Almost all, Saturday afternoon

Not quite such a beautiful day as in Arthur's photos but still lovely out on Caesar's. Very busy too.  Found three groups mid afternoon - the youngsters at S11/12, heading west, six at L17 (including 940 and 118) and three (23, 30 and 33) at N26.  All seemed well. all busy grazing, and hope the four missing ones are fine too.

Thursday first thing

Couldn’t find the cattle first thing, but it was hardly surprising

All seen today, herd of 15 was found by James Bond pond and another 2 came running down the track to see what the commotion was all about after I rolled out a lick.
The other 3 jumped out at me from behind the gorse a little further away so led them to the others and  issued another lick.
The sun broke through the fog and all was well.
No problems with the herd.

Half measures

Found the kids near the horse pond with four of the grown ups, very late afternoon.  I had looked  hard for a couple of hours, so no idea where the others were hiding.  The 11 were very well and really friendly.

Late afternoon Friday

The 7 youngsters were on the top of Caesar's Camp late afternoon and looked very calm and well.  Too late in the day to hunt all the site - will go back over the weekend.

20th Dec at 08.45

Cows quite vocal this morning, could hear them before saw them.  Larger cows (10) near reservoir (think was called the horse pond back in the day) and 6 smaller cows further onto Caesar's camp.  All happily grazing.  Note to self bring kids binoculars as my eyesight isn't what it used to be!

All seen in 3 herds

Main herd just off main track from James Bond pond. And as they started to gather so did a load more. 16 in total, gave 2 licks near to pond (sandy hill side). The other 4 were in the middle of the heath close to where our controlled burns are. They had to settle for some nuts.

All go, no issues.

Chilly Saturday

Two groups up on the main Camp - the 7 littl'uns in one group and 20, 21, 23, 30, 33, 35, 118, 940 and 72 in another - not sure where the rest were hiding ...... These groups looked fine - no limps!

Friday

Mopped up all the Casears lot today.

No limp present probably a stone in Hoof!

All looking good.

Caesar’s Camp in earlier times

Thursday am

6 of the youngsters grazing on the chilled grass, just off the track, around  J29. All looked well.

Cow sighting Thursday

Sighted 1 large black cow, 2 large brown and white cows and 4 small black and white cows at 09.45 to the area to the left of the Shell Garage ( facing out from the Shell Garage).  All seemed healthy and grazing happily up into the wooded area.  One of the small cows as it walked away in the distance appeared to have a slight limp on its hind left leg (it has white back legs).  It was moving at a good pace and was not distressed, but thought I should point out.

Monday Afternoon

Despite a good trawl around the site I only found 11 of them yesterday.

11 of the youngsters.

I shall be out again tomorrow morning.

The ones I found were

021
023
120
135

168
147
159
177
176
155
165

Two licks put out with these groups. One near the dead end to the flooded forest pond. 

The other on the far back side of Ceasars Camp Proper

Just the littl'uns on Sunday afternoon

Spent quite a long time up on CC this afternoon, but only found the littl'uns who were up by the Beacon Hill entrance at one point and then moved along to the shallow pond on the top of the Camp.  They were curious, friendly and calm. There was incredible visibility from the vantage point - with the tallest buildings in West London looking really clear and lots of people out enjoying the views. 
I tried hard to find the rest of the cattle but had to give up when the light faded. 

Full house! Eventually.. a lot of troop activity today. Loads of off roading practice.

The 7 lil'uns were hiding in the centre area again, where we had our controlled burns and near to where I saw them on the last time. All looking well, they wont get to see the lick by the way 940 and co are wolfing it down! Gave them some nuts instead.

As i was with them, they all got spooked by a terrier cross like dog off lead, thankfully  i managed to catch up with the owner to encourage best practice. No sooner had i spoke to him, a couple came round the corner with A very well controlled pooch and 2 on leads ;)

Said 940 plus friends off main track  closest to Sandy Hill. They got the lick. All good, no concerns.

Thursday am

The 13 grazing amongst the trees around H32. All looked OK, if a bit damp.

Full house hozaaah!

Rich and Kurt found the 13 all grazing the covered reservoir end, and I got lucky with the 7 lil'uns in the gorse blocks behind the James Bond pond. A big relief considering Ian's observations of the 4x4 joy riding a over the place, damaging fences etc.

