west side story

 

Tuesday 13th Feb

I decided to revisit an old favourite and take the train to Dalmeny, walking and jogging between photos back towards Edinburgh. I was doing it solo as Mary had unaccountably crocked her foot the day before on Arthur's Seat. Not even off-road, she had had to limp home and hasn't walked properly since. Hopefully it is on the mend and she will be back to usual shortly. Meanwhile with a final day of decent weather before another 40 days of rain I headed up to catch the last train to Dalmeny before 9am. (Mary had already expressed indifference about this venue, so I took the opportunity to go there while she was in recovery.) I cut it too fine to get a station coffee and couldn't be bothered to do one at the tempting outlet below the platform at Dalmeny. I was keen to get going as I suspected there might not be much worth a photo before Cramond Brig, in which case the plan was to detour to Cammo, which is often a top spot for bird pics.

my train heading North onto the famous rail bridge

While the long lens is great for capturing flighty birds it is difficult to stand far enough back from larger things to get them all in the photo. The very top photo of the rail bridge is a good example. For the first mile I was too close to get the whole thing in the frame and I had to forego the usual photos I take as you go along the dirt track from the station towards the bridge. However I really liked the forced close up I took from nearby as it gives you a new perspective, or rather more detail than usual and helps give a fresh angle rather than just taking the same old photos I take every time I do this route.

I never fail to appreciate the rail bridge as an absolute work of genius and marvelous engineering. The other two bridges are fine conveniences by comparison but are totally eclipsed by the form, colour and magnificence of the original crossing. It occurred to me I can't think of another example of a bridge that looks like this one, which is unusual for a successful design. I just googled multi-span cantilever bridges and although there are a couple built using similar principals they tend not to be multi span nor anything like as elegant. 

eclipses the other two

The good thing about having a lens as strong as a telescope is you see things that you may have missed on previous occasions. Where was that red stripe lighthouse all my life? And I love the ghost ship in the background I wasn't aware of till I put the camera to my eye.

I was pleased to spot this drone hovering above the trees. I thought I heard the angry bee-swarm buzz of a drone overhead. I have been considering getting one recently. Actually since they first appeared many years ago. Each year they get cheaper, easier to fly and harder to crash but I can't really justify it, and it is more kit to carry on a hike. A long while back Mary bought a gimble and miniature camera made by drone firm DJI. (Osmo Pocket.) We have somehow never got round to using it and it has been gathering dust. Recently it caught my eye and I took it with us to Tenerife in December, however we were too busy to fish it out and get youTubed up on how to work it. It returned unused. For something so small it produces really good quality video, panorama photos and timelapse/motionlapse videos. The main reason for buying it was it stabilises handheld running videos and can be carried in a pocket. Although DJI are now on version 3 of the Pocket the first one still seems to be worth taking on the next holiday and messing about with. You'd think with not doing work these days I'd have more time on my hands to get this all under control? Anyway, place your bets on whether any new macro lens shots or DJI Pocket footage come back from the next holiday. 

Barnbougle Castle

Somewhere before Barnbougle Castle I saw a buzzard fly up into the top of a tree. It wasn't close by and I had to step over a fence. Then hike through some brambly undergrowth. When I got about 150 yards away it took off and I watched forlornly as it sailed half a mile before landing. I muttered obscenities about large cowardly pussy birds and climbed back over the fence.

Inchmickery
aka Battleship Potemkin

I was halfway along the front opposite Dalmeny House when I noticed there were a number of pied wagtails hopping through the debris. Their mottled patterns hide them very well in shoreline flotsam and they were fearless enough to shadow for ten minutes while I mostly failed to get good photos. They would let me get close but were continually hopping and popping and never quite looked at the camera at the right moment despite me whistling, cajoling, cursing and complimenting them. I think it was a nil-nil draw by the time I left although I got a few pics. Bit meh though. But fun. They are charming and full of character.

expensive renovations going on?
the downside of living in a huge pile

I think the males might be the ones with more pronounced contrast

Barnbougle has not long been through equally eyewatering revamps. Several exterior walls seem to have been repointed. They are presumably upping their wedding venue game as well, judging by the work carried out in the grounds in the last few years. I deliberately left in the foreground pipeline and Dalgety Bay background in the above photo just for realism. Just in case it was all looking a little too Scotch Castle Disney.

