A few weeks ago my bird group and myself went in the train for 1 hour from Bangor to Moira Station to walk along the Towpath so these are some of the
photographs I took during our walk.
Moira
railway station serves Moira in County Down, Northern Ireland. Despite the
station serving the County Down town, the station itself is located in County
Antrim, the neighbouring Lagan Canal being the boundary. Moira station is the
oldest building on the Northern Ireland Railway network today having been opened on 18 November
1841.
During the construction of the station and the railway, thousands of skeletons were unearthed, leading to a greater understanding of the Battle of Moira, the largest battle in the history of Ireland, which had occurred in 637 and the previous details of which were much less well known.
There is a station building and signal cabin on the 'down' platform. Off site, away from the platforms, there is a station master's house.
The
old, now redundant, signal box stands over
the station on the Southbound side.
We stopped for coffee before starting our walk.
These
are some of the member of the group.
This shot was taken as I leaned over the wall/fence at the station platform as I watched these 2 Pied Wagtails chasing each other.
So off we go and I will show you the fences and birds along the way.
Nesting Mute Swans
Ahead of us on the towpath, we all saw this female Bullfinch feeding on the ground for about 5 minutes and then I noticed the male Bullfinch was in the tree opposite watching her.
Last week I showed you a post about the 13 ducklings born at Mount Stewart Gardens and this time this Mallard had 11 chicks.
This is the only shot I was able to captured all 11
ducklings.
Moorhen
Another nesting Swan
Dunnock and we also saw Sedge Warbler and heard Willow Warbler.
However I will leave you with a fence and I am linking this post
with Tex’s
I have a short video which can be accessed at
http://youtu.be/stgS0elennQ
If there is a black space below,click it and the video will appear.
Tomorrow I will continue our walk along the towpath however this time I will show you different reflections to go along with James’ WEEKEND REFLECTIONS.
So see you tomorrow and thanks for visiting today.
Many thanks for leaving comments on any of my posts.
see you got your priorities in order - caffeine up front! Enjoyed the various birds you saw and so handy to public transport!
ReplyDeleteYup! We birder are in agreement with thinking coffee first! Glad you enjoyed the post and thanks for comment
DeleteWe can see that you like nature and also to teach it very well to us.
ReplyDeleteTomás.
HI Tomas Yes I do love nature and I also like sharing the wonders of nature with eveyone.
DeleteThis looks a great place for a walk. A pity the canal is no longer used.
ReplyDeleteHi Adrian Yes it is a very peaceful to walk and observe nature. Lots of canals are now not working which is a pity.
DeleteBeautiful, the railway line, the canal, and oh, the birds, especially the Bullfinches, superb.
ReplyDeleteThe towpath looks like a pretty walk. Lovely nature scenes and great birds. Thanks for sharing your walk. Have a happy day!
ReplyDeleteIt looks a lovely walk Margaret with some great birds seen. I love the Mallard ducklings :)
ReplyDeleteYou go on so many wonderful birding tours! YES, I am jealous. ;))
ReplyDeleteWonderful Margaret, a lovely walk with lots of pretty scenery and a variety of beautiful birds. And good fences too :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for taking us along on your adventure! I really enjoyed all of your pictures.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful walk. Don't know which I like the best. Mommy Duck with her little ones are precious, but the Moorhen with the bright red is eye catching. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed walking with you, seeing the beauty of the Northern Irish green, the fences, birds, swans and ducklings!
ReplyDeletea nice looking group of peeps for your adventure!! beautiful fences, awesome views and i am only slightly jealous of your swan captures!! looks like a great outing!!
ReplyDeleteWhat a spectacular post, Margaret! Starting with the train tracks, because of my fondness for all things train, I enjoyed every single photo. The tunnels and fences just cheer me to no end.
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful walk Margaret. I love the photos and the narrative. I would love to visit there.
ReplyDeleteLooks like a great path to walk. Love the 11 chicks and all the birds.
ReplyDeleteThe shot under the bridge looking at a bridge...awesome! Beautiful selection of birds and love the old brick.
ReplyDeleteWhat a varieties of FANTASTIC walk with you♡♡♡ I especially love the swans!!!
ReplyDeleteSending you Lots of Love and Hugs from Japan, xoxo Miyako*
This is a very interesting post. I really enjoyed the walk, photos and narration. Thank you.
ReplyDeletesuch a beautiful area, filled with birds and ducks. love the bridge arc with the vines growing on it. thanks for linking in with some really nice fences and views!