No show

Had a good hunt around Gelvert and Caesar's late on Sunday afternoon but couldn't find a single beast - no idea where they were but hopefully all are okay.

Only 15 of 20 found. Then I found a very large hole in the fence..

CC and Gelvert divide, just before turning down the coveted reservoir track. Tyre tracks leading into/away from Gelvert.. Fixed up as best i could, by this time it was 4.00 and light was fading. Had a good 2 hour search for the remaining 5, will assume they are on Gelvert but i may have missed them on CC.

One of the team will revisit the temporary fence line and try to get a full count early next week.

Thursday 22nd

No sighting this morning between 08.30-09.30. I did not get up on to Caesar's Camp, and was nearer the Shell Garage entrance and the reservoir.  Very cold and icy, so hope they were huddled up together in a more sheltered location.  Bernie, the whippet, had his jumper and coat on for the first time this season, so he was snug.

Tuesday am

Spotted 7 scattered amongst the trees around H32, all looked well. They were so scattered, the rest of the herd could have been nearby amongst the trees and the slopes.

All sighted again later on Sunday afternoon

The youngsters were near where Kurt found them - at Q35, looking very cute, and all the others were around R6.  All well, though lots of dogs around - some better behaved than others.   The views from the camp were fantastic and it was great to hear several people commenting on them.

Sunday 18th

All 20 accounted for and looking well. Between 11:30-2:30pm
They were split into 3 groups 35 23 118 125 135 21 127 120
Around Q14 chilling.

The youngsters were all together and called them up for inspection
177 165 168 147 155 176 159
They were located around Q20 and seemed fine.

Last 5 were spotted just before I gave up, also looking good.
20 30 33 72 940 hanging around Q4

Saw 7 cows - Thursday 15th November

Saw, I believe, the 7 new cows (400176 and friends) this morning at 08.35 at the foot of Caesar's Camp escarpment on the Sandy Lane side.  They all looked healthy and well.  Not phased by a playful black Lab bouncing up to them.

Tuesday

All 20 were grazing the heathery area near to  Beacon Hill.

All fine. Very cute little ones!

Tuesday 13 November

Found all of the oldies along Sandy Hill track and found 6 of the 7 newbies (missing no. 159) by the  Shell garage entrance. All looking well.

  

Good to have the cows back!

Lovely walk this morning, the autumn colours are a joy. We found 11 cows grazing happily beside the path along beside Sandy Hill. We noticed one of them, a brown and white one, did not appear to have an ear tag.
They all looked well fed and glossy and were very relaxed, even though there were a couple of small dogs running around them. We didn't see the remaining 9, though we walked for a couple of hours.

Friday 9th November - Found the Youngsters!

Did another visit this afternoon to try and find the seven newbies.

While we were checking the original 13 a jogger kindly tipped us off as to where he had seen some others. 5 minutes later we had found the seven youngsters! They were all looking good although a little nervy, they should settle down over the next few weeks though.

Half measures

So they DO exist!!  Found a chirpy and curious group of 13 up at the eastern end of Sandy Hills this morning- 140. 30, 20, 33, 35, 120, 127, 135, 21, 3000xxx, 118, 125 and 2. 
All seemed well but no sight of the others.
Fantastic colours up there today.

Thursday 8th November

Walked Bernie the Whippet for an hour this morning (08.20-09.20) and no sighting of the cows.  We saw a rabbit (or rather Bernie saw it and drew my attention to it leaping away).  The contractors are doing well with closing the gates.  I did think with all the noise they are making, the cows are likely to stay away from the Odiham Road entrance during the day.  Will be over again on the weekend.

Wednesday 7th November.

Spent a couple of hours touring the site with our new team member, Kurt, today. Despite searching all the usual haunts we only found the original 13 cattle. There were a couple of areas that we couldn't access due to military training though.

I will endeavour to do another check on Friday to see if I can find the seven youngsters.

No sightings yet

Have been up on Caesar's a couple of times over the weekend, admittedly late in the afternoon so it's been pretty murky, but have yet to spy the beasties.  They haven't been in the obvious more open areas .....  Will get up there again at the end of the week when working from home. 

Now 20 cattle

We have just added 7 Shetland calves to Caesars camp , making 20 in total.

