Yorkshire in May is one of my favourite places. There’s nothing quite like a walk in Strid Woods on a fine morning, with the fresh green of new oak leaves, and the wood filled with the song of Pied Flycatchers, Willow Warblers and Redstarts. Sadly the Wood Warblers, probably my favourite warbler, are no longer singing there. Up in Nidderdale, things are a bit bleaker up at Scar House reservoir, but the birding is still excellent, the highlights being my first Crossbill in the Dales, a drumming Snipe, and, on the way home, my first Yorkshire Osprey over Gouthwaite reservoir.
Birds, wildlife and travel