NORMAL SERVICE WAS INDEED RESUMED WITH A DESPERATELY DULL, DAMP DAY that felt like twilight from dawn to dusk. Alexander and I did another BTO BirdTrack walk upstream from the village and found some brightness in nature to lift our spirits. The best was undoubtedly the trio of Goldeneyes that was again just upstream from the bridge. ‘I can see their golden eyes!’ was proof of a nice look at them. We searched the woods on the south bank for woodcock without any luck but a Goldcrest and a smart male Bullfinch made our efforts worthwhile. Alexander spotted a Brown Hare running through a woodland, which was very exciting for him, I don’t think he’s seen one inside a wood before. Walks upstream are not usually as varied as going downstream from the village but a total of 45 was respectable for a couple of hours. We saw a snipe in an icy meadow and a kingfisher dashed past on the Ribble, the first of the year. The two Little Egrets were both upstream from the bridge, maybe as there is less disturbance here and a large flock around 80 Herring Gulls wsa on the ground at Salesbury. Back in the woods Jay and a couple of Great Spotted Woodpeckers were noted before it was time head home. Again Redwings were very scarce with only two in Stewart’s Wood and Fieldfare was absent this time. Despite the grim weather we had a great time in the mud now that the paths are defrosting but there were quite a few folks fishing and there was a lot of traffic on the roads around the village. Lockdown 3 is very different to Lockdown 1 it seems, when silence prevailed.