13 cattle on ccamp

The cattle are now all on Caesars camp. There is 13 in total

So! After 2 escapes over the last 2 days (including this morning) by the 5 lil'uns, it inspired me to get assertive with opporation Caesaers Camp!

Herd have had enough with GCA, clearly. Got onto Tweaseldown from the Gelvert by JUMPING the fences..

 

Had a thorough search of the newly erected, 'temporary', metal fence line opposite shell garage on Caesars. Ive insured they stock proofed it with 2 barb, got foreman’s details, and having a final check of other parts of the fence with Jo tomorrow morning. 

 

The GCA herd will be moved onto CC at some point tomorrow!  

 

Horse Pond update - Still positive for Blue-green algae I'm afraid..

The below picture shows the tell tale scum of the stuff. EA analysts sent us info Wednesday. Re-sampling will not take place now until the collected scum in the corner of the pond (corner of cross roads track opposite sandy hills has disappeared.

Grazing team to look at evidence and make an informed decision on immediate future of CC.

Horse Pond

Hi, what’s the latest on the state of the Horse Pond? I keep getting asked nearly every day.

Update re blue green algae

We are expecting a return visit from the EA to re- sample Horse Pond week commencing 3 September. If it gets the all clear they will re-test a week later to be definite. Once we have it confirmed it's gone we will return cattle to Caesars. Thanks

Belated report from yesterday, twas quite the busy one!! All cattle now moved from CC to GCA.

Hello all.

So following on from the Blue-green algae testing in Horse Pond on Monday I got the call yesterday morning to confirm, Horse Pond definitely has one of the forms/strains of Blue-green algae. Can't tell at this stage how toxic or indeed if it is one of the toxic forms, but until further sampling happens, the advice is, STAY OUT! Not worth the risk!

The EA lady that came to do the samples has got onto the guys assessing the results about the longevity of this. essentially its weather dependant. What we need is a good deal of rain (looking good toay!), and a lack of sun. Further samples will be taken to monitor any changes. The moment we get the all clear, cattle will be back on.

Landmark are now on it to erect proper signs.

So! After my looker session with new lookers Tracy, Carole and Jane (days tbc), I spent the rest of the afternoon with Rosie (grazing) rounding up the CC herd (most of which were down at the Nissan Hut!!) and herding them through the GCA gate nearer Beacon Hill rd! We then filled up the feeder with hay in Camp 45 and tied open a field gate and pedestrian gate to give the herd access. They now have plenty of food and water, but more hay will need to be carted in as and when required.

So that's ZERO animals on Caesar's Camp now, and 24 on the Gelvert Catchment Area.

A favour:

I know its a big ask, but if anyone is able to extend their CC lookering to GCA, it would be most appreciated. I will send out emails after this for any confirmed volunteers for us. For those new to Gelvert, here is a lovely map! https://www.bing.com/maps?osid=c8c4bcab-72f9-4773-9c0d-8913b799d703&cp=51.249666~-0.818195&lvl=15&style=h&v=2&sV=2&form=S00027

Thanks for your time all.

 The slow march to Gelvert

Downed section temp patched up. Permenant fix later.

Man, todays a bit of a change in weather isn't it!

Tuesday 14th August

The cattle were in two herds today - the first lot were in the Pegasus hut enjoying the shade. The second group were lurking in the scrub behind the horse pond.

I have treated them all with a spray that will help to keep the flies and ticks away.

Note: the last two from Gelvert (40 & 45) have now crossed over the fence and are with their mates on Caesar's!

All cattle looking fit and well.

FYI: Got a message left on answerphone from weekend about possible Blue-green algae .

EA have come straight out, taken samples  from both ponds (call was made about Horse Pond but thought we may as well cover both), and off she went. Results back in 2-3 days. Initial thoughts, couldnt see much but she couldnt gurentee it. Hot weather has created a lot of the stuff by all accts.  Crossing our fingers .  

Only had time to erect paper posters on posts, will laminate some. No posters on larger lake yet as i had little time to think about it before needing to come out.

Watch this space.

   

Friday Aug 10th pm

Checked the herd a couple of times this week - Wednesday (briefly) and Friday afternoon and they were elusive, but I did see the 2 in Gelvert as well. These are the ones I saw that were fine and well:

020, 021, 023, 039, 093, 042, 043, 075, 096, 035, 038 and the Welsh Black with no plastic ear tag.

