Yesterday was a grey dull day. Keith and I had planned to meet up in Gravesend for our regular walk but it didn’t look very promising. After coffee, taken in the vain hope that things might improve we set off on our walk. As it was a morning high-tide we decided to do the usual route in reverse, starting with the Fort and Gordon Gardens and then coming back along the river, when there ought to be some mud exposed.
The fort was very quiet apart from a few crows and so we pressed onto the gorge and found the usual selection of small birds – good numbers of Robins and Blackbirds with Dunnock, Greenfinch, Chaffinch, Blue and Great Tits. A collared Dove was an uncommon sighting and I had a brief sighting of a Song Thrush.
We circled the lake where we there were the usual Mallard, Coot, Moorhen and Mute Swans. Two Mistle Thrushes in flight across the park were an unexpected bonus.
As it was still early we decided to go back to the gorge and have another look for the Song Thrush. This time we decided to take the path that runs along the top of the gorge and were rewarded with excellent views of the Song Thrush. This once common garden bird has become increasingly scarce over recent years and so it was good to get such excellent views of it.
Pressing on we could see a small flock of birds in the tree tops in the gorge and stopped to see what they were. We had identified Blue and Great Tits, when Keith said ‘I have got a Hawfinch!’. Hawfinch, the largest of our finches, are usually restricted to specific areas of woodland and certainly not what you would expect in a park by the river estuary. It took me a minute or so to get onto it, concealed in a tree, but eventually got a good view. we watched and photographed it for about 10 minutes before it flew off down the gorge. We spent a while trying to relocate it, unsuccessfully, before heading off for the estuary.
By now there was plenty of mud exposed and we saw Shelduck, Redshank, Black-tailed Godwit, Curlew and Dunlin along with Black-headed, Common and Herring Gulls. A Cormorant and a Grey Heron perched on the jetty and Pied and Grey Wagtails flitted about on the beach.
Soon it was time to head back for more refreshment, A list of 36 species and the unexpected finding of the Hawfinch proved that even on a dull, damp, unpromising day, you can never tell what you might find, even on Friday the 13th!
Pete's Favourite Things 