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Gorse in bloom on Campfield Marsh 1st May A sunny although blustery day, with a helm wind blowing. Nevertheless butterflies and dragonflies could be seen flying in the shelter of the Lonning and the hedgerows were full of birdsong. Four-spotted Chaser dragonfly on poolside vegetation ...

Thunder storm building over the Estuary Great excitement here at Campfield. My Birthday present arrived - a lovely pop-up gazebo. It had been well reviewed and was said to have stood up to some pretty drastic weather by the reviewers. The purchase of this had been a gesture of great optimism on...

Scene One The day here at Campfield, as forecast by the weathermen, had developed into a full blown gale with estimated gusts of 60 - 70 mph. Gales we are accustomed to here on the Solway, but this was something special! We were hunkered down behind our picture window, gazing at the huge spectacle...

Juvenile Common Gull and Crow hoping to partake of fragments from Heron's successful fishing activities. The small flatfish the Heron had caught presented no problem for it to consume but quite often, having caught a larger fish, they will dismember them before consuming and this is the time that...

Campfield Saltmarsh - 12th May 2011 Oh well! Not much luck today. It will be thin pickings for the cubs tonight. I reckon I'll be in trouble with the vixen. Hold on! Just a minute! A nice bit of saltmarsh lamb would go down quite nicely with the cubs - make a change...

The weather was really warming up; a strongish dry southeaster was blowing across the estuary; hardly a cloud in the sky. I said to Judith, "Just the day for the outer saltmarsh and the estuary sands. Let's see what exotica presents itself!" Adventure was in the air and the Gods seemed...

Tense moment on the Solway - 9th May 2011 at 1510hrs, Scargavel Point, Campfield Marsh About 40 cattle were minutes away from danger. They were out on the sands as was quite normal, wading in shallow water to keep cool, but a sudden thunder storm, of which there have been a series on the Solway...

It's official. It was the hottest April ever, so the pundits say! Tell us something we don't know! The garden was on hold and the rivers were drying up. I thought, "I'll fix this! I'll put the recently purchased garden gazebo up!" The idea worked! As I opened the big cardboard...

"April Gorse, Campfield Marsh 27th April 2011" - a digital pastel-style painting by John Rogers It's late April and the weather up here on the Solway is like the middle of Summer. Migrants are coming in early, flowers are blooming that shouldn't be and there are dragonflies and moths...

"Oh to be at 'Campfield' now that April's here" - a pastel-style digital painting by John Rogers Already the mighty pendulum, that governs all life on this planet, is well on its way. The Vernal Equinox is nearly a month past but the bird world would have been stirring even before...

Photo diary - 21st (Spring Equinox) to 31st March 2011 Daffodils in hedge bottom along Lonning Willow coming into bloom 21st March High Spring tides were flooding the Inner Solway Estuary marshes causing the Barnacle Geese who frequent them, to flight west to the Outer estuary pastures...

A photo diary - early March 2011 A calm early March day on the estuary 1st March An influx of finches to the area was noted today Female Brambling Lesser Redpoll and Siskin (both males) feeding on nearby garden niger seed 2nd March Goldfinch in splendid Spring plumage...

Fencing in progress, 14th March 2011 Setting out along the estuary road for our daily constitutional down the lonning onto the Reserve, we reached the corner where the wide vista of the outer Solway opens up. It was one of those rare Spring days, with no wind - you could feel the heat of the mid-...

Shelduck on the Estuary - a digital painting by John Rogers February this year on the Solway anyway, has been notable for its lack of weather. In our case, this usually means wind - in this case the exception being two or three days at the beginning of the month. There seems to have been endless...

The day was distinctly unpromising: low cloud and mist with pulses of rain crossing the Solway. For the first time in a couple of weeks the estuary had a bit of a chop on it - but with the high tide series falling back and an offshore wind, here at Campfield the valiant work party were ‘working...

Barnacles flighting at dusk, Campfield Marsh Reserve - a digital oil-style painting by John Rogers This winter, as we will all know, started very early with the big freeze-up, snow and ice - the whole deal! The country was in crisis. We thought, "here we are in the middle of an Artic winter,...

The pools and wetlands are well flooded and wildfowl numbers are now building up. Today, in the region of 1000 Barnacles and 2000 Pinkfeet were moving about the pastures and meadows of North Plain, Biglands and Rogersceugh farms. Wigeon, Teal and Pintail numbers are also increasing with early morning...

Icy Solway Estuary during the Big Freeze by John Rogers 14th December After a short thaw, snow and freezing conditions returned On an icy cold dawn three Longtailed Tits came into feed on nut hanger. 15th December Wigeon flying in onto icy pools on farm Buzzard watching from...

5th January, 2011 This last week at Campfield, we have seen groups of various sizes of Barnacles passing along the shore around high tide, going towards Cardurnock from the Inner Estuary - and had speculated as to where their destination might be. So, yesterday (4th), having been to Kirkbride,...

The first Snow - Campfield Marsh 24th November After a frosty night, the morning dawned very cold and sunny. We were greeted with some splendid displays of aerial manoeuvring by, in the region of a 1000 waders, flying up and down the estuary over the mudflats - as the tide came in. ...

Garden in morning sunlight 7 12 10 Well, the cold spell is really biting here at Campfield. The estuary and Reserve are looking splendid - this will of course be of no surprise to you all. You too will be experiencing winter in your own ways! This is the earliest cold snap we can remember in our lifetime...

4th November Wetlands are now upto winter levels and good flocks of wildfowl are to be seen Four Greylags could be seen grazing and preening in the wet meadows in front of the hide 7th November There had recently been an influx of tits with this one Willow Tit amongst them, seen on...

View across Saltmarsh Pool towards Criffel from Maryland Lay-by 3rd October Common Newt in puddle after rain, on Lonning track Flies and bees are attracted to the abundant nectar of the Ivy flowers, growing in the lonning hedge. 4th October Fly Agaric, poisonous mushroom, growing...

North Plain Farm Large flocks of redwing sighted on the Lonning, 11.40 am. 1st Meadow Pool - Excellent display of Whoopers this morning. 48 in all together with a substantial number of wigeon and 2 Mutes. 11.50 am Janet and Alan Murray, visitors from Bingley, joined us at the screen and immediately...

17th October 2010 Whoopers on 1st Pool The wind had swung round to the NW - first noticeable wind we had had all week. It’s been that kind of Autumn, though - absolutely still: ‘high pressure gloom’ I believe they call it! So we thought, “lets have a walk on to the...