Sunday 1st March - All 25 seen

At 09:00 this morning, Sussex steers 197, 210, and 1640, along with cows 211 and 212, were grazing contentedly on the grass on Sandy Hill, near ///walls.pats.causes. They were all very friendly, coming over to greet me and enjoy some strokes. They were damp from the drizzle but were happy, relaxed, and looking well. In the distance to the east, I could see another group of cattle grazing further along Sandy Hill.

Around ten minutes later, cow 940 came up the nearby hill from Longbottom. She wandered over to say hello before setting off east along the hill to join the others. Older steers 21, 33, and 35 soon followed. They, too, greeted me before starting to browse the gorse. I then returned to spend more time with Sussex steer 197, who was a little further west, and spotted older steer 20 coming down the hill from James Bond Pond. A few minutes later, he also came up the hill, paused for a rest, and then set off eastwards. The group of five Sussex cattle followed shortly afterwards.

By 09:30, cows 214 and 234, along with steers 217, 219, 220, 228, 270, and 271, were grazing near the pillbox, mainly munching on grass and gorse. They were soon joined by several of the cattle who had wandered along the hill. The others preferred to graze near ///revisits.study.fizzle, enjoying grass and bramble on one side of the path and gorse on the other.

By 10:00, the remaining seven cattle, including the final two Sussex cattle, came wandering along in ones and twos from the west to join the group. Youngster 222 came straight over to say hello and enjoyed a long neck and back scratch, with youngsters 227 and 230 waiting patiently for their turns. They were all happy and in good condition.

Despite the almost constant drizzle, the cattle continued to graze or rest and chew their cud on both sides of the central gorse bushes. It was great to see the whole herd back together again.

By 11:15, around half the herd had passed through the gorse bushes at the edge of Sandy Hill and started to graze among the heather on the slope near ///easels.rips.dignify. Several wandered over for more back scratches before I said my goodbyes at 11:30. As I climbed back up the hill, steer 197 and cow 1396 were waiting for me, both happy to receive some final strokes.

The cows were all good today.