Winter Walks

 With the lockdown restrictions we have been under for the last two months my normal Winter Walks have been limited to places I can readily walk to from my house. This hasn't however stopped me from taking my little camcorder with me and capturing any wildlife I see on the way.

Here are some of the places we have walked to over the last six weeks and some of the wildlife (birds really) that we have seen:

Walk to Dundas Parks Golf Club (about 2.5 miles return)

Not a long walk by any stretch of the imagination, and a good part of it is alongside the B800 road, however there can be some wildlife to see. In my last blog I had been moaning about the lack of winter thrushes (and finches), but a cold snap and easterly winds at the end of January brought in a few winter birds. We had only walked a few yards and were still in our street when we saw this Redwing on the ground:

Redwing on the ground (honest)

Okay not the greatest of images, but as I said I had my trusty camcorder with me:

Not a bad start to our walk. we carried on up the B800 (aka A8000) until we reached the entrance road to the Golf Course. This road doesn't boast the most dramatic of scenery, but you do have a nice view over the open fields to the South, and there is a strip of woodland that runs along the Northern side:

Road to Dundas Parks Golf Course

Open Fields to the South

There isn't usually too much in the field, Wood Pigeons, Crows and the occasional Pheasant, but the little wooded area can throw up a few interesting birds. First up was this Great Tit hopping about in the bushes looking for something to eat:

Seen a lot of Great Tits this Winter, must be a bumper year for them. Next to make an appearance was a little Robin:

Very quiet for a Robin, they usually have something to say for themselves. The following bird we heard before we saw it and I instantly recognised its call. It was a Nuthatch, becoming more common around Central Scotland but a familiar bird to me from my time spent in the Scottish Borders:

We did see other more common birds such as Blue Tit, Blackbird and Yellowhammer but no great videos of these. On our way back home we did see this Grey Squirrel sunning itself on a log:

We headed back home along the B800 with no other significant sightings to report; but I thought we got a reasonable bag of wildlife on such a short walk from our home.

Walk along old Railway Line to Pepper Wood (about 6 miles return)

The old railway line I am referring to runs from Port Edgar to Newbridge and is now a cycle/walkway for most of its length. I joined it at Dalmeny Village, where the path runs alongside the main Edinburgh to Dalmeny (and all points north) railway line, and I headed south towards Kirkliston:

Path alongside existing Dalmeny Railway Line

After negotiating the tunnel under the existing railway line I headed back on to the line of the old track, here I was pleased to see a couple of birds that I hadn't seen recently. Firstly there was a Reed Bunting in the bushes at the side of the track:

A few steps further along the track there was a Fieldfare hiding in the branches at the top of a small tree:

Sorry if the video is a bit fuzzy in places but the camcorder struggles to focus when there are so many branches in front of the subject. Nevertheless I am sure that you can see that it is indeed a Fieldfare.

I carried on along the track which runs alongside the perimeter fence of the Royal Elizabeth Yard:

Track past the Royal Elizabeth Yard

Structure housing old well beside track

I don't know if the old well (as shown on old maps) beside the track had anything to do with the railway line but I could still hear water running through it. One thing that was definitely related to the original railway line was the siding and associated gate that took the rail track straight in to the Royal Elizabeth Yard premises:

Siding Gate Entrance to Royal Elizabeth Yard

Back in the late 19th/early 20th Century any industrial business wanting to get ahead had a railway siding straight in to there premises. Whether you were transporting castings, coal, engineering products, timber or (in the case of this yard) food supplies for the Royal Naval bases at Port Edgar and Rosyth you needed a railway siding so that locomotives could come straight in to your premises to drop off and pick up what you wanted delivered. 

This railway line (like so many others) closed in 1966 and the siding was then redundant. By then the goods from the yard (known as a Royal Naval Victualling Depot) were being transported by road which was more flexible. Port Edgar ceased being a Naval Base in 1970 and although the yard remained in armed forces ownership until 1996 it use was greatly reduced. Royal Elizabeth Yard is still in use but as an industrial estate with various units for lease.

The next part of my walk took me under an ivy-clad bridge carrying the Royal Elizabeth Yard road and through to a high-sided railway cutting.

Old railway track beyond Royal Elizabeth Yard

Ivy-clad Bridge

The deep railway cutting after the bridge does not get much sunshine, especially in the winter months and this makes for a very damp micro-climate, as indicated by the moss and lichen growing on the trees:

Muddy path through cutting

Moss and Lichen on Trees

Lichen

After a hundred yards (or metres) the cutting opens up to a tree-lined path, starting with small Hawthorn and Rowan trees and then graduating to tall Scot's Pines:

Track leading out of cutting

Track lined with Scot's Pine

At this point I noticed something moving on the track ahead of me:

No it wasn't the ghostly image of a steam train, it was a Grey Squirrel.