033 had 2 very small patches of bare skin on one flank where perhaps had just caught on some barbed wire; but nothing to be too concerned about as it appeared to be healing well.

The map is back!

The looker map is now available again. Apologies for the delay in getting this resolved but thanks for your patience.

Rich.

Friday 8:00 am

At least 8, grazing amongst the tall bracken, on the side of Hungry Hill. I couldn’t get near them on two legs.

Definitely better luck in finding them in the morning! Full house.

2 herds on CC, and the 2 i found on Gelvert yesterday (didn't feel the need to re check them again). So thats 22 animals on CC and 2 on CC. Fence between CC and Gelvert remains down, will give the 2 a chance to move with the rest, matthew due to fix in a week or two.

All found off main track between lookout and sandy area (old pavilion). 

Fixed up fence with Matthew and added a 'crossing point'  in the  hopes that whom ever feels the need to cut and trample mesh might not do it perhaps?! Worth a punt..

 

Another fence down

Was out briefly this afternoon and found a section of fence down between the hand gate at the Odiham end of Sandy Hills and the main entrance opposite the Shell Garage.  It was in the stretch where the trail bikes etc used to break in.  I haven't often seen cattle up there but it's very close to the main road. 

Really good day with a big help from Jo. Only found another 7 though. Plus 2 in GCA.

Will need  to come back. Could  be 23 on CC and zero on Gelvert by then?!

Found: 067, 068 (no metaltag), untagged black, 093, 072, 33, 30. 

The reason why we have more on CC now..

Two at least are left on the Gelvert side, for now anyway. 

31st July

Was on site helping Guy round up some of the herd for his guided walks today for Heath Week.

Saw 9 and checked them as Guy was moving the rest for the walk. I saw:

021, 096, 020, 063, 023, 035, 075, 1940, 098.

Early Saturday evening

Just found six on the Gelvert bunch, the two brownies, 39 and the three black and white ones. Grazing near the horse pond. All well. Couldn't find the rest or the main Caesar's herd and then ran out of time.

Thursday 26th

I was on site yesterday early eve and this morning.

Eventually finding not just the whole CC heard but most of the GCA heard as well. A section of fence is down between the two areas.

Due to the fact that only two were left in GCA we have left the fence down for the moment so that they can perhaps re-join the heard.  We will have to then separate them later.

Ill put the extra numbers on the right.

Tuesday morning

12 found seeking shelter in the cow shed by Bourley Road car Park. Couldn’t get all the tag numbers to see who was missing but did see:
30 / 21 / 20 / 96 / 23 / 33 / no tag / 40 / 98 / 72 and all looked okay.

Monday early eve

I found all the heard but 1, no 35 Buzz.  This is a little worrying as they don't normally wander off on their lonesome.  Hopefully it was just hidden oin the undergrowth though.

Ill check back later in the week.

All fine otherwise

Friday am

8+ in the long bracken at the Horse Pond end of Long Bottom. The entire herd could be there, but the bracken is now taller than the cows. The few I could get a view of looked healthy.

Tuesday 17th July

All seen today. The same 6 that No found yesterday were all down in the Long Bottom valley. 75 & 93 we're both fine - no signs of messy noses or coughs. The others were all good too.

The other seven were all near the covered reservoir and all looking good.

Monday 16th July

Six found sheltering in the cow shed by Bourley Road. Got most of the tag numbers, but one was hiding at the back: 98 / 40 / 93 / 75 / 72. 93 had a snotty nose and 75 seemed to have a bit of a cough / snore. Phoned this in and Guy advised to keep a check on these two. Otherwise, all looked good.

6 seen

Despite 2 visits this week only 6 seen: 020, 021, 035, 1940, 072, 033. These were all fine. At least this is one site where water isn't a problem at the moment.

They're clearly keeping in the woods which was where I found the six, as none have been visible from the viewpoint. None were at their usual haunts like the Nissan hut.

Friday am

8 spotted in the shade and amongst the bushes around H29. I suspect the rest were amongst the bushes. All the ones I could see looked OK.

Thursday morning - all 13 seen

Wasn't looking for the animals but came across them in the woods down to the west of the water tower. I'm sure if I had been looking for them I would never have found them as that seems to be the way it usually goes!

