Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow…
Woohoo! It snowed! Then it snowed some more, and then a little bit more. It’s fantastic.
Since the last entry it’s been pretty much processing and delivering logs on the reserve. The heathland is maintained by removing the majority of trees that grow on it, and the wood produced from this process is then distributed amongst local people in the know. Just now there are a lot of people who want a log delivery before Christmas.
At the weekend I drove to Lewknor in Oxfordshire, to see my Dad and the other Golders, and back. The passion wagon, being 4 wheel drive (but not an SUV/Chelsea tractor, I hasten to add, for anyone reading this for the first time), coped admirably with the conditions. On my way there I was listening to reports of the M40 being gridlocked, Southbound, from Banbury all the way in to London. I was able to manhandle the wagon down the back roads to avoid the issue. Top stuff.
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- Our first snow fell on the 17th
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- Snowball fights. Eh? This is what winter should be all about.
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- Some Sparrows in Dad’s back garden
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- Dad’s road (ok, he doesn’t actually own it)
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- A path near Lewknor
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- Exmouth
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- Snow people at the reserve workshop (Sam and Tia?)
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- Mayday, mayday, Richard is stuck in Exeter. Thankfully we get him out and he’s able to drive home for Christmas. Or at least he would have been able to if his car hadn’t suffered a terminal engine failure on the way. The last we hear he’s on a train, having sold his car to a scrappie…
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- In this picture of Ed, you can quite clearly see him walking.
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- A Reed Bunting (don’t get excited, it’s not a great pic) feeds in the frozen grass on the reserve
Dinan Way reclaimed woodland
The site where we worked today used to be an old rubbish tip, in Exmouth. The story goes that Brenda Taylor, whilst Mayor proposed that the site be set up as a woodland, and Toby, RSPB Aylesbeare warden, suggested that the RSPB could get involved by supplying work parties. That was 10 years ago and a great variety of trees have been planted on the site since. The RSPB still make time to visit the site at least once a year to check that things are ok.
Today, being Wednesday, was also the Wednesday-vols day. Every Wednesday our numbers are boosted with a group of local volunteers. Some come along to gain experience for a course they are studying, and others have been involved with the RSPB for years. As the work today was not the usual slash and burn, and with it being so close to Christmas, there was a festive spirit in the air, helped with servings of mulled wine, and Christmassy cakes.
The woodland has great views of Exmouth, but is currently closed to the public while the methane is vented from the site. It will be interesting to keep an eye on it over the coming years, and should be a beautiful and worthwhile place for the people of Exmouth to visit in years to come.
Us vs the Laurel
For the last few days we’ve been trying to reduce the powers of some mighty runaway Laurel on one corner of the reserve. This tree system seems to have been growing away unchecked for about 40 years, and has now swamped all the ground vegetation in the area, as well as some smaller trees. It even seems to be contributing to the shape of a couple of Oak trees in it’s midst.
This job is an ideal role for me to practice my chainsaw skills on. Plenty of leaning or lying compression/tension tests, as well as boring and dog tooth cuts. Also, the Laurel is incredibly dense, and seems to be very weighty stuff, so misjudging a cut can lead to a stuck saw, or very dangerous kick back. Thankfully, the biggest issue we experienced was trying to remove a number of branches tangled up in the Oak. I’m sure the Oak was very relieved to see it go.
On Friday, I carried out the reserve’s winter bird transect, with Richard. No Shrike this time, but we did get a little too excited when we thought we’d come across a Cirl Bunting. Further research showed it to be a Reed Bunting with a rather more yellow than usual bib. Still, that’s cool, we love Reed Buntings too.
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- It is possible to see the sea, just below Sidmouth, from the reserve
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- Rob, one of the Exe vols, surveys the scene, while Ed goes in…
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- After 3 day’s work, the Oak is free
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- Although a little warmer of late, there’s still some beautiful winter features on the reserve
Cold, ponies and electric fences
So, it’s pretty cold on the reserve at the moment, and last night we had a proper hoar frost, making everything look very spectacular today. The temperature was -6C last night and doesn’t get above freezing during the day.
In the last couple of days I’ve been working with Vlad, who is Polish and has some great stories to tell about his trips away from communist Poland. Yesterday we were clearing up stumps, and felling a few trees at a place called Outer Hanger, where the Sunday volunteers had been working. Today we checked on all the groups of ponies that we currently manage, and rerouted an electric fence to allow easier winter access to a bridleway.
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- The Ottery (East) hills
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- Myself and Sam help Vlad move some ponies
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- Hmm, I quite like this one
Some early winter snow, nice.
This year I have spent a great deal of time wishing for the kind of snow I was lucky enough to experience in February. Of course, I’m not going to be working in Scotland this winter, so I’ve had to wish extra hard. But, it might just pay off. This morning, we volunteers, in the RSPB Aylesbeare accommodation, woke to a smattering of snow. It wasn’t much, but is there more to come?
Other highlights this week have been the fact that it’s been freezing all week (although this includes the inside of our cottage, so I’ve had to bring in a sleeping bag to lay over my bed), and seeing Redwing, and learning their call. We’ve also seen a few Snipe, and plenty of Robins and Great/Blue/Coal/Long Tailed Tits in the trees where we’ve been working on the edge of the heathland. As these birds tend to appreciate the tree cover, it seems a shame to be cutting some of them down. However, the reserve is trying to encourage more heathland species by doing this work. Birds, such as the Dartford Warbler, and especially invertebrates, such as the 37 species of butterfly recorded on the reserve, more than any other RSPB reserve.
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- The view from my window this morning. C’mon, let’s have more of that.
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- The vols accommodation here at Aylesbeare
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- Snow in the RSPB yard
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- Fire’s are one of the tools we use to remove nutrients from the heathland.
Life since the office 
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