Tomorrow is the last day of my internship here at Frampton Marsh, six months go pretty fast! However there is an extraordinary amount you can fit into six months, and I tried my best to do that. So I thought I’d share a few of the best bits, as I couldn’t possibly cover everything. So in no particular order...
Luke and I went bird watching on the Boston Belle, a day that was supposed to be thunder and rainstorms was actually quite a sunny mild day. A wonderful chance to see Boston from a different angle and spot lots of birds whilst enjoying a bacon sandwich, what could be better.
The Big Wild Sleepout, an event which I was incredibly nervous about running all by myself. It turns out I needn’t have worried, the whole thing ran beautifully smoothly, in no small part due to my wonderful volunteers (who have tried desperately to stop me thanking them, but I won’t). We had marshmallows on the campfire and watched as shooting stars and the international space station flew overhead.
This photo was taken at the top of the Boston Stump, my friend Olivia was visiting and we decided to climb the many (terrifying) stairs to see the beautiful views from the top. In fact this photo was taken shortly before my heart attack as we had unknowingly coincided our visit with bell ringing practice. I’ve never seen Olivia jump so high!
During Springwatch I went down to Minsmere to volunteer for a few days, it was a fantastic opportunity to get involved with a new reserve and also the massive operation that is Springwatch. I got to show people the fantastic wildlife Minsmere has to offer, talk to people about stone curlews, do a radio interview and even briefly appeared on TV on Springwatch Unsprung (I’m the one with the cheesy grin in the top right!).
What better way to spend your day than pond dipping on a nature reserve? Hundreds of kids have helped me find all manner of cool critters such as the smooth newts (pictured above), water scorpions, sticklebacks and great diving beetle larvae. It has been a real pleasure teaching people about these fascinating creatures and seeing them come back to visit again, itching to know more.
And then there’s the reserve in general. I had next to no knowledge of birds before I got here and I couldn’t have chosen a better place to learn. I would like to thank the staff for teaching me the basics and the volunteers who saw me walking round confused with a bird book and answered my questions, who still like to call me over when they’ve seen something cool. Your patience while I learnt was very much appreciated! With beautiful scenery, an amazing amount of birds and some awesome sunsets it’s a place that really is very special.
Since I started writing this I have thought of at least ten more things to include, but I’ll leave it there. This has been a fantastic opportunity and one I have enjoyed so much. I’d say goodbye but I’m sure I’ll be back!
Sarah