Wicken Fen again

 

This is another view of Wicken Fen,UK. 

It is a wild place and very good for birds.

Wicken Fen, UK

Yesterday, we went for a walk at Wicken Fen and saw our first returning swallows here for the summer before flying back to southern Africa.

Wicken Fen

This is either the oldest, or nearly the oldest, National Trust reserve in England. 

It is about 6km from us.  It has a rich diversity of wildlife and they try to maintain the water levels so it is as the fens used to be before it became rich lands of agriculture. 

I have just been lent a book all about it. It is hard reading!

Wicken Fen collage - NOT amateur radio

 

My wife made this collage of our walk yesterday. We are expecting rain later!

Wicken Fen wind pump - NOT amateur radio

This pump replaced a much older wind pump used to keep water levels in this nature reserve at just the right level. Wicken Fen is (I think) the oldest National Trust property in the UK.

Wicken Fen walk - NOT amateur radio

 

This morning, we did a very nice walk around part of Wicken Fen.

Wicken Fen - NOT amateur radio

This is a very old National Trust piece of land. In the UK, members can visit any National Trust property for free. Others pay an entry fee. NT properties include old houses, clifftops and other land of interest. It is a great resource.  I think Wicken Fen was the first NT property in the country. We visited here on Saturday. 

We heard lots of cuckoos. Cuckoos like reed warbler nests - there are plenty!  Cuckoos are often heard and not seen.

See https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/cuckoo .

Wicken Fen walk - NOT amateur radio

My wife created this collage of our walk yesterday. Very wild!! 

It was a lovely morning unlike now which is wet and windy.

Wicken Fen walk - NOT amateur radio

This morning, we walked to Wicken Fen. We like this as it is an enjoyable walk and we can get a snack half way before walking back. 

At this time of year we were not expecting to see any boats, so imagine our surprise.

Wicken Fen lunch - NOT amateur radio

 

As mentioned in an earlier post, we walked to Wicken Fen where we ate lunch.

Wicken Fen - NOT amateur radio

We saw several very late swallows today. These have normally flown on migration by now. 

My wife took this photo of an old boat at Wicken Fen. We usually walk there, have a break in the cafe there and walk back.

We usually see Konik ponies, but we saw none.

Wicken Fen walk - NOT amateur radio

 

My wife made this collage of our walk this morning to Wicken Fen. The round trip is about 1.5 hours with a break for a coffee and snack at the cafe at Wicken Fen.

Geese with young - NOT amateur radio

This morning, we went for a nice walk to nearby Wicken Fen. Until we got home and put the photos on the PC I had not noticed the young. The photo was taken through a zoom lens.

Yesterday's walk - NOT amateur radio

 

Yesterday we walked to Wicken Fen passing this boat.

First cuckoo - NOT amateur radio

This morning, we walked to Wicken Fen. We saw several bird species including stonechat, wheatears, swallows and swifts. We heard reed warblers and cuckoos. We saw highland cattle, and konik ponies in the distance.

See https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/cambridgeshire/wicken-fen-national-nature-reserve .

Walk - NOT amateur radio

 The plan is to walk to nearby Wicken Fen, have a snack and a drink and walk back. Will we see any Konik ponies, swallows or even a kingfisher?

Wicken Fen lunch yesterday - NOT amateur radio

 

This was our lunch at the cafe at Wicken Fen on our walk yesterday.

Wicken Fen walk - NOT amateur radio

 

Yesterday we walked to Wicken Fen. It tried to rain (briefly) on the way back.

2 radio amateurs

One of my old work colleagues, Jenny Bailey G0VQH  (once mayor of Cambridge) is a radio amateur and has a narrowboat. Her boat was moored at Wicken Fen.

We saw her with her partner and Bernie Wright G4HJW at Wicken Fen earlier. Jenny has the boat at the back with the antenna! Am I surprised? No! At work (a LONG time ago) Jenny had a 3 wheeler in drab green with a 20 foot tank whip!

We had a bite to eat at the cafe there. Nice walk with a break.

Water lillies - NOT amateur radio

 

These, and the other flowers, were seen on our walk yesterday to Wicken Fen, UK.