jqmhelios
Well-known member
With the problem of moving into Tier 4 now real, I decided to spend more time in my house recently. That was, until I heard about the glossy ibis now in Cambridge. I took a train down from Ely to Cambridge North. And realized I was seriously unprepared. I had no idea where this 'Chesterton Fen' was, and as such only had a vague idea of where to look. There were a lot of people about, as was in that 'national lockdown', and I already made plans to return tomorrow if I failed.
I scoured the good-looking fields but was unable to see the bird anywhere, even though I did encounter one person with a nice camera in the region where I suspected the ibis to be. The path from Cambridge North to Baits Bite had huge puddles and my bike was seriously dirty by the time I reached the lock.
On the way there I rode past the black poplars in Fen Ditton and heaved a massive sigh of relief. Someone had called a tree crew. The poplars previously had a giant mistletoe infestation, but I could not see any at all when I rode past, something which really encouraged me- I thought the trees were on the brink of death when I saw them last.
I decided to have a quick look at the sluice, which was at maximum water removal setting- I have never seen this happen before. The torrent of foaming water looked intimidating even at a distance. I briefly deliberated whether I should give up on the ibis- which clearly was either not here or hidden somewhere, and instead visit the little owls at Waterbeach, maybe press on to Landbeach to see the barn owls there.
I decided to give the ibis another try. I was deeply frustrated by the massive hedges blocking the view of the fields from me, but I found a path and decided to take it. It led me to a road, from which the fields were much better to observe.
I scanned everywhere and didn't see anything, even though I saw a soaring buzzard in the distance. I followed the nice trail, only to find it completely flooded. There was a huge, massive puddle in front of me. I just rode through it no problem, going very slowly. This was rather fun, actually. However, beyond I didn't find what I was looking for. I took the puddle again back and decided to return tomorrow, and return to the station. The sun was slowly setting, and as I rode to the station, I saw what I initially thought was a little owl on a pole in Chesterton Fen. However, when I zoomed in it turned out to be a green woodpecker, still great, though.
On the train back to Ely the train spooked a short-eared owl sitting next to the railway.
In short, despite the disappointment, an excellent day. I returned and was able to confirm that I was in the right place. I probably missed it due to the colossal hedges. I'll come back tomorrow to see it, hopefully.
I scoured the good-looking fields but was unable to see the bird anywhere, even though I did encounter one person with a nice camera in the region where I suspected the ibis to be. The path from Cambridge North to Baits Bite had huge puddles and my bike was seriously dirty by the time I reached the lock.
On the way there I rode past the black poplars in Fen Ditton and heaved a massive sigh of relief. Someone had called a tree crew. The poplars previously had a giant mistletoe infestation, but I could not see any at all when I rode past, something which really encouraged me- I thought the trees were on the brink of death when I saw them last.
I decided to have a quick look at the sluice, which was at maximum water removal setting- I have never seen this happen before. The torrent of foaming water looked intimidating even at a distance. I briefly deliberated whether I should give up on the ibis- which clearly was either not here or hidden somewhere, and instead visit the little owls at Waterbeach, maybe press on to Landbeach to see the barn owls there.
I decided to give the ibis another try. I was deeply frustrated by the massive hedges blocking the view of the fields from me, but I found a path and decided to take it. It led me to a road, from which the fields were much better to observe.
I scanned everywhere and didn't see anything, even though I saw a soaring buzzard in the distance. I followed the nice trail, only to find it completely flooded. There was a huge, massive puddle in front of me. I just rode through it no problem, going very slowly. This was rather fun, actually. However, beyond I didn't find what I was looking for. I took the puddle again back and decided to return tomorrow, and return to the station. The sun was slowly setting, and as I rode to the station, I saw what I initially thought was a little owl on a pole in Chesterton Fen. However, when I zoomed in it turned out to be a green woodpecker, still great, though.
On the train back to Ely the train spooked a short-eared owl sitting next to the railway.
In short, despite the disappointment, an excellent day. I returned and was able to confirm that I was in the right place. I probably missed it due to the colossal hedges. I'll come back tomorrow to see it, hopefully.
