h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

It looks like part of the rain is falling up again after hitting the water. You must have been pretty wet after that.

Yes indeed! I was very glad to be inside a bird hide when that was going on, so I didn't get too wet - it had eased off by the time I made my way back to the entrance of the nature reserve

I suppose you mean a shelter for looking at birds rather than wearing the actual hide / feather coat previously inhabited by a bird

Yes indeed - sorry 'bird hide' was rather an ambiguous phrase

I love ambiguous phrases. Let them come!

In the US, we usually call it a 'blind'.

I've just found a discussion about them on a photography forum.

http://www.dpreview.com/forums/thread/2902011

That is interesting about tent-like 'blinds'

At my local nature reserves there are Screens (like fence panels with viewing slots cut into them) and Hides (wooden buildings with viewing slots or windows)

Any way you do it, it's lovely that people can observe the wildlife without disturbing it.

Of course, around here, the wildlife observes US whenever it decides to. Some evenings the deer stomp through the yard, look at us contemptuously, and move on.

Yes indeed

Yes, houses work quite well for hiding people from wildlife, too, so the wildlife can enjoy the gardens and yards

True!