We were up early had, breakfast then left the hut at 09:20, destination Hickling Broad NNR, about two miles walk. It was a pleasant walk, mainly by track and footpath, we arrived at the visitors center and attempted to book a place on the 1030 boat trip but unfortunately it was full, but there were some places on the 13:30 so we booked that one in instead.
As we had three hours to while away we started off slowly with a coffee, whilst we sat and drank our coffee we were surprised at the number of birds we spotted just sat there; Chaffinch, Goldfinch, Whitethroat, Blackcap, Robin, Tits etc. We set off around the reserve stopping off at the Cadbury hide, named after the family who purchased the land and then donated it to the NWT some years ago. The Cadbury family still have a link with the reserve as they lease a lodge deep in the reserve and next to the edge of the open water. When someone is staying they raise an appropriate flag, today a flag with a Marsh Harrier was flying. We did not see much from the hide the I think because the water levels where so low the habitat was not how they had intended it when the hide was built.
In the next hide we thought that a situation was in front of us until Helen spotted a Water Rail. The Water Rail is a very elusive bird normally only observed briefly when they venture out of the reeds. The low water level was to hep us in this situation, the edges need the reeds where the rails would normally feed was dried up forcing it to wander out into the open. We saw it forage slowly and then go into a small patch reeds where we lost sight of it but our patience was rewarded when it came back out into the open for a while before a short flight back into the reeds. Along with the Black Tern yesterday the Water Rail wold be added to the weeks highlights.
Observation tower Hickling NWT
Next it was down to the far edge of the reserve and past the Lodge leased by the Cadbury family, where we headed back towards the visitors center making the walk into a circular one. We ate the sandwiches we made back at the hut with another instant coffee then we walked back into the reserve to find the mooring for the boat trip.
There were not many birds to see on trip I think we were just there at the wrong time of year, all the winter wildfowl had left and the spring/summer migrants delayed by the delayed spring weather. The guide had some interesting facts to convey to us, one that stuck out was the story of Emma Turner who was a victorian naturalist who got permission to use an island on the broad which was used for hunting. She had a house boat built and a hide then lived there for the next 25 years, photographing and recording the birds.
We walked back to the hut and got back at 16:30 so we had a long day out in the field. We ventured out to the The Swan pub at Stalham an Adnams pub where the food was great.
We were up at a reasonable 08:00, and had some toast and coffee for breakfast, then lounged about till 10:00, then headed out the plan was to go to Cromer. We took the A149 which follows the coast al the way round to Kings Lynn.
When we got to Cromer we had a change of heart and decided to go to the the Poppy Line, a steam train line, at Sheringham. Being just a little bit further down the coast, it did not take us long to get there, and park up. We paid £5 for a days parking. We went to the ticket office and bought tickets for the trains, the way it works is once you have the tickets you can jump on and off the tran all day for £16. The next steam train was in a hour so we had a look around Sheringham and stopped for a coffee, before waiting on platform one for the train to arrive.
The train was full but not packed, everyone got a seat. They were having a Thomas the tank engine weekend so all of the engines had plastic faces attached to them, which did It make for good photo’s. There is a stop at Weybourne and it was where the main Thomas stuff was going on we took one look and decided to stay on the train till Holt.
At Holt station there is a bus stop, and one was due in less than 20 minutes, so we thought we would wait for be bus as it is about a mile and a half into town, however after about 30 minutes there was no bus, and we had a dilemma we needed to get back in time to get to a supermarket for our planned evening meal, so we ended up heading back to the station and got a diesel train back to Sheringham.
Boats near Sheringham
On the way back we stopped off at the North Walsham Waitrose, and picked up some supplies for dinner. We dumped the food back at the hut then headed out for a walk on the beach at Sea Palling, which is a strange place. There is a concrete ramp leading to the beach between the sand dunes, the local fisher men use it to launch their boats. Once over the dunes there is some break waters out a sea they clearly have an erosion issue, there were some serious boulders piled up for a mile or two out at sea with a gap every hundred or so yards. As we walked down the beach we spotted Sandwich and Little tern.
We returned to he car park by heading in land over the dunes then following a track parallel to the beach. Along the track there were quite a few wooden shacks of varying sophistication many of them with water, electricity and phones, I even think they had off mains sewage.
