A natural history of Britain

Wild places of Essex

In this intriguing documentary, based on his book The Wild Places, Robert Macfarlane warns us not to write off over-developed and over-populated Britain in the quest for wilderness.  Wild nature is there under our noses, in the most unexpected of places, and Macfarlane helps us focus on it, just as his friend Roger Deakin opened his own eyes.

Essex was chosen as an apparently unlikely location to commune with nature. Condensing a year of exploration, the film shows startling beauty among sewage works and dual carriageways. The contrast is beguiling: a peregrine falcon soaring past Tilbury Power Station is the angelic and the toxic closing-up against one another. Read the rest of this entry

England, History of the British landscape, Natural history writing, Radio and television nature programmes, Southern England | Tags: bbc nature documentary Macfarlane, exploring nature in England, legacy of Roger Deakin, nature in industrial Britain, red seals in Essex, return of the Water Vole, Robert Macfarlane, The Wild Places by Robert Macfarlane, wilderness in industrial Britain|

Most popular walk in Britain

A contender for this title is the 6-mile Bath Skyline walk, the most frequently downloaded trail from the National Trust webpage.  The National Trust owns 500 acres of land at the edge of the city, only a mile from the centre.  Safe from urban development, the land is a mix of woodland and meadows, rich in wildlife and flowers, with views of the famous Bath stone terraces in the valley below.

Outdoor activities, Southern England, Walking in Britain | Tags: Bath Skyline walk, best walk in Britain, top national trust walk, walking around Bath|

Peak district photography

I love these photos of the Peak District by wildlife and landscape photographer Geoff Simpson. Brings back memories of cool moorland walks - finished off by warm pubs. Check out his blog too (above photo).

Nature and landscape photography of Britain, Peak District | Tags: Geoff Simpson, Peak District landscapes|

Record rainfall in the Lake District

The Guardian’s Country Diary has a vivid description of the recent torrential rain in the Lake District, which resulted in the catastrophic flooding of the Cockermouth area. Here’s an extract:

Sheets of precipitation ran off the waterlogged ground and into the becks and rivers, which stampeded downhill causing landslides and destroying bridges and collapsing embankments.  . . . few Lakeland valleys escaped. Waterfalls cascaded down crags, sweeping scree on to roads so that rocks litter the tarmac, some big enough to have smashed through drystone walls and leave gouges in the fellsides in their wake.

About 25 cm of rain fell in 24 hours, making it the wettest day ever recorded in Cumbria. This quantity is the equivalent of the rainfall usually experienced in the Southeast of England over 5-6 months. Newcastle University researchers have found that rainstorms in the UK have doubled in intensity over the last 40 years, due in part to increased water evaporation from warmer seas.

Climate change in the UK, England, Natural disasters in Britain, The Lake District, Weather and climate | Tags: catstrophic flooding in Cockermouth, changing patterns of rainfall in the UK, effect of floods on Lake District, flooding in the UK, wettest day recorded in Cumbria|

Taking the Corpse Road

One of the pleasures of walking is knowing the history of your path, why it exists and who walked there before.

The need for Corpse Roads disappeared centuries ago, though a few are still known by that name.  When population was low and villages were widely scattered, the nearest consecrated ground could be miles away, across harsh and inhospitable terrain.  Sometimes coffins had to be abandoned in blizzards, miles from anywhere.  When weather improved, they would be picked up and the journey resumed.   Coffin-bearing horses bolted with fright during storms, never to be seen again, but living on in legends and ghost stories. Read the rest of this entry

History of the British landscape, Outdoor activities, The Lake District, Walking in Britain | Tags: corpse road of Cross Fell, Cross Fell Pennine way, haunted footpaths, highest point of the Pennine Way, history of Corpse Roads, Pennine Way history, walk over Cross Fell, walking in the lake District, walking in the Pennines, walking on Corpse Roads|

Husky trekking in the Yorkshire moors

With Pesky Husky Trekking you can become a musher for a day.  Instead of a sledge, you stand on a specially designed non-motorised scooter.  And instead of snow-covered arctic lands, the Siberian huskies whisk you through the Yorkshire countryside.  The experience is only available between October and March, after which it becomes too warm for an energetic husky.  You can start off on a practice lap or do a more advanced trek of up to two hours.

