Tuesday 07 October – Winscombe

 Heavy rain, until just before the start of the walk, cleared to give a lovely blue sky for the ten hardy souls who had driven in hope, through the rain. Towers of Persil-white cumulus plus the occasional dark grey cloud gave a dramatic back-drop to a fair tally of all varieties of corvids, some gulls, Woodpigeons and hedgerow birds. We had a glorious view of a male Yellowhammer, perched on the top point of a bare tree, standing out in the autumn sunshine. A pair of Peregrines flew high above the hill before we climbed up to the wood to enjoy a coffee stop. Here, a Jay flew past and shortly afterwards a Sparrowhawk was seen high on the thermals with over 16 Ravens (in total) calling at intervals; seven of those flew over together. We finished with a flurry of six Pied Wagtails on the rooftops around the car park, giving a total species count of 27. (Sue, thanks for leading.) Sue Watson