ReplyDeleteThank you for bringing us along. That fence by the canal is in good repair and necessary I'm sure. Loved spotting the birds, the swan and peeking through the reeds. I could almost hear the birds. I will have to share the train station with my grandson who at 10 is still crazy about anything having to do with trains.
ReplyDeleteOh Margaret, what a delicious tour of beauty, birds and history. I love old bridges and tunnels. I always pull over to take pictures when I see one ... but it is rare and you have captured a lifetime of beauty in these shots. The birds and the video are marvelous. Were the Pied Wagtails disputing territory or was there a little courtship involved ... it is that time of year after all. The baby ducklings are so sweet. We don't have any here yet and thankfully so because our weather has been very cold. It is always a pleasure to follow your posts. Thank you for this part of the tour and I will look forward to the finish another day.
ReplyDeleteAndrea @ From The Sol
HI Andrea I think it was a courtship display. I am so glad you enjoyed the post and I appreciate your comments.
DeleteI love the old quaint buildings. A little history, a little birding, good friends - sounds like a great day.
ReplyDeleteLovely photos of the scenery!
Thank you for the lovely tour. It was quite nice. Many sweet birds and great fences. You covered it all and I am ready for a bite to eat. MB
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed the walk very much! It's a beautiful area. Sweet ducklings and lovely swans.
ReplyDeleteToo much fun riding the train!! We lived in Germany in the 80s and went everywhere by train!! Wish we had the rails here in the states.
ReplyDeleteHuge swan nests!! What a lovely day to go birding!!
Oh, my goodness, all of your photos are just beautiful! I've been to England and Scotland but have never been to Ireland. It's definitely on my wish list and your photos make me want to go soon!
ReplyDeleteMargaret, all the images are beautiful.
ReplyDeleteGreen is juicy. delighted with every bird, ducks, swans ...
Each of the bridges shown is wonderful.
Greetings.
I like how the fence goes under the bridge, too! Great bird shots!
ReplyDeleteAgain , a fantastic blog with great photos.
ReplyDeletepeter
Lovely Margaret, nice photographs, love the pictures of the Moorhen :)
ReplyDeleteBeautiful collection of photos. Nice submission for the Fences meme. I noticed the purple galinule in there which we also enjoy here, too.
ReplyDeleteHi Gail No it is not a PurpleGallinule but a MOORHEN. Glad you enjoyed the post and many thanks for leaving a commenet
DeleteThat Moor Hen has the biggest feet! We have plenty of Mallards here and they even come into our yard and I feed them. But your pictures of mom and dad with the babies are SO cute!! The Reed Buntings look much like our chickadees. So the station is a graveyard station! It all looks very clean and the station house is very cute.
ReplyDeleteI love the birds, the fences and the stone bridges - everything is so beautiful. Your video is lovely, it was so nice to hear all the bird sounds in the background.
ReplyDeleteI very much enjoyed your bird group walk and video! So much beauty where you live!
ReplyDeleteThanks for your visit and comment on my fences.
~Lindy
What a beautiful tour that was! I love the meandering towpath and all the sights along the way.
ReplyDeleteYour shots are always amazing, Margaret! Loved this series of shots. You certainly see some interesting sights, not to mention birds! Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteThis looks like a pretty area, and the one shot of looking down the river could easily have been taken in my area. Great shots of the various birds (most of which I'm unfamiliar with). I like the old railway station and curved bridge. Interesting facts regarding the station construction. Thanks for visiting my blog ... I'm now following along with your blog. Wendy x
ReplyDeleteHI Wendy Glad you found my blog and enjoyed it. Many thanks for your comments. Much appreciated.
DeleteOh my goodness, what a grand display of captures out and about, with people and birds, all lovely!
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful tour! You had me smiling all the way through!!
ReplyDeleteLove your fences and the birds!
Thanks for stopping by and commenting!
Linda
http://coloradofarmlife@wordpress.com
Enjoyed the tour, fabulous images!
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful walk... Your photos are marvelous will have to learn more now about the war and the railroad
ReplyDeleteWow so many wonderful scene views with lovely fence and pretty birds. I really enjoyed this post.
ReplyDeleteI forgot to mention that I loved the baby ducklings and that bird with the red beak.
ReplyDeleteLove the photos of the mama duck and her ducklings! So cute! Thanks for visiting my blog! :)
ReplyDelete