Nature holidays in England, Nature tourism in the UK, North-east England, Outdoor activities | Tags: adventure holidays in Yorkshire, exhilerating experience in Yorkshire, fun things to do in Yorkshire, husky trekking in Britain, Siberian huskies in Britain, Siberian husky trekking, unusual day out in Yorkshire, unusual sports in Britain, winter outdoor activities, Yorkshire moor adventure, Yorkshire outdoor activities|

Sugar beet and the Pink-footed Geese

At first light, the sound of huge flocks of honking Pink-footed Geese fills the north Norfolk sky as they fly in from their roosts on the Wash. Back in the 1960s, wintering Pink-foots in the UK numbered about 50,000. Nowadays there are over 200,000 and about half of them are found in Norfolk. Read the rest of this entry

Birds of Britain, Birdwatching in Britain, East Anglia, Farming, Farming and wildlife, Farmland birds of Britain, Wetland birds of Britain | Tags: Birdwatching in Norfolk, migrating birds in Britain, Pink-footed geese in Britain, Snettisham nature reserve, wildlife spectacles in Britain, winter wildlife spectacles|

Rambling on Kinder Scout

The 1932 mass trespass at Kinder Scout has passed into rambling legend and is seen as a milestone in the fight for the right to roam. Located in the north of the Derbyshire Peak District, and very close to the Manchester conurbation, this moorland plateau is of outstanding beauty, with views of Snowdon on a clear day and a 30-foot waterfall that the winds blow into the sky.

But 70 years ago, Kinder Scout was a private moor reserved for grouse shooting. And the famous demonstration, organised by the British Workers Sport Federation, was very much part of the 1930s class war. The confrontation with police and game keepers on the one side and a mixed group of communists, students and ramblers on the other resulted in scuffles, arrests and prison sentences. In his statement at the dock, Bernard Rothman, one of the organisers, argued their case: Read the rest of this entry

England, History of the British landscape, Landforms of Britain, Outdoor activities, Peak District, Walking in Britain | Tags: access to countryside history, class struggle and the right to roam, Ewan MacColl and Kinder Scout, Kinder Scout declared National nature reserve, Kinder Scout mass trespass, Manchester Rambler and Kinder Scout, walking in the Derbyshire peak district|

Whitby snakestones

Ammonites are easy to find on Whitby Beach, so fossil and curiosity dealers would try to attract customers by carving snake heads on the stones. It was a particularly tempting ploy in the Victorian age, when fossil collections and curiosity cabinets were all the rage.

The carvers were inspired by the legend of St Hilda, an abbess who lived in Whitby in the 7th century. The area was infested with snakes until she turned them all into “coils of stone”. Her work was completed by St Cuthbert of Lindesfarne, whose curse left the snakes headless. Read the rest of this entry

England, Folklore about British reptiles, Nature trivia about Britain, North-east England | Tags: ammonite folklore, fossils in Whitby, fossils on Whitby beach, legend of St Hilda of Whitby, similarity of ammonites to snakes, snakestone in British museum, St Hilda ammonites, Victorian fossil collectors|

Rodborough Common: walking among orchids and butterflies

An airy place to stretch your legs, Rodborough Common is perched steeply over Stroud, on the edge of the Cotswolds.  Any time of the year is good for extensive views of the Severn estuary and Welsh mountains on the horizon, but spring to summer are best, as the carefully managed chalk grassland is a haven for butterflies and wild flowers.  Read the rest of this entry

England, Flora of Britain, Southern England, Walking in Britain, Wild flowers of Britain, butterflies of Britain | Tags: Autumn ladies tresses, Duke of Burgundy butterfly, greater horseshoe bat, limestone grasslands, Stroud Rodborough Common, walking with good views, walks near Stroud, weekend in Stroud, where to find orchids, where to see butterflies|