A short distance later I came off the old railway line and on to the road leading to Pepper Wood, a hundred (or so) yards later and I was at the entrance:

Pepper Wood Entrance Sign (needs some work)

Entering Pepper Wood

The thing I like about Pepper Wood is that it is a very low maintenance wood. If a tree falls over or a branch falls off it is basically left where it fell, unless of course it is blocking the path, then it might be moved a bit. The paths themselves can be hard to find, they are muddy in the winter and overgrown in the summer, but that is how I like it, and it's how nature likes it too.

Pepper Wood Trees

Fallen Tree

Muddy Path and Bridge

When I say nature loves it maybe I was a bit hasty as very little showed itself when I was there. I did see a friendly Robin and a couple of Blackbirds:

I carried on through the woods, past the pond, over the other bridge, past other fallen trees and back to the entrance.

Pepper Wood Pond

Another Fallen Tree

The weather was starting to close in and rain was threatening, so I decided to make my way home. I took a different route on the way back which took me up Standingstane Road and along Royal Elizabeth Yard road. On my way back I saw some evidence of other wildlife, which looked very much like a Sparrowhawk kill. 

View of Edinburgh Airport and the Pentland Hills

CSI Sparrowhawk

Looking down on track from Ivy-clad Bridge

Royal Elizabeth Yard Road

I had a really enjoyable walk that day, despite not seeing too much wildlife, well there was the Reed Bunting and the Fieldfare at the start of the walk.

The week after this we had a reasonable amount of snow falling, so it made for a few different Winter Walks

Walk along Home Farm Road (about a couple of miles or so)

This was planned to be a slighter longer walk in the Winter snow, but the snow wasn't finished with us quite yet. We started our walk by heading through the grounds of Ove Arup (an engineering consultant firm) as we knew it would be relatively un-walked on snow, and it was very pretty:

The Snow-covered Grounds of Ove Arup

Snowy Tree

Just Like a Christmas Tree

Very Pretty Snow Scene

Dressed for the snow

We then trudged on up the B800 before turning off into Home Farm Road. The woods at the side of the road were covered in snow, but we did see a Pheasant picking its way through the trees:

Snowy Woods by Home Farm Road

The wee wa' wis laden wi sna' anaw! (the little wall alongside the road was well covered with snow as well):

The Wee Wa'

We did see some other wildlife in this area, including this tree full of birds (well one Blue Tit and one Great Tit):

We continued along a snowy Home Farm Road:

A Snowy Home Farm Road

We had only walked a few hundred yards further along the road when we noticed the weather was closing in and the snow was on its way. We hurried along to a little wooded copse where we could take some shelter:

Where we Sheltered from the Snow

Love these snow-coated trees

Once the snow shower passed the skies brightened up again and we started to walk further along the track:

Heading along Home Farm Road (now a track)

The Skies were looking brighter

We were lulled into a false sense of security by the little bits of blue sky. No sooner had we started along the track when another snow shower started up. We decided at this point to turn around and head home:

Weather closing in, again

More snow heading our way

By the time we got back to the Home Farm Cottages the snow was quite heavy:

Battling through the snow

I had to put my camera away and concentrate on getting home before we turned into a snowman and a snowwoman. that was the end of our walk for that day.

A Stroll Along The Cycle/Walkway (again about a couple of miles round trip)

The cycle/walkway I am referring to is the section of old railway line that runs from Port Edgar to Dalmeny, and for most part it is tarmacked. We joined this walkway just west of Ferry Glen (basically behind the bowling club). The Ferry Glen is where the Ferry Burn leaves its culvert and cascades downhill before entering another culvert under the old railway embankment, after which it flows into the Forth.

Ferry Burn Cascades Through Ferry Glen

There was plenty of water coming down the burn as there was a bit of a thaw on. This little video probably gives you a better impression of the gushing water than a photo:

Okay it's not Niagara Falls, but it is only a little burn after all.

The walkway was reasonable busy in places, but it is wide enough to safely pass each other and keep the recommended 2 metres distance (although some folk are completely oblivious to who is around them and walk four abreast down the middle of the track?  ..........sorry about the rant!). Here are some folk on the walkway sensibly spaced out:

A Stroll along the Cycle/Walkway

No it's not me and Moira!

A few hundred yards along the walkway towards Dalmeny there is a gap in the trees which provides a commanding view of all three bridges:

Forth Rail Bridge

Forth Road Bridge and Queensferry Crossing

All Three Bridges

Really nice on a sunny day and a little snow still on the roofs of the houses. We carried on towards Dalmeny.

