Difference between revisions of "Bassenthwaite Lake" - BirdForum Opus

Photo by HelenB
View of southern end of Bassenthwaite Lake from the Upper Viewpoint, May 2009.
Click on image to see a larger version

England, Cumbria

Overview

Bassenthwaite Lake is a National Nature Reserve, in the Lake District, located in the county of Cumbria in northwest England. It is owned and managed by the Lake District National Park Authority. The area became famous in 2001, when a pair of wild Ospreys nested there, this being the first time in over 150 years that Ospreys had bred in the Lake District.

25th March: the Lake District Osprey Project at Dodd Wood opens on Saturday, 31st March, 2012 and will run through Sunday, 2nd September, 2012. Mr and Mrs "No Ring" have not yet returned to Bassenthwaite and the 2010 satellite tagged chick, no. 12, is still on his "wintering" grounds in The Gambia, West Africa! The Osprey Project team have built a secure platform and attached it to the tree down by the River Derwent, where the pair built their new nest last year, as it was pretty much destroyed in a bad storm over the winter. They have been able to attach a camera, so that progress in the nest can be observed this year.
28th March: Ospreys were seen over Wythop Forest and Derwentwater, but Mr and Mrs No-Ring still not back. The Exhibition at the Whinlatter Centre will be staffed and open from 2nd April, 2012.
30th March: an Osprey was seen perched near the new nest, eating a freshly caught fish, but did not stay long enough to be identified.
1st April: the Osprey has remained near the new nest since Friday, 30th March and has been identified as a female.
3rd April: the female Osprey has been photographed on the new nest. See the book.com/ospreywatch Facebook feed
4th April: strong winds from the northeast damaged the nestcam on 3rd April. The Osprey team will try to fix it as soon as possible.
5th April: the nestcam is now back online, thanks to the Forestry Commission Radio and Electronics Engineers and a local climber. Female Osprey making herself at home and waiting for the male to return.

Birds

Notable Species

Osprey, Red Kite (28 April, 2010), Barnacle Goose (5 June, 2010 - photo below right. These are most probably birds from a resident flock on nearby Derwentwater), Eurasian Oystercatcher, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Tawny Owl, Common Dipper, Common Redstart, European Pied Flycatcher, Eurasian Treecreeper.

Photo by HelenB
Southern end of Bassenthwaite Lake from the Lower Viewpoint, May 09. In 2011, the Ospreys built a new nest in the marshy area by the River Derwent

Photo by charlierocky
The pair of Ospreys using the nest in the second location for a second year, April 2009

Rarities

Red Kite ~ 60 young Red Kites were released in Grizedale Forest, near Windermere, in the summers of 2010 and 2011. This is the 9th reintroduction and part of the final phase of Red Kite reintroductions in different parts of the UK. 30 more will be released in the summer of 2012. It is very likely that these wing-tagged kites will be seen over Bassenthwaite Lake as they explore the Lake District.

Check-list

Birds you can see here include:

Great Crested Grebe, Grey Heron, Mute Swan, Greylag Goose, Barnacle Goose, Eurasian Wigeon, Gadwall, Eurasian Teal, Mallard, Northern Pintail, Northern Shoveler, Common Pochard, Tufted Duck, Common Goldeneye, Red-breasted Merganser, Goosander, Osprey, Eurasian Sparrowhawk, Common Buzzard, Common Kestrel, Common Pheasant, Water Rail, Common Moorhen, Common Coot, Eurasian Oystercatcher, Northern Lapwing, Common Snipe, Eurasian Curlew, Common Redshank, Common Sandpiper, Black-headed Gull, Common Gull, Herring Gull, Common Woodpigeon, Tawny Owl, Common Swift, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Sand Martin, Barn Swallow, Northern House Martin, Meadow Pipit, Pied Wagtail, Eurasian Wren, Dunnock, European Robin, Common Redstart, Eurasian Blackbird, Song Thrush, Redwing, Mistle Thrush, Eurasian Reed Warbler, Common Whitethroat, Blackcap, Wood Warbler, Common Chiffchaff, Willow Warbler, Goldcrest, European Pied Flycatcher, Spotted Flycatcher, Long-tailed Tit, Coal Tit, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Eurasian Nuthatch, Eurasian Treecreeper, Chaffinch, European Greenfinch, European Goldfinch, Eurasian Siskin, Eurasian Bullfinch, Lesser Redpoll, Common Crossbill, House Sparrow, Common Starling, Eurasian Jay, Eurasian Magpie, Eurasian Jackdaw, Rook, Carrion Crow, Common Raven

Other Wildlife

Red Squirrel, Badger, Roe Deer, Otter, Pipistrelle bat, Weasel, Stoat

Site Information

History and Use

In 2001 it was announced that a pair of Ospreys had nested in the woods above Bassenthwaite Lake. This was the first time in 150 years that a wild pair of the birds had bred in the Lake District. The Forestry Commission and the Lake District National Park Authority had provided a nesting platform in the hope that the Ospreys, they had been seeing during the summer for the last few years, would stay and breed there. Once the eggs were laid, wardens kept a 24 hour watch on the nest to protect the birds from any disturbance, such as illegal egg collecting. The RSPB is also involved in extra support for the Lake District Osprey Project.