Back at the main area I dropped in to the amusement arcade, and changed a fiver for some 10 pence pieces. The arcade had a strange system of tickets wins prizes, every time you had a go on a machine you would get tickets and if you actually won you got even more. I got two 75 ticket wins on a roulette style game. You take your tickets to a machine where you feed them in and they get counted and you are issued with a receipt if the count. I had enough for a pen so I went to the counter and showed my tickets and said could I have a pen any pen. There was one confusion the lad thought I wanted to borrow a pen, but eventually were on the same wavelength. I followed him over to the cabinets and pointed to the only decent looking pen. He had trouble finding the pen I wanted so I settled for two sets of highlighter pens.
Back at the hut we lounged around again (well we are on holiday) then had salad and anti-pasta for dinner. We followed that up with a game of knock out whist, which I won. Then we settled down in from of the telly to watch the antiques roadshow, rock n roll, followed by the last episode of the village, and great series on BBC1.
We were up early (well I was) in anticipation of going on holiday, to Hickling Green for a week. We had booked a cottage, and my parents were joining us for the first couple of nights. The cottage would be ours from 16:00 so we had plenty of time to get there, and had left the packing to the morning of the day of departure, however as usual we were all packed and ready to go by 10:00, we had 6 hours to do a 3 hour journey.
The plan was to stop off at RSPB Sandy to buy some binoculars that Helen had promised me for my birthday. It took only just over the hour to get to Sandy the RSPB headquarters. We parked up and it started to chuck it down with rain so we ran to the shop and visitors centre, however we did not stay for long, there was no cafe and the optics selection was not that great and no one seemed interested in selling, I would wait till we are next at Minsmere where they have a bigger selection and knowledgeable staff on hand.
Now we had a dilemma where to stop off next? There were a few options, we fancied making the most of our National Trust membership, Wimpole Hall and Anglesey Abbey were near, too close in fact, but we had visited previously. We settled on Ickworth Hall which would take us via Bury St Edmunds thus avoiding Thetford which I feared would be busy as there was a 40mph long stretch of road which was being widened. Thetford has always been a bit of a bottle neck and we have experienced delays passing through on the way to the North Norfolk coast in the past.
Primroses at Ickworth Hall NT
We stopped for a paper to distract Helen from my driving, and arrived at Ickworth Hall at about 12:30. The weather was warm with blue skies and white fluffy clouds, perfect spring weather for taking photo’s, although we would have to be wary of possible down pours. The main feature f Ickworth Hall is the massive rotunda building that forms the middle of the hall which had two impressive wings as well, one of which was an up market hotel.
First things first we used the facilities then headed for the restaurant, which was not the usual queue up with a tray and choose your fare variety but a wait here for a table and the be waited on variety. We stood by the wait here sign and despite catching the eye of one of the waitresses stood about dong nothing, it was not until two further groups of people had turned up that we got some attention! We ordered spring vegetable gnocchi (Helen) and smoked salmon and bread (Neil) from a waitress who called Alune who quickly came over and took our order when we looked up from our menu, excellent service. The food tasted great and the coffee was great, the next challenge was to pay, we went over to til,and again despite being noticed by a couple of waitresses no one came over to take our money, until we had waited a few minutes!
We exited via the shop, but Helen forewent the shopping delaying it till later in our visit. Next we went out to the sunny side of the building to get some pictures. There were plenty of Cowslips and Primroses under some Magnolia bushes which kept me distracted while Helen smoked the evil weed. The gardens were well maintained, and manicured around the back of the house, and around the front the landscape was more parkland but there were thousands of daffodils in flower to add some foreground to my pictures.
Magnolia at Ickworth Hall NT
The house was quite interesting it seems that it had been built in phases over the generations as each generation fell on good and bad times. The rotunda must have cost a bit with all the curved components required to build it. Helen and I speculated how they might of done the floor boards were the cut curved or cuts straight then bent to shape. I reckon they were bent to shape it would have been very difficult to get the curve correct and I guess you would have ended up bending them a bit anyway to make them fit with the others.
We left the hall at just after 14:00 and the sat nav was predicting and arrival at Hickling Green at 15:57 perfect. The drive was pleasant especially with the Golfs adaptive cruise control dealing with the throttle pedal. We passed through territory that was familiar to me as we got closer to and passed Norwich. We were soon following signs for the broads and arrived at Hickling Green at 15:58 not a bad prediction by the sat nav.
