Rebecca On The Wing

Tag: cumbria

  • The Freeze

    The Freeze

    The snow was here again. It descended from the skies in heavy drifts, flakes swirling as they came to rest. All through the night the snow fell, dramatically silent, and when morning came everything was smothered in pristine white icing: irresistible. Outside there was a chill that tightened the lungs, so cold was the air…

  • To Spy a Hawfinch

    To Spy a Hawfinch

    After our great grey shrike stood us up last week, I was determined to tick a bird off my wishlist. I did some digging and found there were a few good spots for hawfinches down in Kendal. Zahrah and I picked the best day of the week and headed down, this time with Kacper. As…

  • The Beginnings of Winter

    The Beginnings of Winter

    Before I’d even got to the hide there was a chirruping in the bushes and I turned to see a group of juvenile yellowhammers mobbing their parents, hopping between branches for attention. Three birds flew past overhead and I caught the triangular shape of starling wings as they soared over me. The lake was quiet…

  • A Day in the Fells

    A Day in the Fells

    As we turned into the car park at Honister Pass, the clouds were grumbling. Geoff Cox appeared and shook my hand in greeting, with the same kindliness he might offer to his closest friend. Having roamed the fells since childhood, the bracing chill and spattering rain are all too familiar to him. A gust of…

  • Bike Ride in the Woods

    Bike Ride in the Woods

    Another visit to one of my favourite wildlife places: Watchtree Nature Reserve. Zahrah and I hired bikes and set off through the reserve, taking a leisurely ride away from the hubbub of the café and car park to the quieter open fields and woodland. The lake was fairly busy. A pair of Mute Swans and…

  • Foraging Foray

    Foraging Foray

    Almost all of the natural habitats that can support life are inhabited by fungi. While some species are only found in particular habitats, such as Black Bulgar (Bulgaria inquinans) on oak wood and Purple Jellydisc (Ascocoryne sarcoides) on beech, other species can thrive in many different types of habitats – coniferous woodland, broad-leafed woodland and…

  • Photography in Cumbria

    Photography in Cumbria

    During my internship at Student and Graduate Publishing, I was asked to write a piece for Study International magazine. I thought it would make a nice story to reflect on my favourite photography spots in Cumbria, to show international students studying in the North West just how beautiful it is.  Studying at the University of…

  • Exped in Miniature

    Exped in Miniature

    Last week Heather and Cain dropped into uni for a mini exped around the local area. I welcomed any chance to learn more fieldcraft from them and it was also good to spend time with Zoology and other Wildlife Media students – there are fewer and fewer of us wildlies out there so it’s great to…

  • Puffballs, Prints and Pellets

    Due to a lecture cancellation, Zahrah and I seized the day and paid Watchtree Nature Reserve a second visit. As the sun was actually shining, we made haste before the English climate returned to its usual cheeriness. As we’d found several roe deer skulls at the reserve last time, we headed straight to Pow Wood…

  • Hiding Under Toadstools

    It had been way too long since Zahrah and I last went on an adventure, so on a grey, cloudy Friday morning we headed out to Kingmoor South and North nature reserves for a wander. The aim was to train our senses and become expert animal trackers. We had our hopes on finding owl pellets…