. They brought a load of energy to the proceedings. I was playing around with lower shutter speeds to try and represent the movement of the group which meant many totally useless shots. Hopefully some of these give an impression of how things were.

Hockley Viaduct

In the days before the M3 around Winchester was built, you used to come off the motorway on to an A road that took you past Winchester before you then rejoined the motorway north of the city. My recollection of this road was that it ran alongside some brick arches. At the time, I had no idea what it was and, once the motorway was built, I couldn’t be sure whether my memory was accurate. Since we moved here, I have ridden on the trails south of the city and one of them takes you over the Hockley Viaduct. This is a disused railway viaduct which is now a trail. Once I saw it, I knew this must have been what I remembered.