Upper Teesdale - Spring Gentians

Today I finally achieved a lifelong ambition of visiting the Upper Teesdale valley in the North Pennines. Why I've never been before is difficult to say, but it was certainly an occasion worth waiting for, because it is a place which has been described as probably the most important botanical site in England, and it is home to a wealth of wonderful flowers, including spectacularly, the Spring Gentian. This a is a sun loving flower, which closes on cloudy days, but on warm sunny days in spring provides a stunning display of electric blue flowers. This is the only place in the UK where you can see this wonderful display, and fortunately, we chose the perfect day.

It's been an early spring, and the gentians were in full flower along the banks of the Tees near Forest Teesdale, and most spectacularly near Cow Green Reserveroir on Widdybank Fell. They are only small, but don't be decieved, they have a personality as big and as grand as any flower you are ever likely to see, they are like precious jewels lying in the grass and sparkling in the sun!

The gentians are not the only stars. In places, the banks of the Tees are amass with Bird's-eye Primroses, on a scale which I have never come close to experiencing before. Lots of other flowers too, such as Cowslips, pansies and violets, and plenty still to come, it is only April after all!

In such company the birds were very much a secondary interest, but there was plenty to see. On the Tees near Cronkley Scar there was a fabulous male Ring Ouzel, and the moorland was alive with sounds of breeding waders, Curlew, Oystercatcher, Lapwing, Redshank and on the river Common Sandpiper. Plenty of Red Grouse on the moors, and there is a healthy poulation of Black Grouse here as well, though we didn't see any.

A truely exhilarating experience.