Wild Cornwall cottage

The Landmark Trust describe the location of their secluded granite cottage in strangely compelling terms - it’s for “those who worship the woods and the water and are prepared to be dominated by them.”  It sounds like a challenge, but suggests that those who allow themselves to be submerged in the exuberant Cornish nature will be richly rewarded. Frenchman’s Creek, made famous by Daphne Du Maurier, is a side creek of the Helford river, and its tidal ebb and flow are a constant reminder of the proximity of the sea.  More information

Cornwall, Country accommodation in England, Country accommodation in the UK | Tags: Cornwall cottage near sea, cottage by river in Cornwall, cottage in Daphne Du Maurier Cornwall, Frenchman's Creek cottage, peaceful place to stay in Britain, quiet cottage in Cornwall, quiet place in Cornwall, remote cottage in Cornwall|

Coastguard cottages in the Isle of Wight

Up on the windswept Needles Headland on the Isle of Wight above the iconic Needles rock formation are a group of coastguard cottages let by the National Trust.  Plain and functional, they are situated in an atmospheric location with spectacular views.  The three cottages are named after ships wrecked on the Needles - Irex and Pomone, and Varvassi, which was the last big ship to founder on this treacherous coast, back in 1947.  Much of its cargo of Mediterranean wine was washed up on local beaches.   The cottages are part of a 370-acre site of open downland owned by the National Trust.

Country accommodation in England, Country accommodation in the UK, Southern England | Tags: coastguard cottages to rent, cottage on Needles Headland, cottage with spectacular view on English coast, isle of wight cottages, national trust cottages on isle of wight, where to stay on the isle of wight|

How did the Needles get their name?

The western tip of the Isle of Wight peters out in a series of three jagged rocks known as the Needles.  You might think they owe their name to their sharp edges but it turns out there used to be a fourth, needle-shaped, rock called Lot’s wife, as shown in Isaac Taylor’s map of Hampshire published in 1759.  Read the rest of this entry

Geography of Britain, History of the British landscape, Landforms of Britain, Nature trivia about Britain, Southern England | Tags: Chalk formation in south England, chalk rock formations in England, famous rocks of England, iconic landmarks of Britain, origen of the Needles, Things to do on the isle of Wight, things to see on the Isle of Wight|

Eco-cabin in Cumbria

Unique architect-designed woodland hideaway, designed with both eco-consciousness and comfort in mind with views overlooking Windermere. The sleek cabin occupies its own small woodland where you can watch red squirrels from the windows. A short walk to the pubs and shop at Sawrey. From £500 for the week (low season - and only sleeps two). Visit the Love shack (not sure about that name)

Also check out this barn for rent in Cumbra

Country accommodation in England, Country accommodation in the UK, Nature holidays in England, Nature tourism in the UK, The Lake District | Tags: Cabins in the Lake District, Interesting places to stay in the Lake District, Original accommodation in the Lake District, Places to stay near Sawrey, Sawrey|

Portuguese Man O’ War reach Cornwall

A group of eight Portuguese Man O’ War were found strewn on Tregantle beach near Whitsand Bay. Experts say they expect more to be brought in by prevailing winds. Daily Telegraph. These creatures, which are not actually jellyfish but a species called siphonophores, live in warmer waters than those around the UK but global warming is believed to be pushing them further north - ever closer towards Britain. They can in extreme cases provoke a cardiac arrest and death in particularly sensitive persons.

It is also interesting note that  Portuguese Man O’ War have also been seen increasingly more often on the coasts of Spain.

Note the English and Spanish etymology comes from the creature’s air bladder, which looks similar to the triangular sails of the 15th.century Portuguese man-of-war Caravela latina.

British seas, Climate change in the UK, Cornwall, Sealife in British seas | Tags: Dangerous animals in Britain, Jellyfish in Cornwall, Jellyfish in the UK, Portuguese Man O' War in England, Portuguese Man O' War in the UK, Tregantle beach, Whitsand Bay|