The stream that runs out into the Forth (above) has yet again been adjusted. Either the storm or a bulldozer had piled up all the loose shells over what used to be a bit of a jump from the boulders to the other side of the stream. Currently you can't see the boulders under the tons of shells and the stream (almost dammed) now disappears under the shells, trickling out the beach side. You cross it without risk of wet feet. Over the other side I heard jays squawking from nearby in the trees.

Jays, one of the most beautiful of the corvid family, have perhaps the ugliest of calls. It is like a magpie being slowly put to death. They call out as they move from high up one tree to high up another. I quickly made towards the rasping harsh shrieks and saw what might have been 2 or 3 jays moving from high up one tree to high up some more, a depressing distance away. I followed, but not very optimistically, and not for long. I was hoping to see them at Cammo but was very aware you can't count on them always being there.

I kept an eye on the time. I doubted the sun would stay out all day and was keen to press on to Cammo. I was correct about the amount of wildlife I came across in Dalmeny - not a lot - but enjoyed the 6 miles of shoreline and woodland walk. I initially thought I'd take a couple of hours to cover the 6 miles, but about 4 miles in I seemed to have a long way still to go and 11am came and went. Crossing Cramond Brig over the harem scarem dual carriageway is always a consideration, but traffic was light and I was on my toes. Looking upstream from the motorway flyover, I could see a tiny dipper on a rock that had to be 150~180 yards away. At full zoom the camera still managed to pick it out. You can see it doing that slightly open wing dance they do, bobbing up and down and flapping. 

bin robin

There are a couple of paths that meander through the posh houses near the road to get to Cammo Estate. There are the same pretty purple crocuses I photo every Spring and possibly even the same robin, or one of many seen today, that was posing on the bins. The wren escaped without a photo. I arrived at the Estate about 11.40 - not bad considering all the distractions. I walked along to the curling pond. The sun was fighting through the bare trees and I felt optimistic.

When I got there, a woman with a long lens Canon was already there. She was enjoying the amount of small birds near the feeding station and I suggested if I put some food out it might improve the headcount. Almost before I had finished putting out bread seeds and nuts, the place was hopping with great tits, coal tits, blue tits, robins, squirrels and an occasional blackbird. They are fed regularly at this spot and know the story. They also almost all get on in a friendly manner with possibly the only aggression between robins, although sometimes there are territorial squabbles between over-excited great tits.

blue tit

this probably won't end well

coal tit

It is always a joy to see the tiny coal tits. They are so small and quick moving it is not easy to get their photo. I was a bit surprised not to see nuthatches. They took a while to show up. Usually several turn up here quickly and keep returning as long as there are seeds and nuts - stashing the surplus in holes in tree bark, branch stumps and fallen wood. It was maybe ten minutes before a singe nuthatch appeared and I got the impression that it was a solo specimen at this venue today. Previously I have felt there was at least a couple of pairs attending with enthusiasm. 

great tits

Incoming!!
one of today's better images - luck rather than planning

someone has been stealing the birds' peanuts you say?
I'll keep my eyes open and let you know if I see anything!

great tit

After a short while at the North side of the curling pond I went over to the other side and baited all the usual places with bread, nuts and seeds, hoping to attract jays. I know they are a fan of acorns and had collected a bag last autumn. Unfortunately I kept them bagged (not wishing to house any animals that may emerge from them) and they went kinda mouldy. In their place I bought, at great expense, hazelnuts from Tesco's. Given the huge expense and my parsimony, I struggled with putting them out. Do I wait till the jays appear? Feeling it would chase them off trying to adjust bait stashes after the fact I put them out before there was any sign of jays. Very quickly the squirrels moved in. Dammit I am now feeding tree rats (much as I love them) hazelnuts at £3.50 per 250g! Shortly after the magpies moved in to finish them off. I also baited a couple of the high horizontal branches between trees with sunflower hearts and a few well balanced peanuts. The coal tits and nuthatches like this set up and sometimes give you a better line of sight and background bokeh in this position.

