Hairy BittercressThirteen bodies on the minibus were met in Skipton by three more to undertake a stroll through Skipton Castle Woods. We were led by Joan Dobson (whom we welcomed back after injury caused her to miss last week's trip) and Margaret Rees. Spring has truly sprung and the sun shone which made for for a delightful day. As more and more plants are now appearing, the pace of the walk was back to the usual BEES investigative meader as we slowly made our way along the old canal and into the woods. Wild garlic gave off its distinctive aroma and was one of 70 plants in flower (including ferns) recorded by Joan with herb Paris, toothwort, moschatel and goldilocks buttercup being the most prized sightings. 
Grey WagtailBirds were busy with nesting and 28 species were recorded - the highlights being dipper, goldcrest, blackcap, nuthatch and tree creeper but missing from the list was heron which we had expected to see nesting in the woods. Only three species of butterfly were recorded - orange tip, peacock and small tortoiseshell. We had hoped that we might see the year's first damselfly but that will have to wait for another week.
Herb Paris Flower
Exhorbitant parking charges meant that we had to return to the minibus by 2.30pm in order to minimise the cost and so we had an hour at the end of the walk to explore Skipton and whilst some enjoyed ice creams in the sunshine, others headed for the tea rooms to round of a most enjoyable day. Thanks to Margaret and Joan for organising the day and to Robert (fortified by a bag of chips) for his driving. Stuart
P.S. Those of you who look at Sue's super photos on the gallery will note that she has now posted 2001 images on this website. Although there are a few photos that have been taken by lesser beings, 99% of them are Sue's own work and they give a real insight into the activities of the group. Well done Sue, we are most grateful for your efforts.