View of field from Hickling village
The cottage we had rented from Norfolk Country Cottages was well appointed and equipped, we would be very comfortable for our week. After settling in we took a stroll down to the broad at Hickling itself and took in the area on the way. We decided that many of the houses were weekend cottages but there also seemed to be a really good sense of community, with many notices for clubs and society meetings and events going on.
That evening we went to the Greyhound Pub to eat, we had booked a table but judging but we probably had not needed to. The fare was pub food mainly fried but that suited me fine, Helen and I had veggie burgers dad had seafood medley and mum had some chicken dish which to her surprise came in a bun. Helen and I decided not to have a dessert but I ended up eating half of dads lemon meringue sundae which was really tasty, you really can’t go wrong with cream, ice cream and meringue with a lemon sauce.
To celebrate my 50th birthday we are meeting up with my family at my brothers house near Huddersfield. We took the Friday off with the aim of taking our time driving north. He weather promised to be unusually winter like for the time of the year, snow was predicted in the North East, but would only last till Saturday.
We were up fairly early, and left the house a 09:30, the aim was to get right up to Wakefield way where there was a National Trust property we have never visited. As we got further north there was evidence of some snow on the fields surrounding the M1 but nothing significant, and the temperatures were just above freezing so nothing was freezing. As we got to Meadow Hell Hall we decided to stop off and see if we could get a thank you gift for my brother and his wife for hosting my birthday weekend.
Helen and I were like fish out of water, in the shopping centre, there was not much on offer for us, just the usual chains of shops that you see on the high street, there did not seem to be any independent shops, or ones with anything others than household goods, clothes and shoes. There was a couple of department stores. We soon realised we were not going to find anything worth buying so headed back to the car, to decide what to do next. We put the NT house into the sat nav but on rote we decided that because there was a bit more snow about perhaps we would go some where more local, to my brothers to find a gift.
Front of house
Helen found a vineyard near Holmfirth we we put into the sat nav, and followed. The route took us over the tops of the hills where we found that every so often we came across snow drifting across the road where there was a gate in the stone wall, but on the whole the roads were clear, even if there was some slush on the road. We headed down towards the valley that Holmfirth is in when the sat nav told us to take a smaller lane which had a bit more snow on it. We followed the directions for a while, but eventually had to turn around as the lane got narrower and narrower, then steeper, and more covered in snow.
My brother would have to have a box of wine from he Cooperative supermarket instead of from a local wine merchant. Down in Holmfirth the supermarket car park was covered in about 3 inches of slushy snow, so we parked up and grabbed some decent bottles of wine. Suitably stocked up we drove to my brothers house, where we had to park in the lane because the last 50 yards was covered in the snow drifts. It is surprising how just a small rise in altitude can make such a difference to he temperature.
We got into the house about 5 minutes before my brother got in form a meeting, it was just after 14:00 so we had a late lunch, then let him get on with the rest of his days work, while we relaxed and drank tea and coffee. Not long after the rest of the family got back from a shopping trip, by which time the snow seemed to have settled in, and the wind was really starting to blow the stuff about. So we went out and cleared the paths again.
Snowy Yorkshire landscape
For dinner we had homemade pizzas which always go down well, much better than shop bought. We relaxed in the kitchen with some wine whilst the snow continued to fall, and the drifts just out side the windows got higher. Both the back and the front door seemed to be just in the right spots to accumulate snow up against them, opening them in the morning was going to have to be a delicate operation.
We were in bed quite early which was probably a good thing because my brothers kids are early risers not helped by the excitement of snow and the anticipate of spending the day with their favourite uncle. For breakfast we had waffles, with which ever choice of topping we wanted, I had Nutella which went down well with expresso coffee. The first job of the day was to clear the paths again so that the olds could get to and from the house, and we also cleared a space for their car. Many of the locals have tractors and were busy trying to clear the tracks so they could get to the sheep who are lambing, and needed food and attention. It was not small task clearing the snow in places we found extensive drifts where we sunk well over our waits and still didn’t think we had reached the under lying ground.
