Hello, and thanks for visiting my new blog. The fear of the blank page finally overcome (sort of), I've decided to start writing about a few of the things I really enjoy doing in my spare time. This is basically going to be an attempt to document my exploration of the birdlife of the Cotswolds and surrounding areas (where I live). It'll also aim to convey a bit of a sense of just how fantastic this part of the world is, and not just for birding. At its best, my contention is that the Cotswolds - and places like the Severn Estuary and the Forest of Dean - rival anywhere in the UK for awesome scenery, variety of habitats, diversity of wildlife, and really decent routes for hill-walking, running, and long distance hiking. I'm as big a fan of the Lake District, Snowdonia, the Brecon Beacons etc as anyone - but I think my part of the world can give any of those a run for their money. There's a lot more to this place than syrupy cottages, tweed jackets, Range Rovers and extortionately priced ice-creams - if you know where to look...

Expect accounts of trying and (mostly) failing to locate the most interesting bird species that turn up in these parts; some thoughts on the best places to go birding, and what you can see; where the best walking or running routes are to be had; and other loosely related topics. As you can tell, this is very much an emergent project, so who knows where it will go. I'll write this on the assumption that I will soon have many thousands of devoted readers across the world, and that those people simply won't be able to function properly unless there's a regular dose of content on here for them to consume. And if no-one reads it at all - well, I aim to enjoy writing it anyway! 

So - prepare to be convinced that this corner of England is right up there with the best of them. And specifically, I hope this will get across the interest and fun to be had by taking time out to notice our feathered friends. There's a lot more to see out there than woodpigeons (although there are a LOT of those, at least round my house!)

Let's begin....