Todays 1 hour Backyard BirdWatching gave me 5 new species for my 2023 Backyard list, bringing it to 27 species.
1 Whooper Swan flying by, a Herring Gull doing the same, and because of the southern wind, I could hear a Great spotted woodpecker drumming, a Jay screaming and a Nuthatch “imitating an electronic car lock” (that’s how I remember it).
The national BackYardBirding “competition” runs until July – my aim is 70+ species – so far so good.
This video made me doubt again about my intentions for 2023. I am still in a big doubt, as I think that LowCarbon Birding is the right thing to do, but I am almost getting crazy about the feeling of being locked in, missing out and not experiencing the benefits of true nature.
So I am thinking of using the car once in a while, for short, local quick trips, in order to see some local birds. I do not have oceans of time (nor energy) and spending time walking or cycling to a place is therefore often unrealistic, even for nearby locations
Today I noticed that 2 birders had visited all the good spots around the lake today, a lake that starts within 1 or 2 km. from the house. I’d like to visit 1 or 2 of these places, but tomorrow will be raining, the sun is rising at 8:45 or so, and I will bring and then pick up the children at lunchtime, leaving me hardly a realistic chance to go birding around the lake.
Unless I go by car.
After watching the video I checked the Train and Bus homepages, and had to laugh a bit, because I hardly have an idea how it works, where and what I have to pay etc. But I found out bit by bit what to do, and noticed that prices are almost 3x the prices of the fossil fuel it would cost if I drive myself. I’ll have to walk to a busstop first, because at the one near by the bus stops only a few times a day.
In order for me to stop contemplating (complaining), I decide that in 2023 I will concentrate on LowCarbon Birding, aiming at 100+ species in 2023, and occasionally use the car for local visits in case of rain and wind, lack of time and/or claustrophobic feelings.
