Wednesday, 25 February 2026

"There's such an air of spring about it"

Tuesday 24th February 2026

Amongst numerous recent diary entries I have had a hearing test and been given hearing aids. That stemmed from not being able to assimilate conversations in the environment of a two hundred guest wedding between Christmas and New Year, otherwise I can hear pretty well in normal one to one convesations, and I can hear the birdies sing. But the hearing test, and its science said I was severely deaf in one ear, and well on the way with the other - all very strange.

Although I haven't recently had the good fortune to emulate Ella  -  "I can hear a lark somewhere sing about it" - I have been able to hear more of birdsong in general when I had thought that was at a satisfactory level before. On top of that I can hear the carpet scrunching under my feet and any rustling or crinkly paper emitts an incredibly high pitched kind of crackliness.

So yesterday at last I was able to take a break from my model making ( currently a Red Arrows Hawk trainer) and head off on a long awaited walk.

The appearance of crocus, snowdrops and daffs  is a short lived event that I did not want to miss and I was reasonably well rewarded.

 

All Saints church, Underbarrow


Challenging graveyard terrain?

Leaving the tarmac


Crocus and snowdrops



Zoom to Underbarrow village

I imagined a giant had been employed as a wall builder - Tranthwaite Hall farm


Down to a ford where...

I thought I was going to get wet feet, but...

...saviour.


Lindreth Brow cottage. I was a couple of hundred yards off route but that error serendipitously provided a perfect lunch spot just the other side of the far hedge, see next photo


Anticlockwise from Chapel Bridge


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I saw Ella st St. George's Hall in Bradford in the early sixties perhaps a bit earlier than the time of this recording - a highlight of my lifetime.

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3 comments:

  1. Effortless from Ella.
    That looks like a good little circuit, completely new to me.
    The birds have suddenly burst into song, glad you can hear them!

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  2. Same with my ears. Total deaf in one and 50% in the other. The NHS ones are very good and I now hear things I've not heard for years. I do find them a problem when in a crowded room.
    My testing, fitting and setting up was all done inside 2 weeks so no complaints there. Good to read you are out and about and photographing expensive pieces of kit. The Case IH Maxxum 125 is not at all cheap.

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  3. BC - On my phone bird call app I recorded a blackacap from my front door yesterday- couldn't see it.
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    Alan R - I got mine from Specsavers and was fobbed off with non-rechargeable whereas my daughter got hers via GP referal to Kendal hospital and got the rechargeable ones. I have put in a request with my GP to do the same, but not sure if that will be allowed since I've already got the others. We will see. I now hear a little tinkling sound from my Apple keyboasrd.

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