My brothers next door neighbour did a grand job clearing the snow from his drive but it would not be till the next day that the drive could be used because further up the track towards the road where it goes between some houses, that form a wind tunnel the volume of snow was a job to be left till the animals had been seen to. We did not spend too much time outside be sue the wind combined with the sub zero temperatures made a warm drink by the fire far more inviting.
Foret Noire Gateau
Next on the list was to make my birthday cake, which would be a Black Forest Gateau, which we hoped would be as good if not better than our all time favourite that they make and sell in the Swiss supermarkets called Migros. We rejected the French cookery book recipe for one by Herve Cuisine on his Youtube Channel, he appeared to know what he was talking about and had a Swiss accent.
In the afternoon the diddlies had a birthday party to attend so dads 4×4 was the only option. I went along for the ride and to get some video footage, of the snow down in the valley. Once we were out of the lane the roads although slippery with slush that was not really melting, the going was ok. Much of the road surface was clear but in places the snow had been blown across the road where there was a gate way in the stone wall. Any of the roads off the main road were still pretty much covered, so much care was taken as we turned off into the housing area where the party was. Kids dropped off we headed back to the house. When we picked them up later on the temperature had dropped, the wind was freshening and the slush was starting to freeze. The snow continued the fall, and the kids were all sugared up, after the party food they had consumed.
My brother had arranged for a cheese fondu to celebrate my birthday so we we grated the cheese and prepared all the ingredients into a mine en place, ready for later. We had a bit of trouble getting the mixture to the right consistency we wondered whether the President Emmental cheese was the cause as we think it may be a processed version, of the cheese, and we assume French and not Swiss. The consistency did not detract at all from the taste and fun of dipping bread into the hot wine and cheese mixture. We finished off the meal with a slice each of the Lack Forest Gateaux which was delicious especially when some liquid from a jar of cherries in Kirsch was trickled over the sponge. All in all a great birthday meal. We finished off he evening with a couple of games of Perrudo they let me win the first game as it was my birthday.
We were all up by about 08:00 and had toasted hot cross buns for breakfast, then we went outside to see how the land lied for getting away down the lane. It was clear that without some help it was not going to happen. The lane was exposed to he wind and for about 100 yards it was full right up to the stone walls with snow. We tools some photos and and then went back into he warmth of the house thinking we might need to spend another night. This was especially bad news for my parents as they had bought everything they needed with them except for the bag that contained the stuff they would need for an over night stay.
The snow blocked lane
At about 10:30 we took another look outside the local farmers had been hard at work clearing the road. I decided that it was now or never so we rushed back to the house and grabbed shovels to dig the cars out. It took some time to dig them out by which time the lane had started to fill up again. I got my car out onto the snow covered road with the help of people pushing, but then got stuck again trying to drive to the main road. We quickly said good bye to everyone then, a farmer came down with his tractor and suggested the only way would be a tow to the main road. A young lad was sent to get a chain, which was soon hitched up, then we were dragged down to the main road.
Once on the road all seemed good but in places as we drove to the M1 there were parts of the road where the snow had drifted over, in one place a JCB was being used to dig out snow from a drift that was over 6 feet. We took it steady, and were soon safely in the motorway, which was almost completely clear apart from the off strip of slush every few miles. We made really good headway home and got back in a normal time. Ironically later on after we had left my brother reported the sun shining and the lane clear for all traffic.
That was definitely a birthday weekend to remember, as well as brilliant company some dramatic weather to boot, and I just love a bit of extreme weather.
I have not posted for a few weeks so I thought I would do a catch up post. Last weekend I went on what seems to have become an annual trip to the Outdoor, Bike and Boat show at ExCel exhibition center in east London. I am interested in all three so it is really good value for money, three exhibitions at one venue all on one £20 ticket. You can save money by booking online early but although they advertise a £4 saving it turns out that there is a £2 booking fee.
It had snowed recently so I was not sure whether I could get there so I did not bother with the paltry £2 saving. As it happened the roads were clear once I got to the A41, and the roads were quiet I think the snow had scared everyone off. I got to the venue by 11am and parked up which cost me £20 for the day, quite steep if you are the only person attending.
Snow Wendover Woods in Black and White
The halls were quite quiet whilst I was there I think most people waited to see what the weather and road reports had to say before heading out. However by the end of the day it was very busy. The exhibition was not quite as good as last year where I enjoyed the cycle polo, which this year had been replaced with an evening criterium race. The highlights of the day were a talk by Charley Boorman about his new vehicular adventure, and the launch of the Madison cycle team, who were all going to use steel bikes!