Anyway, they all seemed absolutely fine. The only things of note were a little bit of scouring evident for number 93 and, to a lesser extent, 96 - but having sent Guy a photo of the relevant bottoms (you're welcome Guy!) he assures me that this is nothing to worry about.

Interestingly, we have observed that the cattle are grazing differently than they usually would in the summer - stripping dead gorse in wooded areas (as they often do in winter) and browsing a lot. Presumably this is because the grass is rather parched now and offering little in the way of nutrition, so this could be a possible cause of the scouring that has been noted.

Also noted two lines of bare skin/hair loss on the hindquarters of 93 and 96, possibly from bulling and no signs of broken skin so doesn't seem anything to worry about!

Susanne

Wednesday am

The herd around the same spot that Jo spotted them yesterday. Grazing amongst the bracken and not easy to reach.

Tuesday 3rdJuly

13 seen from a distance in the valley near Skirmishing Hill. All grazing well but unable to check their eyes (98 / 40 / 32 / 30 /20 were close to the path and looked okay) .

28th and 29th

It took two trip over two days to find them all. Eventually i saw them all late today at 17:30.  In two groups.  Both down near the pavilion.  The first group of 7 were at the other end o fthe open sandy area in a small stand of trees.  The second were down on the concrete track the runs towards the A325 along the pavilion boundary.

All seemed fine.

Friday am

Six keeping in the shade, by the side of the Horse Pond. All looked relaxed and OK.

Monday 25th

13 up by the old gravel pit pond. Couldn’t get a close look but all moving well and grazing happily. Super morning for dragonflies and butterflies!

Thursday 21st June.

Found the cattle split over two herds today. One group were up on Sandy Hill behind the houses and the others were in a small woodland just off the main central track.

All looking fit and well.

All seen Wed lunch time

The herd have now moved! As I was passing through Caesars going to Gelvert Catchment Area the whole herd were just in from the gate opposite the Shell garage. All were well, 063 appeared to be moving ok and moving with the others.

Wednesday early morning

It looks as if the group hadn't strayed an inch since Rich's post!  All just lazing around on a beautiful morning in the same spot.  Didn't want to disturb 63 so no no sure how her leg is faring. 

Tuesday 12th June.

All seen today up on Sandy Hill. A group of ten were behind the houses while the other 4 were working their way north down the track.

#63 is still lame on her rear left but moving ok and sticking with the herd, we'll keep monitoring her.

All others looking fit and well.

Three near corral Beacon Hill, remaining in one herd coming in same direction 300m up the track towards Lookout.

Upon checking the first 3 out, mottled 063 seemed a little out of sorts. Closer inspection revealed a lame rear left leg. She's hobbling about on it, feeding,  and sticking with the other 2. Possible restrain on last injury? She's lying down a lot, presumably to take pressure off the leg.

Informed grazing team. One to monitor please. Rest of herd looking very well.

063 with lame rear left leg.

Led main herd off path and bribed with some nuts for a better look. 

Full House

Eventually found all 14 loosely spread out in the woods neat to the camp top.

Some laid up cudding some grazing all seemed fine.

Thursday am

No cattle sightings, but it was nice weather for ducks.

Wednesday May 23rd - Full House.

Found all 14 together this morning in 14Q. Most of them laying down cudding while a few were grazing lazily. All looking fit and well.

Thu 17th May all seen

Matthew saw all the Caesars' herd on Thursday afternoon up on the track by the Sandy Hill estate.

All were looking healthy and well.

Wednesday am

The entire herd were lying down across the open area, behind the Pavilion. All looked OK.

All calm on Sunday afternoon

All 14 were lazing in the sun late afternoon in the valley between the Sandy Hill track and the camp area.  They seemed fine and were very relaxed (none were on their feet - or interested in getting up - so hope that is true).  63 was separate to the rest of the group, may be taking a little time to settle in?

Wednesday

Was on site yesterday and saw all but the new one 072 Sarah!

Going to pop back Monday morning and make sure shes ok.

All looking good otherwise, a few ticks but grazing team are on the case.

Another cow added

I've just added another cow to the caesars camp crew. Making 14 now. I also sprayed all of gelvert and the cattle I saw on Caesars for ticks and flies.

