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Posted on Nov 29, 2013 in Blog, Otters |
After a dry summer and autumn, we have experienced a period of rain. The river has been at its highest for at least 6 months. In the past few weeks otter sightings have been zero. This week, we resumed our walks along the Río Piloña with the water level now returning to normal. The herons have comeback, with 3 or 4 individuals maintaining their motionless posts along the riverbank. The kingfishers and dippers are also busy – and easier to observe with the leaves from the riverside trees having made way for winter. There have been no clues to the otters whereabouts. We often wonder if they will they...
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Posted on Nov 26, 2013 in Blog, Places |
We recently took a late autumn walk between La Pesanca and la Foz de Moñacos in Piloña. The colder temperatures provided the peaks around Vizcares with a sprinkling of snow. Winter is coming. I wanted to get some close water shots of the Río Infierno (Hell River) with a real autumn feel of Asturias. This area is very damp, heavily forested and covered in deep green moss and lichens. The autumn leaves add a magical element. One image I was happy with, after spending some time searching for a suitable areas. There are many potential opportunities along the route, and only restricted by the need to negotiate some fairly...
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Posted on Oct 27, 2013 in Blog, Otters |
Two young otters fighting over a trout. We started out just after sunrise and were lucky to spot a family of 4 otters after just 10 minutes. We watched them for over 2 hours, hunting, resting and playing. One of the best encounters with a family group in the past 6 years. We lost them several times as they disappeared into the vegetation of the riverbank, so we decided to walk ahead and wait. As predicted (or hoped for), all 4 otters made their way up river and 2 eventually appeared just 15-20 metres away – chasing fish through small rapids and turning over rocks in the shallows in...
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Posted on Oct 18, 2013 in Blog, Otters |
We search for wild places in the hope of glimpsing wild creatures that live there. For the first time we took a few days holiday – to a city, with lots of people, buildings and traffic. And more surprisingly we went to the city to watch otters. In Gijón, Asturias, the otters have passed the limits of the river and entered an inner city park with small lakes – home to ducks, geese and other exotic waterfowl. Their arrival has caused some conflict with the parks avian inhabitants although we personally only witnessed them hunting for eels and american crayfish. For a detailed post, visit the excellent blog from...
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Posted on Sep 18, 2013 in Blog, Places |
07.25am – Day 3 Last weekend we began a new longer term project – that should see us through until the end of the year. We started at the islet of ‘Castro de las GaviotasCastro de las Gaviotas’ near Hontoria. The first morning was somewhat disappointing – a thick band of cloud on the horizon blocked out the sun until well beyond official sunrise. But it was a good experience and gave us chance to become familiar with the area in the dawn light. We also saw a flock of 12 Egrets flying above ours heads at 7am, which was a first! Normally we make excursions on the spur...
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Posted on Sep 14, 2013 in Birds, Blog |
As we walked towards the section of the river for observing the otters, we got distracted. A couple of swallow chicks were perched close by on the riverbank. Normally, they fly off as soon as you approach, but these two held steady. Both parents were busy flying sorties over the river surface, catching insects to bring back for their young. I was lucky with the light, the last beam sun shone through on to the branch perfectly, illuminating the birds and darkening the background. It became fairly easy to predict when an adult was about to return – as the motionless young suddenly and frantically begging with wide gaping...
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Posted on Sep 9, 2013 in Blog, Otters |
The summer months have proved a frustrating time for watching otters. The river is busy and although we’ve tried several quieter areas, it’s been unsuccessful – no sightings, no tracks, no spraint. However, we’ve been active lately with fantastic mammal observations – including wolves, deer and wild cats. But September is upon us again and time to swap last weeks high mountain excursions and return the river with new places and renewed enthusiasm for watching the otters. This week we explored a new section of our usual river, a short drive from home. As we walked a 2 kilometre stretch of the river, it dawned upon us this was...
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Posted on Sep 8, 2013 in Blog, Places |
Sunset – Shooting towards the Asturian coastline in the area of Colunga. The beaches of Espasa and La Isla in the foreground. El Mirador del Fito – is an excellent viewpoint for the coastline of Ribadesella & Colunga, as well as the landscapes of Picos de Europa. It’s the starting point for many walks over the El Sueve mountain range or a good place to simply stand and stare. We visit quite often and have experienced some marvelous sunrises and sunsets. Previous post here – Early Morning Light in Asturias – Part I Early Morning Light in Asturias – Part II Over the past week we have been “experimenting”...
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