Woodland and Farmland

Today, I was researching a walk for my next session of guided birdwatching walks. I started at farmland in the Liberton area of Edinburgh, walked through part of the beautiful Hermitage of Braid and then came back into the Liberton farmland at a different point. The walk gave me new perspectives on areas I already know individually and it was the first time I'd woven them into a round trip. At the beginning of the walk, one of the fields was full of fieldfares, such beautiful big colourful thrushes! At the entrance to the Hermitage, I noticed a lot of birds in the bushes at the top of a small hill. I noticed that some of them were blue tits, one was a treecreeper but others seemed to be siskins, but I couldn't get a good view. Then another birdwatcher told me that there were better views if I went up a flight of very muddy steps, which I did and yes, what a wonderful view I got of these lovely active little birds!

I then carried on into the Hermitage, where there are some striking rock formations with a kestrel hovering above!

Then a steep walk up towards Braid Hills, passing a very large flock of chaffinches (which I checked for bramblings, but no luck!) then over a path by a golf course onto a main road with lovely views that leads to the farmland again. On the farmland, I found hedges full of finches - greenfinches, goldfinches, chaffinches and bramblings! Oh and found several clumps of snowdrops on bloom and a couple of clumps of lesser celandine in bud.