Heading along the Cycle/Walkway

Moira on Cycle/Walkway

Me with a nice backdrop

We carried on under the railway line to the Forth Bridge and up a slight slope towards Station Road. At this point we stopped to watch a little Wren busily searching for something to eat along the edge of the water running down the drainage ditch.

Looking back down the track we saw it was getting quite busy:

Looking back down the track

And looking ahead of us also looked quite busy, so we decided to come off the cycle/walkway at Station Road and head home via Dalmeny Station, rather than continue on to Dalmeny Village. I was quite surprised to see how quiet Dalmeny Station car park was:

An empty Dalmeny Station Car Park

I know we are in the middle of a lockdown and it had been snowing, but on a weekday such as this it is normally heaving. Not complaining, better than dodging cars driving around trying to find a parking space. Fifteen minutes later we were back home with the kettle on, a really enjoyable little walk.

A Walk on Down to The Waterfront and back (about 3miles or so)

I enjoyed the previous walk so much I decided to get up the next morning and head on beyond the cycle/walkway, down to the waterfront at South Queensferry. Any snow-melt from yesterday's slight thaw had re-frozen, making some of the paths downhill quite icy and treacherous: I proceeded with care:

Heading Down to The Waterfront

Slippery Path Downhill

After negotiating the slippery downhill paths I reached the level ground of the Esplanade and took in the views:

Rail Bridge

Road Bridges

South Queensferry

Looking out to the river I saw the familiar shape of a Grebe on the water, but which type of Grebe? I zoomed in with my trusty camcorder:

I am pretty sure that it is a Slavonian Grebe (also known as a Horned Grebe) the birders among you should be able to confirm this. They are known to over-winter in the Forth Estuary before returning to their breeding grounds. I have seen them in the Spring on inland lochs in the Highlands and their breeding plumage is spectacular.

A little further along the esplanade I watched this Curlew foraging amongst the seaweed and probing the sand for invertebrates to eat:

This dapper Oystercatcher was also probing for worms and other invertebrates on the sand nearby, with the Forth Rail Bridge serving as a dramatic back-drop:

I moved along the esplanade until I reached the Hawes Pier, here I went down on to the little beach area under the Rail Bridge:

Heading under The Rail Bridge

Beach Area under the Forth Bridge

From here you could look out over the estuary towards the Fife coast;

Looking along the Bridge to Fife

It was here that I saw this Redshank busily searching the shoreline for something to eat.

There were still a few patches of snow on rocks along the beach, an ideal photo opportunity.

Hound Point Oil Terminal and Fife Coast

The Rail Bridge and Snowy Rocks

All the Bridges

Whilst I was taking that last photograph a train came over the Rail Bridge so I caught it on video. It really demonstrates the enormity of this structure when you see a train passing over it; it looks like a toy train!

I moved a little further along the beach until I came to a point where rocks and seaweed prevented me from going any further (safely that is). Here I had a good view over the water to Hound Point Oil Terminal (used for pumping crude oil from ships up to Dalmeny Storage Tanks) with the coast of Fife in the background.

Looking Towards Fife

It was at this point I noticed another Grebe in the water. This time it was a bit further away, however it was instantly recognisable as a Great Crested Grebe:

I made my way back along the beach, under the Rail Bridge and headed round the back of the Hawes Inn to take the stairs (Jacob's Ladder) back up to the cycle/walkway. Because it is in the shade the sun had not melted the snow on Jacob's Ladder and it was treacherous, like trying to climb up a toboggan run, luckily there was a banister (of sorts):

Jacob's Ladder Toboggan Run

I finally made it to the top and stopped for a short rest under the Rail Bridge, which gave me a slightly unusual perspective of this fantastic structure:

The Forth Rail Bridge

With that photo (and all the others) safely in the bag I headed home.

Wildlife back at Home (no miles done)

We are quite fortunate (especially during lockdown) to stay in an area that has short walks of interest nearby. Sometimes I think we are also lucky that we have a decent range of wildlife (particularly birds) that choose to visit our garden and the surrounding green areas, so that we can enjoy them without even going for a short walk. Here are a few examples of the less common birds I have seen from our windows:

First up is a beautiful Song Thrush in our back garden:

Not in our front garden but in a nearby tree was the Song Thrush's close cousin, the Redwing (also featured at the start of this blog, but this one was a few weeks later).

Moving away from the thrushes, here are some buntings, namely a pair of Yellowhammers in our back garden. The video features a male first then a female, which is slightly less colourful but still a nice bird to see.

Well that's about it for my local winter walks and local birds out the window, I will leave you with a little video of a pair of Jackdaws on our garden fence. They just want to be friends, which I found quite amusing; I was tempted to do some dialogue with the video but I will leave that up to your imagination:

Take care out there,

Cheers

TeddyEdward