Winter’s over!

Official. Every October/November time we are treated to the sight and sound of the sky being full of cranes as they migrate south from their summer homes in northern Europe to the warmer climes of the south of Spain and North Africa. And we know at that time that winter will soon be upon us.

Then as the skies brighten and the temperature begins to climb again some time in early spring, we are greeted with the sight and sound of them on their way back, and as we know that those clever birds would only be doing so when they know that the long, dark days of winter are finally over, we also know that spring is beckoning and that the days will soon be warming up. I heard my first flock approaching in the distance last Saturday while we were viewing the site of the possible new airfield and stood with my head back as they eventually flew past in a series of straggly ‘V’ formations and filled the air with their calls. It’s an awesome sight and although I didn’t have a camera handy then, today I was able to dash out and catch a quick shot of a large flock as it flew high past my house.

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This was the only flock that I saw today, and late in the afternoon too, but yesterday the sky was full of birds as squadron after squadron of them headed doggedly north, so much so that people were coming out of the shops and cafés in Montignac to see them for themselves. At one time as though the leaders were in radio contact, each flight simultaneously broke formation, joined into more of an amorphous group and began wheeling and descending. It didn’t take long to see why when a large area of dark low cloud came over accompanied by squally winds and bursts of large raindrops that the clever birds had seen approaching from afar and had taken steps to avoid, resuming their journey once again when the unfavourable weather had cleared through.

The birds must have tremendous determination and stamina because for the past few days, we have been subjected to cold northerly winds that they have been flying headlong into for hour after hour. That’s all about to change, though, and the weather forecast is for a couple of weeks of fine, warm weather with mainly southerly winds. Nice for the cranes and for ULM pilots too, so with a bit of luck, we’ll be able to get a good bit of flying in. Let’s hope that these are the signs of a good summer to come 😉