Pickings?

The bilberry season is upon us but be aware that so is the midge season. And these moisty mornings are not good times for harvesting. Later in the day perhaps when the warmth lifts the cloud. But in truth the last few autumnal mornings have not been a good advertisement for summer on Blacka or even in the whole region. Each day there are wet boots to be dried out after the morning walk and trousers to be shoved in the airing cupboard.

A Victory for Local People

There is so much fatalism about today with people caving in to the dull intransigence and arrogance of authority and officialdom that when we do win we should celebrate and determine to fight whenever these issues arise. The battle of the lights on Baslow Road has been won by SPACE due to the stand taken by local people who refused to allow officials to get away with cheating and laziness. Well done to Sally who wrote and delivered the speech at the planning meeting and also to those who supported her. Read the account on Sally's blog.

Misty Mornings

Several mornings have been like this. Mist and low cloud at this time of year can be very trying. You have a pretty good idea that when you're busy elsewhere later in the day visibility will improve and the views will open out. And the bracken is now just getting to that stage where any dampness transfers itself to your clothing. But just occasionally you catch some of the wildness unawares.

These animals are much more likely to be found amid the bracken than cattle.

In fact the cattle were also met suddenly and unexpectedly in a dark area under the trees. Unlike the stags, they behaved as cows mostly do, unpredictably and vaguely alarming. This is not the right place for cows. A few minutes later a girl with a dog came on the same path.

Numbers

Visitors to this blog are now numbered at over 8,000 since August 2007. This comes to an average of 11.6 each day. All are welcome to leave comments should they wish.

The Cattle Question at Blacka

It's no longer possible to sweep this isssue under the carpet after the cattle incidents in recent days. Whether or not you think it's likely that someone will be injured by cows on Blacka there's no doubt that many people now are avoiding walking here because cattle are grazing. The appalling story of the woman who was killed in North Yorkshire and the other story about David Blunkett's very lucky escape have been well aired in the media. And don't forget there were no calves in the field where the former Home Secretary was attacked. Many who were less bothered before will be more doubtful now. And this is a place where dog walking has been traditional for many generations and a place that was set up to be a public pleasure ground. It is frankly unacceptable that this continues. The media is full of the tragic case of the vet killed in Wensleydale and sundry advice in the form of Do's and Don'ts much of it frankly contradictory. Most of this is completely useless in the case of Blacka Moor as is the fatuous risk asessment produced by SWT. How can you stay away from cattle if the lie of the land and the vegetation mean that you can suddenly be confronted with cattle just a few feet away from you? The policy of cattle grazing is made even more irresponsible when those who have made the decision know very well that the presence of the cattle is utterly pointless. The claimed benefits for cattle being on the site have been gradually adjusted over the years until they are unrecognisable from the original claims. Now nobody is claiming that they will eat the young birch trees on the heather or trample and even eat the bracken. Now it's all vague nonsense about soil structure and nutrients. In fact farm machinery has had to be brought in to lay waste the natural vegetation and create grassy areas for them to graze!

Are You Lookering Now?

Cattle Lookerers may have missed this one, at Stony Ridge car park.

SWT planned this year to introduce a mass 'Lookering Programme' to help them keep an eye on their cattle possibly because they rarely visit the site themselves, being too busy compiling vast quantities of self justifying paperwork at their desks and work stations 5 miles away. The scheme has caught on so well that the last count suggests at least one and a half people have enrolled and are conscientiously monitoring the overwhelming success of the cattle grazing scheme (the cows have consumed 13, 426 blades of grass, left 7,324 soggy cow pats, trashed 6 paths and head butted 2 astonished dogs). So far as we know, nobody on this site has been trampled or been forced to leap over the barbed wire.... Yet.

Top Singer

It's now time to announce the winner of the Blacka Moor Singer of the World competition. This is held every two years in odd numbered years and is timed to run alongside the Cardiff Singer of the World. The chief differences are the al fresco location, and the competition being only open to males. The standard this year has been as high as ever with a strong showing once again from skylarks and visiting warblers.

Finally after much anguished deliberation the esteemed award goes to the Blackbird regularly to be heard from the bridleway just up from the bench near Lenny Hill. The judges were impressed with the relaxed melodic approach and unforced tone (qualities interestingly found also in the Czech bass who won the song prize at Cardiff).

In the short clip below the blackcap (who came second) can be heard singing from a flowering Elder with the winner also clearly audible.