Top of the range

The sky was just starting to show the first signs of dawn as I quietly eased open the footpath gate out on to the hill. This gate latch always grates unless it’s pushed forward at the same time as opening; on a still morning like this the sound carries across the valley. Although it was still too dark to clearly see the flock below in the valley, I could hear the gentle calls of the lambs and ewes on the fresh morning air. We had lost two or three lambs here over the past week and I was keen to get to grips with the culprit. However after a couple of outings at night, I was yet to see anything more than a fleeting glimpse of a fox on the top edge of the valley, above the sheep.

I made my way