This weekend started with a film, Django Unchained on Friday evening. Helen and I really do like to start the weekend with a film. I gave the film a 4/5 but Helen gave it 4/5 for the first two hours but only 1/5 for he last hour, which I have to admit was a bit violent. It was classic Tarantino, and one I enjoyed especially the first 2 hours.
On Saturday Helen was busy with her visiting sister, so I took the opportunity to head to the hills with my camera, it was probably the first opportunity to get pictures of the snow without it either snowing or there being a grey sky. I parked up at Dancersend, and headed up to the Ridgeway above Tring park, then across to the Cafe in the Woods in Wendover Woods. The sun shone the whole time and it was great to be back out in the fresh air after having spent the past two weeks cooped up either in the office or at home.
Snowy view from Dancersend
Saturday evening was a real treat we went to a talk at the local church in Aston Clinton, St Michael and all Angels, for a talk by one of the curates Carole Peters. Carole had in a previous life been an investigative journalist starting off in newspapers then progressing into television. She told us about her adventures in Africa investigating war lords, and in Haiti too. It was very interesting. Everyone bought finger food and there were drinks for sale. I was quite unusual to be drinking beer and wine in a Church, without the vicar handing it to you in a silver chalice with a dry wafer.
On Sunday we went to see another film, Hero Dark Thirty, about the hunt for Osama Bin laden. It was a well made film which confused me at first. I give it 4/5. That was the end of an action packed weekend.
It was not raining so only one thing to do, make the most of it and go for a walk. We picked up the inlaws and headed up to Swan Bottom, and parked up at the Swan inn, then headed out for the usual circular walk.
The weather was grey but no rain, temperature was about 10 degrees. The ground was quite soft under foot on places. The whole walk took about 2 hours and looped round towards The Lee and back.
Valley view
At the pub we all had sandwiches and shared a couple of bowls of chips. There were plenty of locals at the bar one of then thought he was a comedian and decided to test out some of his jokes, ready for his performance at the local talent show. Some of them were good and he did a good Tommy Cooper impression. Turns out he was a skier, had a German mother and was born in Australia, quite some ancestry.
The food was duly washed down with a pint then we headed back home for some Raspberry Pi hacking. The plan was to get one up and running on a wireless LAN with a static IP.
Through a couple of good friends A&C got the opportunity to go to an Olympic event (basketball), they had a spare ticket and I am always up for opportunistic days out because I am not good at sorting things out in advance. A&C picked me up at 05:30 on the main road through the village, it was was not very bright out as it was overcast and very early in the day. We parked up at Berkhamsted station and timed it to perfection to get the 06:01 to Euston.
The Olympic tickets cover your travel to the event so we only needed to but a return to Watford junction. The train was a fast one and we were soon at Euston, the train was fairly quiet at that time in the morning so we had no trouble getting seats together. From the station there were signs leading us to the Javelin train service from St Pancras, which runs every 10 minutes and shuttles between St Pancras a Stratford station. The signs took us via the back roads to St Pancras rather than along the busy Euston Road, interestingly they has painted some silhouettes prints on the pavement, it took us a couple to figure out what they were all about. Each one had a name, city and year, it was obvious that the cities were all Olympic venues, but not all the names were familiar. They turned out to be representations of some famous Olympic feats, the silhouettes we the foot/hand outlines representing the moves required to do the event. For example ones had lots of foot prints clustered together at many angles, then further down the street was the outline of a ball connected to a handle and chain representing a hammer, the the track and field.
London 2012 Olympic Basketball Arena fish eye view
As we arrived at St Pancras (only a five minute walk) we were directed by official Olympic helpers in their purple Olympic uniforms, towards the platform for the Javelin Shuttle service. We stopped off at Sourced Market for a coffee and I chose a couple of Chelsea buns for lunch later, because I had not made any sandwiches. A was carrying a really heavy rucksack, which probably contained enough chocolate to feed everyone in the basketball arena. Our timing was perfect we boarded the train with about a minute to spare, and seven minutes later we were at Stratford.