nuthatch - again thin on the ground

coal tit

lovin' the hazelnuts!

trick of the tail

I had my sandwich at the second spot, waiting for jays to show up. (Low fat cheese, loads of salad leaves on mayonnaise / tomato puree spread on homemade bread. It was outstanding! And a Nakd bar for Lunch Pudding.) There were plenty of magpies lurking in the shadows and stealing my overpriced bribes but I don't think I saw any jays. I have no idea what makes the difference. Last successful jay hunt here was on January the first when at least 2 or more appeared and I got some photos. Prior to that a couple of no-shows. I hung around for ages then retreated back to the other feeding area.

Back at the first place the light was falling in a very favourable manner on the tree-trunks. I placed hazelnuts on the bracket fungus growing on the dead tree stump and again they proved very popular with the locals. Perhaps a little heavy for this blue tit to carry off, it sat beside this nut with a paw on it claiming it for itself. It looked super charming and I quickly shot some stills and video.

love this!

The nuthatch also returned promptly. Shot of the day is a heat between this one above and the one half a dozen below with a hazelnut in its beak. It is the light that makes these images a bit better than the rest. The camera does a fantastic job of focussing on the eye of the bird which again makes my life MUCH easier. Previous cameras needed to be told where to put the focus and if there was a choice it would many times choose the background or a branch crossing the corner of the photo. 

coal tit with huge hazelnut

great tit doing similar

a hazelnut in every bite
(contender for shot of the day)

I wanted to record this dunnock but the photos weren't very good. I suspect it spent more time on the ground, hunting for luckies in the leaf litter. It is rarer for them to pop up onto a feeding platform. But they are attractive and with a nice song and always worth pointing the camera at.

same with the blackbird

bracket fungus make good feeding shelves

The light was quickly leaving the feeding area tree so I took a wander. I had forgotten the walled garden area is tremendous for snowdrops around now and it was an unexpected delight. I took the chance at that bench below to change the lens to 12~60 for some scenery shots, although the cloud had covered the sun and it wasn't looking just quite as fantastic as it could. I remembered catching a pair of blackcaps here a while back but I think it was later in the year. A quick check says mid-April onwards is more likely for blackcaps.

this was better than it looks!

Cammo Tower

I left via the Big Field on the North side. You know, the one with that large dead tree right in the centre. I checked the birdfeeder up by the memorial. There was next to nothing in the 2 feeders so I filled them with the remainder of my food except for the hazelnuts. (£3.50!) It began to draw a small crowd of locals but wasn't worth the wait. I went past the big tree but was unable to get the whole thing into frame as I had changed back to the long lens. However I really liked these curtailed highlights which bounce the detailed woodwork off the blue sky background in a very pleasing way. The thing about that tree is the combination of twisty branch detail on stark outline considering the large empty field. It is impossible to do all of that in just one photo. So like the detail of the Forth Rail Bridge back up the top of this page there is a merit to zooming in and taking a close up of the twisting branches against a plain blue sky.

I walked down the tiny narrow lane (not even wide enough for broad MTB handlebars at points) to the Almond walkway, then under the Cramond Brig, back up to the dual carriageway and along to Barnton to catch a bus. I just arrived there when a Southbound Stagecoach appeared at the stop. Since they take a Saltire Card I travelled for free along to the bus station, nearly falling asleep after more than 5hrs outdoors, then walked home via Sainsbury's to pick up some dinner veg. A great day out which gave me plenty material to tweak and post here while the rain steadily fell for the next 2 days. 

10+miles, 5+hrs