Weekend Walking

After an evening of Guitar Hero into the wee hours of Sunday morning there was little chance of making it to Langdon Lake and Meadows for the work party. So, instead Amy and I took a walk to Gloucester Park in Basildon to see what we could spot. It was a dry day with a fair amount of sunshine but the park was still a bit muddy from the recent rain. We wandered past the lake and saw lots of Canada Geese, Mallard, Coot, Moorhen and a couple of Tufted Ducks. Further on we heard a Great Tit, saw lots of Wood Pigeon and saw a Pied Wagtail hopping about under a poplar tree. Then, approaching the lake on the way back we saw a flash of yellow and green flying low above the ground. The mystery bird fortunately stopped on the next tree and we recognised it immediately as a Green Woodpecker. We watched it for about 5-10 minutes as it moved round the trunk, pecked on the grass, bathed in the sunshine and then eventually flew away. It was a real treat to see such a beautiful bird in my local park. It's made me aware that you really can see a wide range of birds if you keep your eyes peeled wherever you go.