At Stratford you exit the station almost directly into the Westfield shopping mall, with all it high end fashion shops. We walked through the mall and out the other side where the entrance to the Olympic park awaited us. It was not yet 08:00 but the park was open and the queues at security were short. We finished off any water we had in bottles, but kept them in our bags as we had been told that there are water fountains where you can fill them once inside the Olympic park. Security was a breeze we hardly had to wait and the army guys on duty were courteous and friendly, whilst x-raying our bags and scanning or bodies for guns.
London 2012 Olympic Velodrome
Once in the park the helpers were doing a great job corralling the crowds to the events, using load hailers, which they seemed to have given to people who had a sense of humour which was great. They seemed to be attempting to have one side of the routes for one direction and the other for the other direction, i guess when it gets busy this will really keep the flow of people moving. The last thing you want to people walking against each other as one event leaves and another event arrives, which will just slow right down. We head towards the Basketball arena at the other end of the park in our own time as we had plenty of time to spare.
Once in the area of the arena we found a water fountain to fill our bottles and a WC for a comfort break, then we headed to the entrance where again without any significant queue we had our tickets validated, and headed into the arena itself. We had seats in block 201 row 20, which basically meant we had fairly good seats, we were up in the high section but fairly low down in the section, at one end of the arena. We were close enough for A&C to get good pictures with their 200mm zoom. Soon after we sat down AH arrived the 4th person in our party. AH is very devoted to Olympics spectating he had taken 2 weeks off work and had tickets for at least one event everyday, except for the opening ceremony. It seemed like a labour of love to me, he was getting up early and going from one event to another, including one which involved getting to Dorny lake by bus via trains to London he lived in Princes Risborough, he had managed only 22 hours sleep in the first 4 days.
London 2012 Wiggins Way
Basketball is quite and animated event with music and a compère getting the crowd going, and cheerleaders and dancers wheeled on during time-outs and between ends. The first match covered by our tickets was France v Lithuania, which was won by France. The game had a fairly high scoring rate and the Lithuanian’s racked up more fouls than the French. Towards the end of the match the French seemed to raise their game and kept the lead until the time ran out. The support for the French was nearly non-existent I did at one point here some people singing “Allez La France” but it was not that loud compared to the background noise, it could hardly be noticed. Compare that to the Lithuanian’s who cheered loudly when they had the ball and booed and whistled when the French had the ball, which was not very sporting. I notice later that a Lithuanian supported had been arrested and fined at an earlier match against Nigeria for racist chanting, which is a bit reminiscent of the trouble at the Euro 2012 football earlier in the year.
Next up was China v Australia and to make things just a little bit more special for us, the mum, dad, and brother of one of the Australia team Aaron Haynes, were sitting in the row just in front of us, we became the Aaron fan club corner, and they kindly explained some of the finer points of the rules of basketball. Australia were in control through out the match and never really looked in danger of losing but it was not a whitewash. The score line was lower than the previous game and so was the number of fouls. We left the arana after the game it was around13:00.
London 2012 Olympic Park Aquatic centre
Next we went for a wander round the park there were a few more people about than earlier I guess due to the fact that we were between sessions now not at the start. We went to the merchandise shop but the queue was so long we gave it miss. The ArcelorMittal Orbit was impressive in that it was tall but as a piece of art it did nothing for me. We were near the BMW centre when it started to threaten rain so we popped in for a look the got corralled into the corporate video before exiting via the roof to get some shots of the view across the park.
After some food, thanks to A for making egg and tomato sandwiches which went down really well, we headed slowly round to Wiggins Way the name that has been given to the grassy area around the large outdoor screens which show the events. We found a fairly good spot with a good view of one of the screens, and settled in to watch the events in the Velodrome, it was a strange feeling to be watching an event with the building where they were taking place also being within view. Great Britain won a couple of gold medals, and at arounf 18:30 we decided we had had a long enough day and headed back home.
London 2012 pavement art
The journey home was just as good as the way in there were a few more people on the trains but we still managed to all sit together. As we got off the train at St Pancras A noticed that Stella McCartney was just a few yards ahead of us, I tried to get a photo but it came out blurred. On the train we chatted to a couple of Germans (father and son) over for two weeks going to many events, and two other guys originally from the east end who had been to the Velodrome which made us fell envious. I got home at 22:00 and went straight to bed it had been a long day, but an excellent one, thanks to A and A&C for the experience.
