Loch Leven's Larder

Please don't be confused by this post. It is not a review of the Farm Shop/Restaurant of a similar name. This post covers the 'real' larder at Loch Leven; I am referring to the natural sustenance that is available for wildlife living and visiting the loch and it's surrounding area.
I was fortunate enough to make a couple of visits to Loch Leven over the last few weeks and I would like to share some of the wonderful sights and sounds that I experienced.
The first of these visits was with my friend Grant back in mid-October and we started our visit at the RSPB's reserve on the southern shore of the loch (aka Vane Farm). It was a glorious morning and we were treated to some spectacular views as well as some fantastic wildlife:

Loch Leven and Lomond Hills from Gillman Hide

Across the Reserve to Loch Leven

These first two photos are views from the largest of the bird hides at Vane Farm, known as the Gillman Hide, which is only 100m from the RSPB café (for those of you who don't like to walk too far to see wildlife!). We saw quite a variety of wildlife from this hide including wildfowl, waders, birds of prey, finches, rabbits, etc. Here is a couple of video clips taken from the hide, one features Pintails (and other ducks) feeding and the other clip shows a 'raft' of Goosanders on the loch:

Whilst I was watching (and filming) a Whooper Swan feeding at the edge of the loch I could hear the distinctive sound of Pink-footed Geese and scanning over to the North side of the loch I managed to capture this eruption of Pinkies:

After an hour or so watching birds from this hide Grant and I took a walk to the Carden hide which is the furthest away hide on the reserve and can often get the best birds. We were not disappointed; in fact even before we entered the hide we got great views of a Water Rail feeding on the edge of the pond:

Once inside the hide we were treated with sightings of Snipe, Little Egret, Gadwall, Teal, etc. and the views across the ponds were a treat in their own right:

View from Carden Hide

Grey Heron Reflection

I also made a short video clip of this Heron............. although it was pretty static most of the time............. so a still photo would have served the same purpose:

We had a bite of lunch in this hide before we decided to move on (it is 600m from the RSPB café so remember and take a flask with you!). After lunch we decided to have a trip round to the North shore of the loch in the hope that we might get better views of the Pink-footed Geese.
By this time it was getting cloudier, however the views of the loch from the North shore were just as stunning:

Whooper Swans on Loch Leven

Loch Leven Panorama

Small Island off Burleigh Sands

We parked at Burleigh Sands and had a walk round the northern end of the Loch Leven Heritage Trail (which now goes all the way round Loch Leven, so you can walk, cycle, run, hop, skip or jump without coming in contact with any cars).
Just about where the Loch Leven's Larder Farm Shop/Restaurant is situated there is a path that joins the heritage trail, and this is the ideal spot to watch Pinkies coming and going as they leave the loch to graze in nearby fields in the morning and return in the evening. We managed to spot some that were obviously spooked by something as they took off from the loch-side and circled around before heading back to the loch (meeting another flock which had just taken off from the other side of the loch). Hope that makes sense once you see the video:

As it was getting colder and darker Grant and I decided to call it a day after enjoying this spectacle and we headed home.
A couple of weeks later I returned to Burleigh Sands with my friend Jon and we also had a walk along the northern shore of Loch Leven. Our first encounter was with some Greylag Geese which were quite near the shore.

Greylag Geese on Loch Leven 

Unlike Pink-footed Geese, Greylags are not so easily spooked and were happy to tolerate our presence on the fore-shore:

In fact they were so tolerant that more of them flew in to join the party. You will also notice that they sound more like we imagine geese should sound........... with a loud 'honking' noise (as opposed to Pinkies, which I think sound like a pack of small yappy dogs).