I saw 93, 98, 75, 1940 and no tags on Caesars and all gelverts

News just in: The big lass 063 who was lame and on GCA is now better and being dropped off with the CC herds. CC now totals 13!

She's still a little bit stiff but should be ok. So that's 13 on CC from today!

Friday evening

8 looking very content grazing on the slopes between the covered reservoir and the Bourley Road.  Lots of tapes and markers around, looks like some sort of event this weekend. Entertainment for the cows?

1/5/18 Only 4 seen....

21/23/33/35 All looking happy lying on a nice grassy patch in Long Bottom. You can see that tick season has begun - I’ve picked up my first (didn’t tuck my trousers in to my socks) and the cows have a good crop at the moment.

Another full house half way down the middle main track past horse pond.

All looking well but ticky. Got a call from a member of public concerned one had rash under the armpit, explained it' almost certainly an exploded tick.  Nice. Sure enough, 940 has a couple, so have another 2 or 3. Looks worse than it is, perfectly normal at this time of year.

Tick treatment will happen, just no date on it yet.

Dropped off the last lick of the year for them, they weren't Overly bothered with it which is a good sign they don't need them anymore.

 

Full house. All in woods at top of hill and track before heading down hillor across to Look out.

Got tipped off by 940 and the Welsh black, the rest appeared from the wood. Shelering from this rain I suspect.

All looking well, 021 still pretty thin compared to the others. And most are quite ticky now. Next dosing due in a couple weeks or so. 

8 Cows seen

Brighter and dryer today than expected. We found 8 cows grazing happily along the top path by Sandy Hill. All looked well.
On a side path we found the part remains of what looked like a deer. It was a hind leg, I think, of what looked like a small adult animal. It had clearly been eaten.
A couple of big groups of friendly soldiers milling about looking lost!

Wednesday 25th April.

Visited the site late afternoon and after one-and-a-half laps could only find seven cattle. They were all up on the grassy area on Sandy Hill.

I put a lick out for them but they weren't very interested - a good sign that better quality forage is finally coming through.

The numbers of the ones I found are:

100093
600075
500023
400089
301940
400096
600098

All looking fit and well.

Wednesday am

Spotted 3, well spread out, down the centre of Long Bottom. Making the most of the new growth.

Saturday am

Most of the cows, well spread out, on the slopes of Long Bottom, below Hungry Hill. They were happily hoovering up the new shoots.

All 12 well

Found all 12 together enjoying the fresh grass next to the Sandy Hill estate. 21 eating lots of grass and nettles which should help.

Regarding dog walkers: Natural England's Special Protection Area (SPA) Wardens are now patrolling MoD sites which are within the SPA speaking to dog owners about responsible dog walking. Hopefully that will help over time reduce some of the problems.

11 on Wednesday evening

Found a large group (11) near the gate onto Beacon Hill early this evening - perhaps they were keeping clear of the army activity that was around the Camp area. They looked fine and to be enjoying the rapidly growing grass.  Hope the missing one was somewhere close by.

Interested in the comments about the dogs on two counts - I found a dead deer a couple of weeks ago close to the fence near the stile down to the drained reservoir, it looked as if might have had a cut (bite?) on its rear, it was a sad sight.  And around the same time I saw one of the Shetlands chased by a labrador (who I tried to chase away). 

Perhaps some of the dogs need keeping an eye on - with Long Valley having limited access, there seem to be even more dog walkers on Caesar's.

Tuesday am

No cattle sightings, but I did come across a man with two labrador sized dogs talking to a woman with two black labradors. It would appear that one or other of their dogs had brought down and killed a fawn. It was a rather disturbing conversation as the solution they were proposing was to muzzle the dogs, so they couldn’t bite the deer. They were quite happy for the dogs to chase the deer all over the heathland, indeed the man was of the opinion that it was only a problem when fawns are around as he reckoned his dogs would not catch up with an adult deer. 

7 found

Found 7 today in L26 - all looked well and enjoying the glorious sunshine! Could only see two tags - 093 and 940.

All found in 2 herds.

Four including 021 were In the lower sections around the controlled burn sites. 021 looked a bit better than when i last saw her I thought. Certainly no worse anyway. And now she gets a Lick!

The main 8 were in the gorse and Heather behind the lookout point. I was helped by 5 youngsters and 2 mum' , and very helpful they wete too. Have given them a lick too. All looking well.