A new arrival

If you have been to the reserve this week, you may have seen that we’ve made a couple of changes around the entrance.

The first is our smart new sign next to the roundabout, which our team of outdoor volunteers installed on Tuesday. Eventually, most RSPB nature reserves will have a sign that looks like this, but Conwy is – we think – the first.

The other change is that we have been installing a new gate alongside the estuary. I’d like to explain why we have done this, and hope that you’ll support the decision.

During the day, when the Visitor Centre is open, we have long required all visitors to have a ticket before entering the nature reserve. You’re required to do this because of rules from the taxman, which is why each ticket is individually numbered. Members get in free, of course, and non-members pay.

I never cease to be surprised by the number of people who believe that (a) the track along the estuary is not part of the nature reserve, (b) you can get to Glan Conwy through the reserve, (c) the reserve trails are public footpaths, and (d) the signs about not cycling and not bringing dogs onto the reserve don’t apply to them. None of these are true!

Over the last few years, we have tried all sorts of signs on and around the gates, but none of these have worked, and still a lot of people go around the reserve without a ticket, or bring their bikes or dogs.

The new gate has two parts. There is a one-way turnstile that will let you out of the reserve, but not in. 95% of visitors will be able to use this, so for them, nothing changes.

For wheelchair-users and families with pushchairs, there is a gate next to the turnstile with a keypad on it. When you get your trail ticket from the Visitor Centre you will be given a code that will allow you to open the gate (please close it behind you).

If you want to walk up the estuary track, you still can, but you will have to come to the Visitor Centre to get your ticket and the passcode to open the gate.

And if you’re here in the evening or early morning, you can still walk around as you always could (the gate will be opened around 5pm) and enjoy nature on the reserve. But there are still no dogs or bikes allowed.

The important thing to remember is that nothing has changed. We have, for several years, required all visitors to get a ticket to enter the nature reserve.

We have installed the new gate partly in response to feedback from visitors. People who have paid to visit the reserve, or who support our conservation work through membership of the RSPB, feel it’s wrong that others are taking the benefits of the wonderful home for nature that we have created, without making any contribution. And we agree.

Our thanks to JP Engineering, a local Llandudno Junction company, for their work in creating and installing the gate. They went the extra mile, and decided to incorporate the RSPB logo and a steel lapwing into the design. We've already received lots of positive comments about both the gate and the decision to change.

We’re always listening, of course, and if the new gate causes you a problem that we hadn’t anticipated, please do ring me or pop into the Visitor Centre and ask to speak to me.