A little further along the track we noticed some swans not far offshore; these were a mixture of Mute Swans and Whooper Swans. They are easily distinguished from each other despite being of similar size and colour: the Mute Swan is the swan we commonly see on waterways around Britain, it has an orange and black bill and as the name suggests it seldom makes a noise; the Whooper Swan is a Winter visitor from Iceland, it has a yellow and black wedge-shaped bill and as the name suggests it has a 'whooping' or 'bugling' call.
The following video serves to emphasise these differences:

The Mute Swan was displaying quite an aggressive posture, probably because it didn't appreciate these northern visitors invading its territory.
We seemed to be doing quite well on the waterfowl front, with some good views of swans and geese, we added ducks to that list when we spotted a couple of Pintail near the shore-line:

Jon and I moved further along the track and we had almost reached the spot where I had seen the Pink-footed Geese with Grant a fortnight earlier, when...........right on cue.......... a flock of Pinkies flew right over our heads:

You may have noticed that I almost fell over filming these geese (I bend over backwards to bring you these blogs you know!).
Hopefully you also heard the 'yappy dog' calls of the Pinkies I referred to earlier, much higher pitched than the Greylag calls.
Just to prove it wasn't all wildfowl we spotted on our trip to Loch Leven, I leave you with this clip of a male reed bunting:

Loch Leven at any time of year is worth a visit but October/November is a great time to go if you want to see some of the birds featured in this blog.

Take Care,

Teddyedward

Camping Ecosse Part Deux

Hello,

In late September and early October we had another couple of camping trips in Vannie and I thought I would share these adventures with you.
Firstly we went to Pitlochry, staying at a privately run campsite called Milton of Fonab, just on the outskirts of Pitlochry.

Vannie at Milton of Fonab

River Tummel at Milton of Fonab

Once we parked up we took a stroll into Pitlochry, passing by the Hydro-electric Power Station and Loch Faskally:

Faskally Dam & Power Station

River Tummel from Power Station Dam

Loch Faskally from Power Station Dam

Suspension Bridge over River Tummel

Moira wasn't too keen on crossing the suspension bridge as it can wobble a bit (especially if somebody is shaking it when you are crossing!!).
The following day the weather was quite sunny so we decided to take a walk round the Explorers Garden, which is located right next to Pitlochry Festival Theatre. Late September is probably not the best time to see the exotic plants in this garden, which is populated by plants collected by various intrepid Scottish explorers. It was however very interesting and there were a few plants still to see, as well as the start of some great views.

Autumn Crocus

Blue Triumphator

Bluebell Ferns

Moira in bloom

Pink Leaves

Pitlochry from Explorers Garden

Eddie on Balcony

View from Balcony in Explorers Garden

When we were on the balcony a Red Squirrel jumped on to the platform, ran along the floor, under the bench Moira was sitting on and then off the other end of the platform. Wish I'd had the camcorder ready...........you probably heard the scream anyway!!
I did capture some wildlife though, a very obliging Great Tit was sunning itself on a bush:

Just to prove it wasn't a stuffed toy Great Tit, here is a clip of it flying away:

As well as plants and wildlife there were plenty of interesting structures and artwork to enjoy as we strolled round the gardens:

Dry-stane Archway

Dry-stane Bench

Giant Wooden Pine Cone

Stylish Toilet

Pebble Mosaic in Pagoda

Pagoda Carved Dragon

Moira resting at Pagoda

There was also plenty of information boards telling you all about the explorers, where they came from, which countries they explored and what they brought back.
This one shows a giant ant heading to China:

Scottish Ant Explorer heading to China

I thought it was funny at the time?
On the way out we had to climb the famous 39 Steps:

39 Steps

I counted them..............there were thirty nine...............doubt if they were the ones referred to in the book/film.
Just before we left the garden Moira drew my attention to a Tree-creeper spiralling its way up a tree. It then flew off to another tree where it was joined by another Tree-creeper before they both flew away.

They always look more like a mouse than a bird when they are climbing up a tree trunk.
I highly recommend a walk round the Explorers Garden if you are ever in Pitlochry.
The next day we headed south from the campsite (along a minor road which goes to Ballinluig) for a little walk in the countryside. Following a signpost on the road-side we visited a historic monument in the form of a Pictish Stone:

Dunfallandy Stone

To protect it from the elements the stone had been encased in a glass cabinet, it did mean that photographing it was nigh impossibly:

Ghostly Image on Pictish Stone

I did manage to get some sort of picture of the rear of the stone, which was a bit more shaded from the sun:

Pictish Stone Carvings

There were also a interesting structure here, which related to the fact that it was the ancestral burial grounds of the Ferguson family:

