Easter-tide. Across the A66 dry snow winnowed in the icy wind in long undulating scarves like pale sand. Alongside, reflecting the sky, the lake lay like a vast corroded aluminium sheet, grey waves pockmarked by sleet. Swathed in lowering cloud Skiddaw stood hoary headed and inimical. But closer to warmth and hot chocolate the white slopes of Latrigg were criss crossed with the tracks of sledge runners and the heights of Whinlatter forest echoed to the sound of excited voices and the splat and squeals of snowball fights. All the conifers were laden with pounds of sugary snow sticking to every branch and needle and the picnic area sported a giant Easter snow-bunny. Spring seemed very unlikely! But now, 2 weeks later, it’s a different world. Hawthorn is tinting the hedgerows bright green, willows are outlined in haloes of pussy-willow pollen and daffodils are bounding in the breeze in yellow profusion everywhere you look.

A first chiff chaff forages amongst the sycamore buds at Wythop. And this morning, what should the osprey project team see when they arrived to set up scopes but an osprey large as life and twice as beautiful sitting and preening on the spy camera beside the nest. Of course, we immediately hoped it was our female from last year, but as we know she has no ring it will be very difficult to positively identify her. We can only go by behaviour of this bird and most importantly, whether it will be here tomorrow? If not, then, like other migrant ospreys that have been sighted it will be a Scots one on its way back to a nest site further North.

Whether our bird or not it has made the amazing 6000 mile round trip to West Africa and back successfully and deserves a well earned rest and meal before the serious business of starting the new breeding season.