Areas of Interest

Osprey viewing from Dodd Wood viewpoints
Whinlatter Visitor Centre in Whinlatter Forest Park, where there is a live video feed from the nest to a big screen. NB. Whinlatter is also a major mountain biking centre.
Forest walks, provided by the Forestry Commission, starting from the Dodd Wood car park.
Ivy Crag Wood - a small remnant of oak woodland on the slopes of Dodd below Skiddaw
Powterhow Wood, with a hide (blind), on the south west edge of Bassenthwaite Lake. Access from the car park at Powter How, via a nice walk through the woods, where you might see Pied and Spotted Flycatchers, Wood Warblers, and Great Spotted Woodpeckers. There's a tunnel under the A66, so no road crossings involved. Or you can park in the A66 layby at Blackstock Point, and take a walk along the lake side to get there. Location shown by arrow on map referenced in External Links, below.^[2]
Dubwath Silver Meadows, a new wetland nature reserve about 17 acres in size, located at the north west end of Bassenthwaite Lake. 1.6 mile circuit of path and boardwalk, plus hides built in Celtic style.^[3]

Access and Facilities

Both viewpoints will be open and staffed from 31st March, 2012 to 2nd Sept, 2012. You may still visit the viewpoints outside of the Osprey season, for beautiful views of Bassenthwaite Lake and Derwentwater.
Osprey watching viewpoints are in Dodd Wood, on the east side of the lake. It is 3 miles north of Keswick off the A591, follow signposts to Dodd Wood from the A66. The car park is opposite the entrance to Mirehouse.
The Lower Viewpoint - open from 10am to 5pm daily and staffed by volunteers. Excellent views of the Ospreys fishing over the lake. There are feeders out for the local birds, and Red Squirrels sometimes stop by, too.
The Upper Viewpoint - open from 10am to 5pm daily. It is about half a mile, a 30 minutes walk, up a steep incline, to this higher viewpoint. There are telescopes for viewing the nest which is down on the marsh about a mile away.
There is no charge to use the viewpoint, but car parking charges for 2010 were as follows: £1.60 for 1.5 hours, £2.50 for 2 hours, £4.50 for 4 hours and £5.80 for all day.
There are public toilets at the car park.
The Old Sawmill Tearoom at Dodd Wood is open through the Osprey season and beyond, closing at the end of October.
The Whinlatter Visitor Centre is located west of Braithwaite, on the B5292 between Braithwaite and Cockermouth - Grid Ref NY208245. It is open all year, and the Osprey Exhibition will be open from 10am until 5pm during the period that the ospreys are nesting.
There was no Osprey Bus running for the 2011 season, due to lack of funding and no information can be found for the 2012 season. A PDF brochure showing a useful map of the area is still available online - see external links.^[4]

Contact Details

Whinlatter Visitor Centre phone: 017687 78469

Gallery

Click on images to see a larger version:

Photo by HelenB
Bassenthwaite Lake looking north, May 09
Photo by HelenB
Approaching the Upper Osprey Viewpoint, May 09
Photo by HelenB
Osprey nest (centre) is only 400m from viewpoint. Derwentwater in the background, May 09
Photo by HelenB
Osprey nest, May 09.
Photo by Mad_BMS
Bassenthwaite Lake, looking towards Skiddaw, May 05
Photo by oncebittern
Male Osprey fishing on Bassenthwaite Lake, June 2010
Photo by charlierocky
Common Dipper, photographed near Keswick
Photo by oncebittern
The unusual sight of 10 Barnacle Geese over Bassenthwaite Lake, 5 June 2010

Content and images originally posted by HelenB

External Links

Search for videos of Bassenthwaite Lake on BirdForum TV

@@ Line 12: / Line 12: @@
 *'''3rd April:''' the female Osprey has been photographed on the new nest. See the [http://www.face book.com/ospreywatch Facebook feed]
 *'''4th April:''' strong winds from the northeast damaged the nestcam on 3rd April. The Osprey team will try to fix it as soon as possible.
+*'''5th April:''' the nestcam is now back online, thanks to the Forestry Commission Radio and Electronics Engineers and a local climber. Female Osprey making herself at home and waiting for the male to return.
 ==Birds==
 ===Notable Species===