Ferguson Family Crypt

Celtic Cross

Further along the country road we could see the River Tummel in the near distance and thought it would be nice to walk through the nearby Oak woodland to get to riverside. We didn't however bargain for the local fishing club making it quite clear that no fun was to be had here:

In short No Fun Allowed

We gave up and headed back to the campsite for a relaxing afternoon. In the evening we went to Pitlochry Festival Theatre for a meal and a show. We saw the Noel Coward play "This Happy Breed" and would recommend it to anybody who hasn't already seen it, especially in a theatre as nice as the one at Pitlochry.
The next day we packed up Vannie and headed home

....................................



A few weeks later, in early October, we took a trip down to Moffat in the Scottish Borders. By this time the weather was colder, a bit more rainy and the leaves on the trees were starting to change to their Autumn colours.
We chose Moffat Camping & Caravan Park for several reasons, it was with walking distance of the town, it was easy to get to (just off the A74 motorway) and it had plenty of café/restaurants if we got too lazy to cook.

Vannie at Moffat Camping & Caravanning Club

The other good thing about Moffat is that it had places you could go walking; including a nice park, a riverside walk and even around the town itself.
We had a stroll around the town when we first arrived and went out again at night to the Italian restaurant for our evening meal (very nice it was)
In the morning we had a leisurely walk through Station Park which was just along from the campsite:

Boating Pond at Station Park

Station Park, Moffat

Mallards on Duck Pond at Station Park

Getting the Ducks in a Row

There is no railway station in Moffat anymore but there are still some evidence of where the track was within the park.
A path from Station Park leads you on to the riverside walk, the river in this case being the Annan Water. We embarked on this riverside walk knowing that it would take us on a circular route back round to the town centre just in time for lunch.

Leafy Lane to Riverside Walk

Moffat in the sunshine

Annanside Walk

Old Bridge across the Annan

View across the paddock

Annanside Track

River Annan

There were plenty of little birds (Chaffinch, Robin, Blue Tit and Wren) flitting about the river, some even having a bath in it, however they never stood still long enough to let me photograph or film them. That was until we spotted this elegant Grey Wagtail on a rock in the river:

The path became a narrower track as we headed further out from the town and after a while we decided to turn around and walk back towards the bridge over the Annan, which would take us into the North end of the town.
Just before we left the riverside track I heard the distinctive sound made by a flock of Long-tailed Tits. They were in a nearby tree and there must have been more than a dozen of them, I tried my best to capture this spectacle on video:

On the road back to Moffat we stopped to admire the Autumn colours of the roadside trees:

Heading back to Moffat on the A701

Autumnal Colours

When we reached Moffat we headed to the nearest café for a spot of lunch. I had a bacon & egg roll and Moira enjoyed some bacon, pancakes and maple syrup..............mmmmmmmmmm!
The café we ate in had a sheep theme going on (after all Moffat has always been a big livestock market town) and the toilet doors were appropriately marked as 'Ewes' and 'Tups'. What was funnier was the sign between the doors which read "If you are confused boys are on the left, girls are always right"...........hmphhhh!
After lunch we had a stroll along some of the old streets at the back of the High Street then headed up the hill following on from Well Road. Here we came across an intriguing road sign:

Intriguing Road Sign

I thought we must investigate this road on our way back down the hill.
The hill took us out of the town, past the fancy houses and in to open countryside. We did see one further building before we turned round and headed back downhill; an old stone built barn.

Old Stone Barn

Conversion Project

I thought it was ripe for a barn conversion; we could sell the house, live in Vannie during the conversion stage until it was habital then move in..............by this time Moira had turned around and was heading back downhill.............I took that as a NO!
We did go back down through Ballplay Road, which took us to the Rugby Club so I guess that is where the name comes from.
It came on rain just as we got back to the campsite and continued to pour for the rest of the evening. We decided to cook our evening meal in the motorhome, played a few hands of cards, watched some TV then went to bed. Sometimes that is what camping is like, and we did get dry weather when we were out walking.
The next morning was also dry when we packed up Vannie and headed home.
Until next time...........take care,

TeddyEdward