Last week seems a long way away already, especially as this one has been a bit of a blur getting ready to head off to Florida for the next couple of weeks – camera very much in evidence and a Natures Images trip as part of the mix as well.
It’ll be quite a contrast to the cold but sunny conditions in the Cairngorms last week – I might have preferred a bit of snow, but if that’s not to happen then this is a very close second as it can be constantly grey and glum there for sure at this time of the year. It meant that temperatures rarely got above freezing giving us plenty of scenic and detail close-up opportunities with the ice to be found on Loch Morlich and the nearby streams.
It also gave some interesting opportunities for close ups of the local Mallards enjoying (if that’s the word for it) the cold too!
On the broader wildlife front, trips into the Northern cores of Cairngorm and around the ski areas elsewhere gave great opportunities for the hardy Ptarmigan and their more common relatives in the form of Red Grouse. You have to admire the way they both cope with these challenging conditions, particularly the hardy Ptarmigans who cope with the wind and the at times extraordinarily bleak conditions of these high peaks.
The additional highlights of the week was some quality time spent with local photographer Neil McIntyre who was helping us and our guests out with his Red Squirrel and Crested Tit feeding sites.
These are both species I’ve worked with before but these 2 setups were simply top class, and we were able to make full use of them in the glorious conditions too – all in all these were for me the highland highlights of the week for sure!
Guess it’ll all be a little different in Florida won’t it?
Great post as usual with stunning images. Makes me want to go too!