My arrival at RSPB Coombes Valley couldn’t have been more delightful. As I walked out onto the reserve on my very first day I almost immediately heard my first chiffchaff of the year, that delightfully familiar and uplifting noise which signals the arrival of spring. Or that’s the theory anyway; as I write this today, the visitor centre feels as though it is close to being blown down by the howling wind and driving rain.
Could it ever rain here? Coombes Valley images
I suppose I should introduce myself. My name is Chris and I’m the new Visitor Experience Intern here. For the next few months I’ll be living, working and playing right in the middle of some of the most beautiful woodland in the country. Previously I had been volunteering with the RSPB at Haweswater in the Lake District. I can tell you that it has been something of a culture shock to move from bleak and barren uplands, into a forest that is positively bursting with life. Although sadly, there are no golden eagles here. Coombes certainly isn’t lacking for wildlife though; there are birds, mammals and invertebrates galore.
Chris with a privet hawk moth caught in a moth trap - Pernille Egeberg
In the few days that I’ve been here I’ve mostly been exploring the reserve and getting to know the place. I’ve strolled around the Valley Woodland Trail listening to the chirps of robins, the trills of blue tits and the fluting tones of blackbirds. I was even lucky enough to watch a pair of grey wagtails catching their dinner by the bubbling brook. I’ve sat on Buzzard Bank and watched the beautiful buzzards soar effortlessly overhead and I’ve spent time down by the pond watching a pair of Canada geese feed and preen while a heron circled effortlessly above. But I still feel as though I’ve barely scratched the surface of what this wonderful reserve has to offer.
Canada geese on the pond - Chris Calow
So my plan is to throw myself headlong into discovering everything there is to discover and seeing everything that there is to see. Maybe I’ll find more sculptures hanging from the branches of ancient trees.
Can you spot the fairy watching over the valley? - Chris Calow
Or maybe I’ll be lucky enough to catch a glimpse of the elusive deer that make their homes in this valley. Part of the beauty of immersing yourself in nature is that you never know what you will discover next and I can’t wait to be surprised by what I find.