Bryn bach tern around

Luke's posting of a couple of common tern as late as 3pm at Bryn Bach Park yesterday got me and my good wife travelling up the Heads of the Valleys road for an evening of mid summer relaxation in this popular Country Park ( what is a Country Park?).

If you don't mind having to constantly side step power walkers, joggers, fishermen, dog walkers and mobile phone users this park is a reasonable spot for accessible birding. Couldn't find any of the tern's though, so had to make do with photographing, once again, some of the commoner wildfowl.

It was the usual predictable mix of mute swan, Canada goose, tufted duck, great crested grebe blah, blah, blah! By the time we'd made it round the home straight of the lake circuit the skies has darkened and our pace had quickened discernibly having got caught up in the slip stream of a couple of JJB Sports account holding power walkers complete with iPods. Just past a notice board proudly displaying a collection of photographs of chubby fish caught by even chubbier middle aged fishermen there were a pair of great crested grebe feeding close in which had the effect of interrupting the rhythm of my accelerated pace. This was a mistake as the rain came and I got wet. - although made for some nice 'plip plop' raindrop photos.

Note: must get myself a pedometer, a head band and some lycra shorts at the weekend to ensure I don't get labelled a geek - too late I hear you say!