We had a free Saturday so we decided we should take a trip to Southend-on-sea to visit a a dear old auntie who is in a nursing home. We went to see a film called “Playing the Moldovans and Tennis” by Tony Hawks on Friday, which I can thoroughly recommend. It was at The Rex in Berkhamsted and the second showing in the country and Tony Hawks was there to after for a Q&A session with Anatol Durbală one of the stars of the film.
We were up in good time and left the house just after 09:00 the route there was round the M25 then down the Arterial road to Leigh on sea, there are a few pubs in the Arterial Road that feature in those films about East Enders trips to the seaside at Southend-on-sea. There journey was pretty good with no traffic hold ups.
After spending some time at the nursing home, we headed to Southend-on-sea centre and beyond to the beach huts at Shoeburyness, a place I remember from my childhood. We had a coffee in Uncle Toms Cabin, then headed to the beach to get some panorama shots of the beach huts. If you look in the menu at the top of this page yo can see the panoramas, uner Essex Panoramas, or click here.
Leigh on sea vista, over Canvey Island
Next stop in the itinerary was Two Tree Island, back at Leigh on sea, which is an Essex Wildlife Trust Nature Reserve. As we drove back to the Southend sea front we realised that it was carnival day, they were starting to close the roads, and the public address system was blaring out details of what was happening and when. Luckily we got past the front before they completely closed the road.
We found Two Tree Island which your can get to by taking the road next to Leigh on sea railway station that leads to the station car park, but carry on past, all the car parks, the skateboard park, and over the bridge, until you can go no further. The last car park seems to be the only one that is not pay and display.
It was warm and sunny cloudy, but very windy so there were not may small birds about. We walked west in the direction of Hadleigh, where the mountain bike Olympic events are going to be taking place. We could see the track and grandstands, next to the castle with the help of our binoculars. Towards the west end of the island we cam across a hide which was a pleasant surprise. There was not much to see from the hide, mainly Black headed bulls, a few Oystercatchers, and a Cormorant was about as much as we could spot.
Log on Two Tree Island
We moved on a bit disappointed with the lack of bird varieties, with the intention of finishing the circuit of the island. About another few hundred yards was another hide. which we popped into. There were a lot more in terms of numbers but they all seemed to Black-headed gulls, most of them in breeding pairs. On closer inspection there were Oystercatchers, Terns nesting, and a few Avocet. Then I spotted a Mediterranean Gull, which we were able to observe and compare to the BH Gulls. They are clearly different when you have the chance to look closely. The black hood is bigger, more balaclava than beany, and the beak is much brighter red. In all we counted 6 (possibly 7) of them. It goes to show you should never write a hide off before you have taken the time to observe.
Shoeburyness beach looking west
In the hide was a sign about a man who had been convicted of robbing Avocet nests of their eggs, he had been jailed for a year, and banned from bird reserves for 10 years, which is justice. There was also a note about there being lots of Adders about, we made a point of looking out for them on the walk back but were not lucky enough to see any.
We saw a few Warblers and a couple of Linnet on the way back to the car, and were soon back on the road. We got stuck in traffic at Leigh on sea as there was events going on there too. Back on the Arterial road we stopped at the Sainbury’s at Raleigh, to get pizza ingredients for dinner. Then we were back home by about 17:30.
We knew from the weather forecast it was going to be bad, there were storm force winds battering the south west of the country and the tail of the anti-cyclone was going to be right over the north east.
We set out at about 10:30, after N made scrambled eggs on toast, it was grey and windy but dry.
We headed south and in land towards Howick hall where we hoped to follow a sheltered valley back to the coast, in the hall grounds, then walk down to Boulmer on the coast. We passed through a farm and spied the farmer butchering and lamb.
Big wet rock
There was not much bird action going on, I guess the weather wind and rain was keeping them hunkered down.
We reached Howick Hall entrance and walked down the road past it in the hope of getting onto a path in the grounds called the long walk. When we found it was all fenced up and gated with a lock. A sign suggested we now needed to pay the entrance fee of £6 to be able to use the path. They did mention an arrangement with dog walkers, keys and locks, but we didn’t have keys or dogs. We turned round and headed towards the sea, then it started to rain so the wet weather gear came out.
