Thursday 31st October - All 25 seen

Steers 197, 210 and 1640 were resting and chewing their cud on their favourite Sandy Hill corner at 12:15 this afternoon, while cows 211, 212 and 1396 happily grazed nearby. Steer 1626 was munching on gorse in the pasture opposite. They were all looking well.

Shortly after, steers 219 and 270, along with cows 72 and 940, were grazing to the west of the pillbox, enjoying plenty of grass and gorse. Eventually, they wandered off to join the Sussexes.

By 12:45, steers 20, 227 and 228 were grazing in the thicket just off Longbottom near ///frizz.cadet.sizes. Youngster 228 was rooting around in some muddy ground, leaving his nose quite messy! All three were happy and looking well.

The remaining eleven cows were spread out in small groups to the north of James Bond pond near ///beep.depend.hook just before 13:00. Most were lying down, relaxing and chewing their cud. It was nice to find steers 33 and 35 today, and also to see steer 21 in the daylight! Cow 214 stood up, came over to greet me, and enjoyed a long back scratch. Steers 21, 30, 33, 35, 217, 220, 222, 230 and 271, along with cows 214 and 234, were all happy, relaxed and looking well.

As I was leaving at 13:25, steers 227 and 228 had emerged from the thicket and stood by the path at the west end of Sandy Hill. Steer 227 enjoyed a neck and ear rub. Steer 228 had managed to clean his nose. Fifteen minutes later, the seven Sussexes, cows 72 and 940, and yearling 270 were all relaxing on their favourite Sandy Hill corner, with youngster 219 grazing in the gorse bushes.

The cows were all good today.

Wednesday 30th October - 23 seen

Sussex cow 211 and steers 197 and 1626 were grazing near ///rudder.store.flexibly at 15:45 this afternoon. Cow 211 was very friendly, coming over to greet me with head rubs and plenty of licks. A bit further down the path, a group of twelve cows was gathered near ///vote.reefs.nurses. Cow 212 was still lying down, and it seemed the others had only recently got up. Cows 212, 214, 234 and 1396, along with steers 30, 210, 217, 220, 222, 230, 271 and 1640, all started to graze, stopping to say hello as they made their way west along the path. They appeared happy, relaxed and in good health.

At 16:15, cows 72 and 940, along with steers 20, 219, 227, 228 and 270, were grazing in the heather near ///skin.suits.teams. Despite the gunfire and bangs from a large military training exercise on Gelvert, they continued south through the thicket, all looking well. With three steers still unaccounted for, I searched around the covered reservoir and down by Bourley Road, but had no luck. By the time I returned, the group moved had to ///lively.mallets.shaky, where they continued grazing.

I then looped around James Bond Pond, returning to the first group, now spread out and grazing near ///width.desktop.crest at 16.45. Ten minutes later, I found older steer 21 deep in the gorse bushes near ///writing.bibs.jugs, wrestling with branches that gave away his position. I searched the surrounding area until 17:20, but by then it was fully dark, and I wasn't able to find steers 33 and 35.

The cows that were found were all good today.

Tuesday 29th October - 22 seen

Fourteen of the original herd were resting on the grassy islands in the Sandy Bowl at 13:10 this afternoon, with several cows dozing peacefully. Cow 234 lay stretched out on her side, fully relaxed, while those not napping were relaxing and chewing their cud. Nearby, steers 21, 33, 35 and 228 grazed in the gorse bushes to the west. The cattle all appeared happy, relaxed and in good health.

At 13:45, cow 212 and steer 1640 were lying down in the heather on the hillside near ///clay.bagels.nicely, both looking very comfortable. Further northwest, cow 1396 and steer 1626 were grazing near ///pipes.geese.ruffling. When cow 1396 heard rustling in the thicket from a covert military exercise nearby, she quickly returned to the hilltop to rejoin the others. After a quick drink from a puddle, she came over for a back rub. Steer 1626 wasn't bothered in the slightest and continued grazing. 

Despite a good search, I was unable to find Sussex steers 197 and 210, along with cow 211 this afternoon.

The cows I did find were all good today.

Sunday 27th October - All 25 seen

Cow 212 was happily grazing in the sunshine near ///bends.repay.done at 09:00 this morning, while cow 1396 and steers 220, 1626, and 1640 were eating in the nearby gorse bushes. Youngster 228 was out in the open, grazing near ///simply.apron.blacken. After checking on him, I heard mooing from the higher ground and went to investigate.

Steers 21, 33, 197, 210, 219, along with cow 211, had gathered near ///worry.grub.swift at 09:20. The Shetlands went off to graze in the thicket, while the Sussexes relaxed, chewing their cud. Around 09:30, yearling 270 wandered over from the northeast to join them. Cow 211 was very friendly today, giving me lots of licks after a back rub.

Cows 72, 214 and 940, along with steers 222 and 271, were grazing in the sunshine just along from the Lookout at 10:00, enjoying plenty of grass. Steers 20 and 217 were grazing in the bracken to the south. They all looked happy and well, though I noticed that youngster 217's collar chain seemed to be rubbing, causing slight hair thinning on his neck.

With five cows still unaccounted for, I set off on a loop around the site. Passing the second group again around 10:50, I found the three Sussexes now resting under the trees in the same area as earlier. To my surprise, I spotted yearling 270 alone near ///pegs.drip.spout around 11:10. He was mooing occasionally and seemed to be looking for others, though heading in the wrong direction. I persuaded him to follow me, and we found steer 35 grazing near ///spite.backs.exotic at 11:25. Across the path, steers 220 and 228 were grazing in the gorse, where yearling 270 happily joined them. The four Sussexes were close by.

On my way back to the Lookout around noon, I passed steers 21 and 33 on the hill near ///crafts.saunas.slams, likely heading to join the nearby group.

The four missing cows were found just after 12:10. Steer 30 and cow 234 were resting in the bracken near ///mere.pink.skies with the others who had been grazing near the Lookout earlier. Steer 230 was standing chewing his cud, while steer 227 was relaxing in the shade near ///issue.bliss.rigs. I have no idea where those four had been earlier.

To cap off a rather eventful visit, as I was leaving at 12:30, steers 21 and 33 came wandering towards me at the far west end of Sandy Hill. They stopped briefly before setting off eastward along the hill.

The cows were all good today.