Snow already!

After last year's excess of snow I thought we might be let off lightly this year; I certainly don't approve of the unseasonably early fall of snow last night. However, dressing myself up in my very warmest outdoor gear, I took myself and the dog (who keeps her warmest outdoor gear on all the time, just in case) around School Common and the boardwalk.Not much to see by way of wildlife: a party of long tailed tits by Scouts' pond gave good value, and I heard a bullfinch but couldn't track it down. I fear the bearded reedlings must have moved on; perhaps our reed beds weren't extensive enough for them.

 However, the snow made everything picturesque, and the newly cut areas are looking good.

Bearded reedlings/tits

Great news. A pair of bearded reedlings/tits were seen at 8.00 am Monday 8th Nov, near the patch which was cut on Saturday . Showing well and calling regularly.  Let's hope they stay on!

Working Party 6th November

The first working party of the cutting season, and our Secretary had promised "Tomorrow morning will be dry and bright, albeit wet underfoot." The bit he got right was the wetness underfoot, but in fact there was also a great deal of wetness above foot too. It was drizzling a lot; when it wasn't drizzling, it was belting down. The nine volunteers looked like drowned rats, but in the true spirit of British stoicism we laboured on. We didn't even let the rain stop us eating our biscuits; that's true pluck.

This working party was the first time John Houlgate's magnificent cart was used in earnest. My advice to John is to keep on building carts and other labour-saving devices, and leave the weather forecasting to the charming young women at BBC Norfolk. The cart was a great success, meaning we were able to move the cut reed much more easily to our dumping sites. There had been fears it would sink in the mud, but by and large it coped well, and we learned a few tricks we hope will make it easier still in future working parties.

Despite the rain, I think it's fair to say we all went away well satisfied with our work, and it bodes well for the rest of the season.

November 3rd and 4th

A pair of Kingfishers are regularly spotted around The Pit, could they be nesting in the bank.?


The Commons continues to attract large numbers of visitors of the human variety. Following Duncans recent post, I met and talked to a group of sixty hikers on the Warren boardwalk . They were very comlimentary about the work being done to protect this important local nature reserve and enjoyed their visit. Many had copies of the new leaflet to hand.

Saw a female Kestrel taking a bath in one of the puddles at the Warren, got quite close before she
noticed me and flew away.