Should Have Stuck With - Emerson, 'LAKE' and Palmer

We did have snow on Monday, but not visible until daylight, and only then could we see the

DRIFTS
along the grooves in the windscreen wipers and Even (Deep and Crisp that is) more in the

Bonnet Cowling.
A couple of hours with the snow plough and blower soon had us on our way!

 Yesterday ended with a minor scare as it was found the RSPCA had been summoned to attend what looked every bit like a moribund, female Mute Swan on the Main Pond. Due to the growth of vegetation the moment could not be captured (perhaps you wouldn't have wanted it to be) but the next morning not only did she look in fine fettle but had also attracted a second male!

MUTE SWAN

FICKLE FEMALE (right)
Once again it was the weather that let us down with nothing more than what has gone before.
Hoping to resolve the situation we did pop over to Longham where on arrival a

HERRING GULL
was flying into the built up area, it didn't take long to find out why!

We have been visiting this lauded area for many years and even before we landed in East Dorset, but the day was the dullest we had ever experience by a Royal Mile! To clear the Gulls out of the way this

BLACK-HEAED GULL
was the only other representative of the family group. (Longham Lakes 2 Gulls? unheard of.)

A short pass along coastline the main island with the video function produced
Wigeon, Shoveler, Cormorant, Gadwall and Little Egret but to see but c2 Canada Geese on a circumnavigation of the South Lake also beggared belief!

COOT

was the only other addition to a deplete list but we did manage to get up closer to some of the afore mentioned such as

WIGEON
(male)

(female)

GADWALL
(male)

(female)
One of only c4

LITTLE EGRETs

and not a sniff of either Great White or cattle Egret and finally a male

SHOVELER

with female.
Whatever happened to "rain before 7 dry by 11" is not known but, according to
Memphis Minnie, "if it keeps on raining the levee's going to break"!