A walk to Castle Hill and East Carr

A long, 18 km walk to Castle Hill, a mound on the outskirts of Hull by Holderness Drain. It is sunny and the wind has eased, although there is frost and ice on the ground. The walk was mostly along pedestrian/cycle tracks, especially the Hornsea cycle lane.
As I cross Wilmington Bridge I check on the Redshank roost: 11 today, but I dond't have much time, as the bridge engineer tells me he's opening the bridge in a few minutes.

The Redshank roost

As I carry on, a 20 strong flock of small birds calls my attention. I follow them with the binoculars and they end up landing on a large buddleia bush, and appear to start feeding on the seed heads, something I've never seen before. They are in a patch of land covered in buddleias, one of the fastest colonisers of cleared up land. Later, on the way back, I come across the Linnets again, this time as they feed on a large mound of soil.

Linnets.

After crossing Stoneferry Road and cutting across a estate, I join a pedestrian/cycle track again. 

Some sections are wide and have some green space on the sides. This bit is just before getting to Rockford Fields.

At Rockford fields there are quite a bit of Chaffinches, a male uttering it's broken early spring song. I hear the nasal call of a Brambling from a tall poplar, but despite some searching I can't find it and have to leave it at that.

Singing Song Thrush.

I cut across the fields to join the Hornsea cycle track, also the TransPennine Way. The route has underpasses or bridges under some large roads, which is quite nice. The path is strait and by Sutton the landscape is more undulating, with steep banks covered on Ivy on the sides. Birds are plentiful.

As I step onto the first fields, I spot a Little Egret in the distance, glowing in the sunshine.

I get to Castle Hill just after crossing a bridge over Holderness Drain, which marks the Hull city boundary.

Holderness Drain.

 A Crow chases a Sparrowhawk. A flood in a field has attraced a flock of Black-headed Gulls, with some Common Gulls, a few immature Herring gulls and a Lesser Black-backed Gull. Disappointingly, no Yellowhammers on the hedges. I do a bit of exploring and climb to the top of the hill, to get a view (top shot). The paths are rutted, muddy, steep and very slippery. Eleven Jackdaws gather atop the mature trees on the hill. 

Castle Hill, the remains of a medieval motte, now a low mound elevated over the flat surroundings.

After this, I follow the Holderness drain SE on the Hull side. There is a newly ploughed field and I can hear the chirruping calls of Skylarks. After some searching I spot one quite close, appearing and disappearing on the clods of soil as it feeds, a new addition for the year list. In a few minutes, the song of a Skylark!

I get to Suttoncross drain, which is narrow and quite deep. It doesn't follow a straight path. I flush a Kingfisher. Fortunately it stops a bit ahead and lets me take a few photos.

Kingfisher.

Mallard.

Two Kestrels are hunting over a ditch one each side of the path.

Overall, three new species for the year, Brambling, Skylark and Little Egret, taking me to 69 for the year at Hull.