Guest blog by Tony Thurston, Minsmere volunteer guide
Visitors to Minsmere today expect to arrive at the reserve, pay their entry fee or show their membership card, and have instant access to the reserve, but this has not always been the case. At one time visitors needed a permit to enter the reserve, although not on Tuesdays as the reserve was closed!
Permits could be obtained in advance by writing to the reserve warden, or obtained on the day at the reception hut, which was situated near to where the sand martin cliff is now. The car park was situated below the cliff where the pond is now.
Entrance to the reserve could not be guaranteed, however, as there was a limit on the number of visitors allowed on the reserve. If the reserve was "full" then regretfully a permit would not be issued and the unlucky visitors would not be allowed on the reserve.
This situation presented a problem for the beach hut volunteers. The beach hut was an information point situated near the beach entrance gate to the reserve, at the end of the North Wall. Here, volunteers would promote the RSPB to passing visitors, informing them about the work of the Society, Minsmere and its birds, gently persuade them to join the RSPB, and issue permits to the reserve. And this, of course, was the problem, because if the reserve was full then permits could not be issued.
The method of checking the status of the reserve was delightful. If a visitor wanted a permit, you had to take your binoculars, climb the shingle bank, and focus on the reception hut, which had a wonderful piece of modern technology: a semaphore signal! If the signal was up, you could issue a permit. If the signal was down then you had to advise the visitor that the reserve was full and they could not enter.
The system, although antiquated, worked well. However, it was eventually replaced in the late 1980s by a more modern method of communication in the shape of a second world war vintage army field telephone, complete with cranking handle!
Visitors today do not realise what an easy time they have (well, perhaps not).
[The beach hut eventually came down in the late 1990s, subsequently finding a home at other RSPB reserves - ed]
[Do you have any recollections of visiting Minsmere, especially from its inception as an RSPB reserve in 1947 to the opening of the current visitor centre in 1996? If you do, we'd love to hear them.]
Have you been able to check Minsmere's records as I'm 100% certain there where Herons nesting in the Reedbeds at one time.
Regards,
Ian.
Yes I'm sure if you look up the Minsmere records Ian as Bert Axcell mentioned it in his book you will find that Minsmere did indeed unusually have Herons that nested in the reedbeds when I visited way back in the 1960's-1970's.
We haven't had a heronry at Minsmere in the 14 years I've been here - in fact that's the first time I've heard of one. Reedbed heronries are quite unusual in the UK, but there are several in local woods - and they often include little egrets these days.
I do remember when I visited Minsmere in the early 1970's there was a Heronry, where the Herons unusually nested in the reedbed at Minsmere. Do they still nest in the reedbed at Minsmere Ian, as I haven't heard anything mentioned about that for a very long time.
As I mentioned I've got a copy of Bert Axcell's Portrait of a Bird Reserve with his autograph and also Eric Hoskins's autograph which I bought in the 1970's.