Flatford Mill and Manningtree

In my Hobbies… Falco Subbuteo post in reference to a return to Birding I said… It started with a trip to Manningtree in mid April. The idea was simple… Get Alasdair out for a walk in the countryside, get some haulage and photos of Class 90′s on the Norwich services and cover some grid squares for the Geograph project. Birdwatching was mentioned as a hook to encourage Alasdair – he enjoys seeing birds in the wild. Oh! and we also get to visit Flatford Mill in Constable Country too 🙂 So, although it was a dull day, I thought I’d share some of the photos with you…

Flatford Mill – Downstream side

90007 ‘Sir John Betjeman’ crosses the Stour Estuary

Flatford Mill – upstream side

Bridge over farm track outside Manningtree Station

Dry Dock, scene of Constable’s painting ‘Boat Building near Flatford Mill’

Willy Lotts Cottage and the River Stour – site of Constable’s painting ‘The Hay Wain’

The Stour Estuary on a dull damp afternoon

90006 ‘Modern Railways Magazine’ at Manningtree – our ride home at the end of the day.

90041 heads the 4L97 Trafford Park to Felixstowe North Freightliner service through Manningtree Station

River Stour – the southern arm. Those reeds may have had reed warblers in them but we never saw any!

Cattawade Bridge on the River Stour

A field of Rape – our Pheasant dropped down somewhere into those tractor tracks near the brow of the hill

Meadow Wetlands – you can’t tell from the photo but this meadow produced Lapwing, Redshank, Grey Heron and our first Swallows of the year