Stratford Food Festival and RSPB Sandwell

From the title above you can pretty much work out what I did with my weekend.

Saturday and Clare and I nipped over to Sandwell to see if any of the winter migrants had arrived.  We've enjoyed the guided walks throughoutthe  year, opting for a monthly visit rather than joining the tour every fortnight.  The amount of people has varied throughout the summer but last week there were 3 volunteers and just Clare and myself. 

It was a good day and as there was only a couple of us we decided to walk all the way around the lake.  We managed to see around 40 species. Highlights were the Mediterranean Gull amongst a flock of Black Headed Gulls and 3 Snipe (that were spooked by a member of the public flying a kite over the reserve). Other species seen included Teal, Grey Wagtail and 3 late Swallows.

The day had started well.  As we walked through Tudor Grange Park on our way to get breakfast we spotted a Kingfisher sitting by the stream before flying to a branch overhanging the lake. Then as we made our way to the reserve I spotted a bird book in a box outside a charity shop.  I remembered the book from my childhood and have been trying to get a copy for some time and here it was for £1!  I couldn't believe my luck.  Considering the age of it as well it is in a really good condition!

Arriving home later than expected I spent the night in front of the TV with a pizza.

Sunday started grey and wet and after a bit of deliberation we decided we still go and check out Stratford Food Festival.  It was a good call as eventually it did brighten up a little and with the exception of a couple of showers stayed dry.

Having arrived in Startford fairly early we decided to have a drink and a bite to eat and stumbled across a place called The Real Tea Cafe.  It offered a large selection of teas (Clare opting for a Builder's Brew) and various forms of coffee. The place itself has bright modern decor but also retains a feel of the traditional.  The staff were friendly and the prices reasonable.  A lovely little place which not only ourselves but also the customers who arrived after us remarked upon. If you're in Stratford check it out.  It beats the likes of Starbuck's by a mile!

We browsed the stalls on our way to the festival proper and found some lovely things. Carluccio's mushroom stall being my favourite. It was full of all kinds of mushrooms and although I didn't buy anything I could have stared at it for ages. It looked fantastic.

Having paid our money to get in it wasn't long before I stumbled across a gin stand. Having listened to the sales pitch and had a sample I soon parted with £25 and reserved a bottle of Foxdentons 48% London Dry Gin. I also bought a bottle of Edinburgh Gin and am looking forward to drinking them both.

Other things we bought included chocolate, bread, cheese, olives, blackberry lemonade, biscuits and a tin of black pepper. We also got some lemon garnishing oil and some tarragon wine vinegar!

 I have to say it wasn't the cheapest of days. Ironically, we had to leave the food festival to go ad get lunch. A toasted sandwich at Cox's Boat Yard did the trick.  Again another lovely little cafe with pleasant staff and nice surroundings but just a little overpriced.

After lunch we headed back to the festival had a last wander around before picking up my gin and heading home, stopping at the market to pick up a couple of jars on the way. Typically the sun decided to make an appearance at around the same time.

Signing Up

So Clare and I finally did it.  We have talked about it for some time and today we finally took the plunge.  We joined the RSPB.  Having made our way to Sandwell Valley for their guided walk we took the opportunity to sign up.  For our money we came away with the latest copy of the RSPB quarterly magazine, a welcome pack and a lovely book on Garden Wildlife.  Not only that but we also have the satisfaction of knowing that we are doing something to help our wildlife.

The day itself promised to be a good one, warm and sunny!  As we headed over to Sandwell it was lovely but at the start of the walk it turned cloudy.  Not only that but the birds seemed to have disappeared!  We got to the lake and all the usual suspects were there Lapwing, Gadwall, Tufted Duck and Mallard.  There were a couple of Common Terns, Lesser Black Backed Gull and plenty of Canada Geese.  At the hide we watched a Great Crested Grebe making repairs to it's nest. Also on a nest was an Oyster Catcher. 

The highlight for me was a Black Tailed Godwit which we watched wading through the marsh.

We got home in time for the England versus Switzerland match.  If I'm honest I hadn't really given it a second thought.  I've sort of grown tired with the whole England Football Team.  A manager who we don't want and who doesn't want to be there. On the pitch it's the same old faces and the same old lack lustre performance. 

As a Euro qualifier it should have been a much more exciting prospect but it didn't really fire the imagination. I put the TV on but rather than watch it properly I just had it on the background.  In the first half England went 2-0 down but pulled it back to 2-1 through a Lampard penalty.  In the second half Ashley Young levelled the scoring.  The game finished 2-2 and England are still top the group but I can't for one moment believe that, if we qualify, we could actually go on to win the competition.

Sandwell Valley RSPB Reserve

As I get older I have started to take more of an interest in the things around me. I think this blog proves it. Birds,  butterflies and countryside feature quite heavily.  Don't get me wrong, I still enjoy gigs, football and so on and I can happily spend an evening down the pub with friends but if I'm not doing that I am quite happily traipsing around fields.

Saturday morning I found myself at Sandwell Valley RSPB Reserve.  I hadn't expected much if I'm honest as Sandwell is surrounded by industry (albeit in decline) but when I got there I was really surprised.  25 acres of greenery and water!

Stopping off at the temporary visitor centre (the original one was burnt down in March), staff gave us a map and told us what we could expect to see.  Everyone was really friendly!

We stopped at the hide over looking the lake.  From here I could see Coots, Mallards, Cormorant, Great Crested Grebe, Gadwall and Grey Heron as well as 3 types of Gull. There were probably more but  I am a novice when it comes to identifying birds and so probably missed loads!!

After the hide we walked around the lake to try and find the Golden Eye (unsuccessfully). As the day wore on it seemed to get a lot colder and the mist that we had hoped would burn off seemed to linger.  We completed the walk around the lake and stopped at the feeders.  Here we saw Greenfinch, Chaffinch, Goldfinch, Blue Tits, Great Tits and Pheasant.

We headed back to the visitor centre where the staff made us a coffee!  After a chat and a bit of a warm up we headed home.  Stopping off on the way to get ingredients for a stew to warm us up later.

I was really surprised by the size of the reserve and the variety of birds (we only saw a small proportion) and  am looking forward to heading back there soon.  I was also really impressed by the staff who were friendly and helpful. They made a good trip that little bit more rewarding.

Having had such a good day bird watching (I hate to use the term) on Saturday we decided to head back over to Solihull Nature Reserve.  I was planning a pretty early start but on the way out I noticed a Great Spotted Woodpecker on the tree outside the living room window.  The garden was a hive of activity, the busiest I'd seen it.  In the space of about an hour visitors included 2 x Great Spotted Woodpeckers, 2 x Jays, half a dozen Greenfinches, 2 x Redwing, 4 x Blackbird, 2 x Blue Tits, 2 x Great Tits, 1 x Magpie, 1 x Coal Tit, 3 x Wood Pigeon, 1 x Nuthatch and a Song Thrush.

The Trip to the Nature Reserve meant I can add to the list Jackdaw, Starlings, Long tailed Tits and (best of all) a Gold Crest.  Yesterday was not as cold as Saturday but stopped at the small tea room all the same for a coffee and to use their bird books.

I don't think bird watching will ever become a full time hobby but I can see it's appeal.  The Woodpeckers were back again this morning and to see them close up does give you a bit of a buzz.