tue 15 january 2013           late morning

northern sector

sunny periods after heavy o/night frost

Thought I would try a trip to the frozen north to find the birds that are missing from my usual haunts.Found 3 little grebe on the canal by Dunstall Park and Aldersley Junction,one of which was struggling with a huge fish nearly as big as itself.A look around the fields to the west of Aldersley Junction ( Aldersley Fields) was fruitless, but leaving near the railway viaduct and scanning the canal to the north I could see a grey heron fishing and a green woodpecker flew over my head from the fields and disappeared beyond the bushes the other side of the canal. I met Angus on the bridge at Aldersley Junction and after checking out the old orchard there, we made our way to the Luppin Fields to search for Ian's chiffchaff with no luck. In the small coppice below the railway sheds we had a treecreeper. A walk around the rough field below the coppice and back to the junction was unrewarding so we had another go for the chiffy in the shelter of the bushes and       trees on the rail track from the viaduct back towards Aldersley Stadium,again with no luck. On reaching the junction of the railway / Hugh Porter Way / Aldersley Rd we parted company but not before we had 2 buzzard soaring above Dunstall Hill and a Mistle Thrush flying SE over the car park and at least 1 in a nearby tree.