Now that the first flurries of snow have dusted the Pennine Peaks (it’s just started snowing here in Padiham as I edit this! (Nov 2023)) I thought it would be a good time to publish this short guide to identifying some of the animal tracks you might see whilst out and about. A good wayContinue reading “Tracking Animals in the Snow”
Tag Archives: #Yorkshire
Sheep Scanning
Sheep are ‘short day’ breeders, meaning they mate when the days become shorter in the autumn so their lambs are born early enough to take advantage of next year’s spring growth. Around this time of year hill farmers will scan their ewes to find out how many lambs they are holding. They do this byContinue reading “Sheep Scanning”
The Village of Keasden
The picturesque village of Keasden is situated in the far Northeastern corner of Bowland, just over the Yorkshire/Lancashire boundary, it is a small hamlet consisting of little except St Matthew’s church, built in 1873, a phonebox and a scattering of farmhouses. The name Keasden originates from ‘cheese den’, or ‘cheese valley’, as the area’s richContinue reading “The Village of Keasden”
The Dog Rose
The Dog Rose, Rosa canina, is a deciduous shrub native to the British isles, it is found in a wide variety of habitats but prefers hedgerows and scrubby patches of woodland, where it grows in a sprawling manner, its stems arching over each other and getting entangled with other briars and shrubs. It usually reachesContinue reading “The Dog Rose”
The Water Ouzel
The Dipper, or Water Ouzel Cinclus cinclus, (cinclus originating from a Greek word ‘kinklos’, meaning ‘small’) is the British isle’s only aquatic song-bird, it is sleek yet dumpy at the same time with beautifully dark, chestnut coloured plumage and one of the finest swimmers you will ever witness. Aquatically Adept An expert swimmer the DipperContinue reading “The Water Ouzel”
The Abandoned Steam Crane in Jumbles Quarry
Stocks reservoir sits at the head of the Hodder valley in Lancashire and was constructed over the latter half of the 1920s, opening in July 1932, you can read about the history of the reservoir here; Sources of Stone For the construction of the dam and its many associated buildings, culverts, causeways, bridges etc nearbyContinue reading “The Abandoned Steam Crane in Jumbles Quarry”
The Wood Mouse
The Wood Mouse Apodemus sylvaticus, (Apodemus deriving from the Ancient Greek for ‘away from home’, and sylvaticus coming from the Latin for ‘of the woods’), is a very common rodent of the British countryside and quite a handsome looking wee beastie, with a dark brown back, yellow/brown flanks, white chest and belly. They are oftenContinue reading “The Wood Mouse”
The Rocks Beneath Our Feet, Part Two, Norber Erratics
Norber Erratics are fascinating and unique geological formations scattered on the western flanks of Ingleborough in Ribblesdale near to the village of Austwick. They are formed from over a hundred precariously balanced boulders and widely thought to be the best example of glacial erratics in the British isles, erratic referring to the fact that theyContinue reading “The Rocks Beneath Our Feet, Part Two, Norber Erratics”
