Monthly Archives: April 2012

The spirit of Kinder lives on

I wondered how the eightieth celebrations of the Kinder Scout Mass Trespass could match up to the earlier anniversary events-Kinder 70 when the Duke of Devonshire apologised at Bowden Bridge for the actions of his predecessor and his keepers in challenging the … Continue reading

Posted in Access, National parks, National Trust, Open country, Open Spaces Society, Ramblers, Uncategorized, walking | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Are MSAs the new nature reserves?

I hate motorway service areas (MSAs), and for various reasons have had to visit many in the last few days. However, I was struck by the birdlife there. Today I saw a rookery at Sandbach and a flock of pied wagtails … Continue reading

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Cattle-grid blocks bridleway

On 14 March 2012, in a useful judgment for path defenders, two high court judges ruled that a cattle-grid cannot be authorised to block the whole width of a footpath or bridleway—Kind v Northumberland County Council [2012] EWHC 603 (Admin). … Continue reading

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Red kites and rubbish tips

On my recce for nightingale habitats yesterday I saw a kite’s nest in Reading Shaw, the wood right next to High Heavens rubbish dump. Encouragingly, there were two kites flooping around it and I hope they occupy it in due … Continue reading

Posted in AONB, Birds, Bucks, People, Uncategorized, walking, Woods and forests | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Will nightingales sing in Booker square?

That’s a good question.  I have volunteered for the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) nightingale survey and my ‘square’ at Booker, High Wycombe, Bucks, is the tetrad (two kilometre square) which BTO has allocated to me.  Today I did a recce. The chances of … Continue reading

Posted in Birds, Bucks, Uncategorized, walking, Woods and forests | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments