As with all village life, one of the central aspects of it is the pub and Brabourne is no exception. Just 200 metres down the road from the cottage is the Five Bells which takes its name from the original belfry in St. Mary's at the time when it had just five bells.
The pub is a gastro pub which does a mean menu, and is always good for a cup of tea and cake in the afternoon. It's fair to say it's not really a local's pub any more and most of the trade are folk on an evening out.
Locals tend to use the Black Horse, in nearby Monk's Horton which we have yet to sample!
Last Sunday we visited nearby Mersham Hatch, an old established country estate which now has a Deer Park which is open to the public. There is a herd of Fallow Deer roaming the grounds, some of whom were taking it easy under the tree far away from the footpaths which criss-cross the park.
There is also a Heron Pond in the park but we appeared to take a wrong turning somewhere, so perhaps next time we'll get some pictures of that.
Is it a dog or a badger?
While we were walking through the park we came across this strange creature. At first, we thought it was a badger in the distance, but as we got closer it didn't move. It wasn't until we got right up close that we discovered it was the work of mother nature. Take a look at the detail, it's incredible!
Nestboxes
All next seasons nest boxes are now up, with the exception of one Wren box and one owl box for Hooty, our resident Tawny Owl.
These boxes have been distributed around the paddock today.
We have also had some very unusual activity in two of the Blue Tit boxes. The one which faces north appears to have a new nest in it, entirely unheard of for this time of year. You can just see the nesting hanging from the drainage holes at the base of the box. Strangely though, we haven't seen any activity at the nest hole.
However, earlier today I was looking to move one of the boxes from the front garden to make way for an owl box, and as I moved the box a Blue Tit flew out! Quite what is going on nobody is sure. Needless to say I've left it where it is, and I'll find a new position for the Owl box.
Hooty has been keeping us awake at night with his constant calling. It's that time of year when he's looking for a partner, and once has found one he'll be looking for a love nest. So now's the time to put the box up. I have found a good spot which gives them clear access to the nest hole, and a nearby branch will support a night camera to monitor their visits. Once it's all in place I will turn the camera on. This is not Hooty, but it's a good lookalike.
Visitors to the garden.
Neville the Pheasant finally introduced us to one of his lady friends this week, who came round for a good feed and then settled down in the tree in the back garden.
Fortunately for her, her timing was impeccable as shortly after we had visit from Min, one of the cats who lives in the main house just down the lane.
Min likes a bit of fuss, but is keen to let you know when she's had enough by nipping your hand. Bless!
The Robins are still feeding on demand; they seem to have their own clocks as within 30 seconds of the curtains going back in the morning, they are on the lid of feeder demanding it is taken off so they can get to the meal-worms. The Wren has also learned that the meal-worms are a tasty meal, and now out of reach of the Magpie.
The Badgers and Foxes are still wandering around in the Paddock with plenty of new bedding material being scattered around outside their dens. I have set up two cameras there hopefully to catch some more video.
I hope to get the Tawny Owl box up within the next week or so, I'll put some pictures up when I have.
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