Chillingham Wild Cattle and Cricket

Following a suggestion from JohnRH we went to see the Chillingham Wild Cattle this morning. These are an ancient herd which have been around the castle for hundreds of years, managed in the sense that they have an enclosure to live in and roam as they see fit,  minimal human contact is maintained and there is no e.g. veterinary intervention.  They do get a little supplementary feeding in harsh winters but in general nature takes its course unimpeded as far as possible. The wardens supervise visits so no-one gets too close, but visitors get the benefit of their experience and explanation e.g.I had never realised what goes on around a cowpat - particularly if the animal receives no anti worming medication!

The bull in my blip has a conspicuous wound on his side - thought to be from another bull's horns in an encounter which went too far.  Broken ribs have been known in the autopsied animals so they don't exactly get a soft life!

Definitely recommended and if we go again I'd pay for the specialist photography tour where smaller groups of visitors go  on a 4WD buggy and can get closer to the herd.  

If you do go - take a 300+mm equivalent lens - my blip was shot with a 200mm on an APS-C so ~320mm equivalent.

In the extras, a view from the enclosure across to the Cheviot hills, and cricket under Bamburg Castle - surreal or what?