View to Castle HillThe spell of fine weather which we are enjoying at the moment continued for today's walk around Castle Hill led by Peter. We parked the minibus just below the Victorian tower on a hillside covered in flowering gorse which proved to be a very popular habitat for linnets and yellowhammers. This gave us a good start on the bird recording front which by the day's end yielded 27 species. The walk was up hill and down dale over fields and through woods where bluebells were well in flower. Distant views were limited by hazy conditions but it was pleasantly warm throughout the day. When we stopped for lunch in the woods we were serenaded by a blackcap's melodious song and entertained by a party of young children on an Easter egg hunt. Wild flowers are present in ever-increasing numbers each week and today we recorded 61 flowering plants and ferns. Butterflies were abundant throughout our walk but we only spotted three varieties - orange tip, peacock and small tortoiseshell. The consensus of opinion amongst the 10 members who enjoyed the walk was that it was closer to 4 miles than the advertised 3 - a view influenced no doubt by the pull back up the hill to the minibus! Another very enjoyable day out.Stuart