October Hail and Rain

OUR AIM IS TO PROTECT OUR NATURAL ENVIRONMENT AND THE HABITAT IT PROVIDES FOR WILDLIFE ALONG THE RIVERSIDE

Our October Meet

 Sunday 25th October 2020 was a typical autumn day with very fast-changing conditions. At dawn it seemed that the rain would last all day, after all, British Summertime had vanished under the clouds. A quick change before our meet was due to start saw the clouds receding fast on the horizon, with birds starting to sing and a Great Spotted Woodpecker calling loudly from an Ash tree -  but as we dispersed to various locations along the river, the light went and hail dropped from the Oaks, battering leaves and acorns not yet fallen, Trying to shelter was impossible, the heavy hail crashing through. It became icy cold too.

After the hail: the river was speeding up with twig islands popular with bathing birds now invisible

and water carrying some silt from upstream obscuring interesting features of the river bed, tangled branches and roots and maybe one or two bicycles.

25th October 2020.

Dense undergrowth protected small mammals and birds during the short hailstorm with undergrowth shelter added to by a profusion of fallen mossy twigs  from trees during the strong gales of the previous night.