Curious Crow

I don't usually take pictures of birds, you need a lot of patience and need to be able to identify the different species, I think this one may be a juvenile crow or rook.  It was taken on a footpath near the river Aire with a telephoto lens. I didn't really need to use a long lens as the bird gradually came closer and closer, I think it was curious about the noise the camera was making, until it was actually too close for the telephoto lens I was using to focus.  I have never experienced this kind of behaviour from a bird before.

BRAiD March

A group of around thirty protesters marched from Buck Lane to Shipley Town Hall yesterday morning to hand in a letter highlighting concerns about an area of land adjoining Buck Lane. The agricultural land is the proposed site of a multi-million pound business park, but the chairman of BRAiD (Baildon Residents against Inappropriate Development) Dr Steven Walker firmly believes that the land should remain as a green space for the benefit of the local community and the development should be located on one of the numerous brown field sites in the area.

I have to admit that I have a personal interest, the land is not far from where I live and I regularly walk the footpath alongside the river, more often than not spotting some of the wildlife in the area, deer, kingfisher, dragonfly, or on the occasion of Saturday morning a heron standing in the river. I would hate to see this riverside green space covered in concrete.

New Year River Swim - Otley

I suppose there is nothing quite like a plunge in the River Wharfe on New Years Day after all that eating, drinking and watching TV over Christmas. These swimmers do it every year, (the swim that is, I don't know about the eating and drinking), they seem to enjoy it, the event also raises money for local charities. Did I go in? No I didn't, I think I'll just stick to the photography side of things for now.

Langstrothdale

     Having spent an enjoyable few days walking in the Lake District, and with the weather being so pleasant for the time of year, I decided to return home through the Yorkshire Dales, stopping off at various places to take photographs.  This picture shows the infant River Wharfe at Langstrothdale.  The Dales Way footpath passes through this valley on its way from Ilkley to Bowness in the Lake District.  There are link paths from both Leeds and Bradford to the start of this walk at Ilkley.