Moving from the craggy and windy island of Anglesey down to the relative tranquility of West Berkshire, was something of a leap of faith, but it was time for a new challenge - even several new challenges! The first few months have been mainly taken up with finding my way around the area, locating sources of wood, and beginning to find outlets for my work. Slowly but surely, things are coming together, and the future looks good. Please go to my Bio page for more about my background.

Everything....everywhere.....and yes, everyone - all seem so very different from what I have been used to for so many years. I miss the truly wild weather, I miss the craggy coastal landscapes, and I miss the beautiful sound of the Welsh language. I also miss my true friends amongst the people I knew in Anglesey. On a positive note, I have found a few good, new friends , I have seen some wonderful birds and animals (many of which would be unheard of back on the island - like Muntjac deer, Dartford Warblers and Little Ringed Plovers, to mention but three), and found the most amazing sources of wood for turning (most of it there for the asking - So many large Oak and Ash trees, in particular, seem to fall over at the slightest hint of a any wind forecast). Ironically, the bird which symbolises Welsh birdlife - the Red Kite - is ridiculously common down here, and I have seen far more of them than I have House Sparrows, for example. It is good, too, to hear once again the sound of half a dozen Skylarks holding their own little singing Eisteddfod high in the sky above Greenham Common as I take Stig, the German Short-haired Pointer , for a run.

Ask any trout fisherman where the finest trout can be caught and he will quite likely tell you that it would be on the river Test in Hampshire - a mere ten minutes drive from where I live.......and a far cry from fishing for "cardboard" Rainbow Trout in some of the commercial fisheries where I used to live. For the birdwatcher, this, the most wooded area of England, has a wealth of birdlife - both on and around the numerous gravel pits in the area, on the many stretches of common land, and in the beautiful Oak and Beech woods which abound.

I hope to add further insights in the coming weeks and months ....watch this space!

Yes, life is good again - very good!

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