The aim now was to get to the Fish Inn at Boulmer, then evaluate our plans over a pint. By the time we got to the pub it was raining quite hard my poncho was letting in water, and my shorts were getting damp. The pub was a welcome site being on the side of the village we arrived from. There was a bus stop outside a possible escape route.
Inside the pub there was a small seating area of 4 tables and then there was a restaurant area out the back, with views over the bay rocks and the sea beyond.
A foot bridge
Once our wet outer (and some we inner layers) had been removed and hung near the radiator, we grabbed a table from a couple who were leaving. We decided we may as well have some lunch and then have a salad and home made pizzas for dinner.
We sampled 2 broccoli bakes, a cucumber baguette and chips, and I had crab cakes and chips. I could have done with more chips. We then all went for a pudding, 2 chocolate mousses, toffee and vanilla cheese cake, and I had apple crumble and custard which was lovely. We tried phoning for a taxi but there was no answer, and investigations into buses on my phone and a feeble signal revealed only one bus per day. We had no choice but to walk back to the hut at Craster.
Stormy weather
The rain had eased off, and continued to, and eventually stopped as we headed north up the coast. We crossed a nice looking beach on the way, and with the rain stopped it became quite pleasant. At one point we passed a nice house on an exposed point, apparently it was build as a bathing house by the owners of Howick Hall.
Just as we were about a half mile for Craster it started to lash down with rain again. In Craster we got some bread from the smokehouse. Once back at the hut I put some dry jeans on and headed, out to get enough bits to finish off the pizzas. I had no luck getting olives, from the local small Londis, which stocked essentials!
Despite the weather we had got out for a walk, and had been out the best part of the day.
The plan for Thursday was to visit Lindisfarne and have a look round the Holy Island. I was up earlier than the rest of the house and took the opportunity to take a walk down the coast to Dunstanburgh, to take a couple of panorama sets. The weather was really quite warm, I set out with a T-shirt and fleece on but the fleece had to be removed halfway there.
Whilst down there I looked to see if the end of a lobster trap was still there after we hid it earlier in the week, it was not so I picked up another wreck, of one for H.
Inside geocache
We made sandwiches for the day I had Nutella, Helen had Marmite. Then headed up the A1 to Lindisfarne, it made a change to be travelling at the national speed limit. To get to the Holy Island you have to cross a causeway that is covered for about 5 hours on the high tide. We had checked out the tables and were OK till about 16:15. We parked just before the official car park with plenty of others and so avoided the £4 fee.
Looking at the map we decided a loop round the island was the best, option as the weather was probably going to deteriorate later in the day.
There were lots of Northern Marsh Orchids in bloom, and many other flowers to photograph. Highlights included Butterwort and Large Thyme. When we got to the northern end of the island we turned east at the beach and did some rock pooling, was saw the usual molluscs and a few crabs. There was also some interesting geology , with many layers often wavy, some of the layers containing fossils that looked like they were once worms.
Butterwort
We came across and interesting well build hut, it had seats built into the wall round the base, and windows built into the stone, supported by driftwood. Inside there was lots of stuff hanging from the beams built into the roof. Turns out it was a geocache, the most intricate and well built one I have ever seen.
Next we headed south towards the castle and stopped off at the bird hide overlooking the Lough. There were many starlings feeding young on a fence, other birds included Reed Bunting, Wheatear, Pochard, Swans with signets, and a Willow Warbler. We took the opportunity to eat our sandwiches.
Great Northern Marsh Orchid
Next stop was the Castle, a national trust property so we were able to claw back some of the money spent on National Trust membership. Whilst in the entrance we checked with the staff about the tides, good job too, we needed to be of the causeway by 15:30, or stay till 21:45! That did not leave us much time, we had about an hour to get to the car, Helen then went into route march mode.
It was like the was a mass exodus going as everyone seemed, to be heading back to the car parks, to get off the island. We got back to our car in good time but the tide seemed miles away, perhaps it comes in really quickly over the sands where the causeways is? Anyway we got off the island and across the causeway safely and in good time.
Next we stopped off in Seahouses for some gifts to take back and to stock up on food for dinner. Then it was back to the hut. The weather was just on the turn and a big storm is promised in the south west, and we may see the tail end of it tomorrow. We had had a lucky weather window again, it is a slight shame we miss judged the tides, as we may have timed the trips differently if we had know what the correct tide times were.
