Yesterday had been delightfully sunny, and I had enjoyed a symphony of skylarks as I walked Basil. Although yesterday was spring-like, bad weather can soon put that season on pause however. Today the weather was mercifully dry, although dull and windless – unlike the ground, which had been topped up with plenty of rain in the previous fortnight – and 15 volunteers were tempted out for a morning’s fun in the mud on the Common. .
I arrived a few minutes before the official start time, meaning I had missed the preliminary fun: the early arrivals were already pointing out interesting features, and the four drag sheets had been tastefully laid out.
There was already plenty of sodden material lying there from the previous session a fortnight ago, but Team Leader Kevin was also cajoling Grizzly into cutting more.
The only viable dumping site was the other side of the boardwalk (first started last time), so it is important to protect that thoroughfare from damage as the sheets are dragged across it. Protection is provided by spreading a sheet over the boardwalk, carefully lined up of course with the approaching load.
As the dragged load approaches this crossing point, the leading bar is raised so that it doesn’t catch on a board. This is known as “raising the bar” and that’s what makes us such high achievers (ahem).
As can be
seen, a certain amount of strenuous steering is often needed: it’s lucky we’re
such a fit young crew! We’re always glad to have the winch, as dragging these
heavy sheets by hand is no longer an option. Once upon a time the adverts for
British Railways urged us to “Let the train take the strain”: our motto (coined
today) should be “Let the winch take the pinch”, although that actually doesn’t
make a lot of sense. We did muse on how things will work when this is all too
much for our ageing bones: perhaps NWT will provide us with all-terrain
mobility scooters!
Tipping out can be the hardest part in locations where the winch can’t be used to help with that. Sometimes there are little trip hazards to be aware of.
If you’re a mouse, being mixed up with the material being tipped out is also hazardous. This little one was spotted peering out from the heap. We can report that it safely made its way to relative safety.
It’s not all hard graft of course, and there are plenty of distractions to help us take ad-hoc breaks. Every passing dog (there were many today) needs to be greeted and admired, and today Rita was keeping close tabs on the score from the Australian Grand Slam tennis final. There was a loud cheer when Alcaraz finally won.
After frequent time checks the half-time break finally arrived, featuring Nina’s wonderful apple cake. I described the resulting huddle of refreshment seekers as “a gathering”, but was told that that made them sound dodgy, like “a coven” perhaps. I think no comment is the safest response...
Noel had
been on the sick list last time, but was back with us today. Therefore we had
musical accompaniment. At the dumping site it can be hard work, so John Lennon bemoaning
the fact the “it ain’t easy” was a good start. Your correspondent was praised
for balletically dodging the winch rope, prompting a chorus of “Yes Sir, I can
boogie”. This was before I gracefully subsided face-first on a heap, my poise
having temporarily deserted me. The penultimate sheet having been dragged, the
cry went up that there was only one more to go: cue Bob Dylan’s “One more cup
of coffee for the road”, although actually no more cups of coffee were
available by that time.
With nothing left to pitchfork onto sheets, the bulk of the assembled company then helped manoeuvre that final sheet. With nine of us on it, tipping out has never been so easy! (I know, there aren't nine people in this photo, but there were eventually!)
Here’s how the site looked after today’s efforts.
Back at the storage container, this fabulous Scarlet Elf Cup fungus was spotted. This image is also the latest addition to our Gallery.
Here is Team
Leader Julie’s message of thanks:
Hello all
Huge
thanks to the 15 volunteers who turned out today to move more reed from Area E
(next to the central area of the common). The material was difficult and heavy
to move but everyone stuck at it and the cleared area looks great. Special
thanks to those turning the sheets, as the material was heavy.
We
managed to do the work in the dry mild weather, finishing just as the rain
came.
We will
return in two weeks - thankfully the next cut looks a lot lighter!
Have a
good few weeks.
Regards,
Julie and the TLs
Jubilee Boardwalk has been showing some signs of deterioration recently, which is hardly surprising given that part of it sits on very wet ground, and gets a lot of footfall, so it’s good to see that a section has recently been replaced.
David North
worked for Norfolk Wildlife Trust for many years, retiring in 2019 from the
post of Head of People and Wildlife. Since then he has been an active volunteer
at what I like to think of as our sister reserve – NWT Cley and Salthouse
Marshes. (I make that claim because we share warden George.) In addition to
leading walks at Cley he often writes articles in the Trust’s Tern magazine,
as well as having written four books about North Norfolk’s wildlife. Now he has
written Life Changing : Cley and Salthouse Marshes, with profits from
the sales of it supporting wildlife conservation at the reserve. It’s a
substantial book, profusely illustrated by mostly local artists, and walks us
round the reserve month by month. Unusually, the first month is September,
because that is when the huge numbers of geese arrive and the autumn migration
is at its peak. February is a month of transitions: plants begin to wake up and
birdsong increases, while David’s beloved Pink-footed Geese start to make their
excuses and drift away to the breeding grounds in Iceland and Greenland (let’s
hope they will be safe there). As NWT’s President Patrick Barkham says in the
book’s Foreword, “If you’ve never visited Cley at all, this book will enable
you to inhabit it and understand it as David does… If you already enjoy a
relationship with Cley, this book will deepen it and confirm your affection for
its skies, marshes and many moods.” For me, one of its most immediate benefits
is the explanation of the reserve’s geography, with short descriptions of all
the key locations there, alongside a clear map. I was given it for Christmas,
and I treasure it.
