Foxglove October 22 2008

Where they had driven was obvious from tyre marks; where they had parked was a small leak of oil, but I was also interested in where they had walked. There was mud on top of the gate.

Here where the plough had scored fresh earth from the stubbles were two sets of human footprints, and one from a large round-footed dog like a Labrador.

Not too far off the path was a ragged circle of fawn feathers where a fox had dined off a hen pheasant, but I could also see small puffs of feathers by the treeline, where a pheasant might have landed hard as it fell senseless out of a tree. I had turned off the footpath by now, and here by the side of the wood was a cigarette end.

The sun rose, commanding the mist to rise also, and it spread in shredded ribbons across the land, thickening briefly and making it hard for me to see far. My own dogs, long-footed and neat in their prints, ranged ahead, showing me where there were pockets of scent.

One came back with a dead woodpigeon, pressing against my legs and wagging his tail while I pulled the loose feathers from his muzzle. Here by the hedge lay two empty beer cans, still shiny, and probably nothing to do with the sets of footprints I had seen earlier.

Over by the fencing some deliberate damage had been committed, to allow access to quite a large person, which was backed up by the scuffed ground on the other side.

My male dog provided decisive evidence that the trespassing dog was also male, and here was another cigarette end. Over by the pigeon hide I could see the first grey bodies busily pecking away, and a bright white shape stalking between them: egret.

Including an egret in your decoy pattern would be something different. The heron, difficult to see even in full daylight, rose heavily from the middle of the ploughed field I had lately passed, and flew away.

I was nearly back on the stone track now, where tyre marks would not show, so I crossed the fence leaving no evidence of my passing - it's a learned skill - and made my way over to the farmhouse to report my findings.

Walking around the land is an important part of its management, and every pair of eyes is useful. In the yard, the tractor had coughed into life ready to continue with the ploughing and drilling, and the driver and I exchanged salutes in passing.