Club * April 2022 – report
On a very warm and sunny Good Friday afternoon, eight of us set off from the Bramshill car park on a guided walk of 5 miles or so, ably led as always by Robert Godden.
We walked first across the Bramshill forest and heathland, ablaze with golden gorse, before making our way to the river Blackwater, which we crossed a couple of times – by the bridges, as we didn’t fancy fording the river, though some young boys were enjoying paddling in the summery weather. We also saw the confluence of the Blackwater and Whitewater rivers, before returning via Bramshill, stopping off to view a couple of ponds.
It was an ideal day to appreciate the spring wildlife. There were a large number of butterflies on the wing, including peacocks (which followed us along the paths), brimstones, speckled woods, a red admiral, a comma and a green-veined white. Robert had hoped to show us green hairstreak butterflies, which can be found on gorse bushes at this time of year, but sadly we failed to find any except for one which flew away before we could view it.
The air was full of birdsong and we stopped frequently to see what we could identify. First a buzzard, which perched quite close to us in Bramshill but flew off as soon as we raised a camera. Later chiffchaffs, with their easily identified ‘chiff chaff chiff chaff’ calls, the melodious song of a whitethroat, a handsome stonechat and the strident cries of a mistle thrush. We also saw roe deer several times. Finally we spent some time beside a pond listening to the loud croaking of marsh frogs – only a few were present at this time, but when more arrive later in the spring their din can be deafening and announces their presence from afar!
Altogether it was a delightful walk in good company – a chance to chat, of course, but also to appreciate the sights and sounds of spring and the variety of fauna and flora on our doorstep. Many thanks to Robert, as always.
Tricia