Friday 31st: After dropping my sister-in-law off at the railway station I motored on over to the Lakeside to see if anything interesting was about. The thaw that started a few days ago has got rid of any lingering snow but the ice is still covering the lake and substantially thick, although in places, the very slow thaw has begun. 
So there are groups of waterfowl spread out on the ice, some slipping as they precariously waddled over the ice. A large flock of Mute Swans and Canada Geese are camped-out by the beach and get fed by people from time-to-time. Black-headed Gulls, Coots and Mallards also add to the throng.
This morning, the mist was lying low and heavy on the lake and still hadn't lifted by 11:30am when I left for home. Although the air is damp, the temperature has risen a few degrees... it's now a balmy +4°c! Over on the far side of the lake, not noted for being seen on the here, were a pair of Shovelers which made a slippery landing but departed after 5 minutes. A small group of Teal were huddled together in a group on the stadium-side of the lake, which is also unusual. Judging by the ice, and although there are large cracks, it still appears to be quite thick and I suspect that it will need another few days of moderate temperatures to melt the ice.
On the way back home, I stopped-off at Cantley Park... nothing much doing there either! So just to get a record snap, I grabbed a photo of the iced-pond.
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