Good morning. I went and did a recce for yesterday's "Long Walk" on Saturday. Although it was quite damp, I heard lots of bearded tits and saw plenty of roe deer. There was also a very damp ruddy darter resting on some riverbank vegetation:
Image credit: David White
I lead the Long Walk proper yesterday, which is a roughly circular 10 kilometre walk around as much of the reserve as possible.
Things started well when we took the path south of Trial Wood. There was a lovely patch of common toadflax alongside the path and this garden spider was watching us closely as we went through the barrier at the western edge of the wood:
Image credit: Simon Morley
As we walked through New Fen South, there were at least three marsh harriers hunting overhead and a couple of hobbys were tearing around the sky over West Wood.
When we reached Humphrey's Paddock, the area of grazing marsh near Joist Fen viewpoint, a stoat was scampering up and down the safety bank in front of us. We walked down through the middle of the reserve and as we got to the grazing marsh in Norfolk Fen, a bittern flew across the reedbeds in front of us. I also spotted a four-spot orb weaver by the side of the path. Here I am admiring it:
We stopped for lunch in the black barn and a barn owl flew out and disappeared north of the river. I also spotted a common buzzard circling high over Botany Bay.
As we walked between Botany Bay and Joist Fen viewpoint along the riverbank, we saw several kingfishers. One flew east along the river and at two others flew between Joist Fen viewpoint and Mere Hide. We stopped briefly in Mere Hide and saw another kingfisher and another hobby.
There were lots of migrant hawkers patrolling the sky as we walked along the hard track back through the reserve. There was time for one more surprise just before we got back to the visitor centre: one of the sharp eyed walkers spotted a common newt on the path in front of us. I gently picked it up and moved it to the edge of the path. After a moment's hesitation, it made a dash for freedom into the surrounding vegetation.
All in all, it was a great walk and we are hoping to run several Long Walks next year. Please keep an eye on the events page on our website for more details. We hope to see you soon.