Introduction


When we started walking the coast of England we had no intention that this would become a major lifetime project. Having to make a last-minute arrangement for our summer holiday in 1987, we said "Let's go to the nearest piece of coast and see how far we can walk along it." It turned out well and we started adding further stretches of coast, initially once every two years, but soon annually, or even twice a year.

We had always enjoyed the coast - there is something refreshingly "edgy" about having the sea always at our side, and one of us was into marine molluscs. We also enjoyed long-distance walking and had long been involved in general natural history recording. This project enabled us to combine all three interests.

You soon discover when embarking on a project like this that you need a few rules, which evolve from the first experiences. Our main rule was that we should walk as close to the coast as possible, which meant beach-walking whenever we could (unlike the official coast paths that largely remain above shore, recognising that at high tides the beach may be inaccessible). The route should also be capable of being a continuous walk, so that when we came to an unfordable river we walked inland along its banks to the first place at which we could cross, whether a bridge or a ferry.

We only carried light packs, so that at the end of each day's walk we had the problem of getting back to our car where we started. Initially we walked back, but soon realised we would be walking the coast twice this way! We used public transport whenever this was available - buses or trains, sometimes adjusting our start and finish points to make this easier. Failing this - and it was often not possible - we would phone for a taxi (an increasingly costly option over the years). Having our car with us gave us more freedom as to where we could stay at night - and after a day walking and only light food we were usually ready for being spoiled by a good meal and a comfortable bed! Even so, we stayed on the coast itself whenever there was a decent option.

Each walk was made for enjoyment, it was not a route-march to see how quickly we could get it finished. We therefore took it gently at times when passing through pleasant scenery or where there were many plants or creatures to record.

In terms of biological recording, we systematically noted every bird, butterfly, creature or sea-shell that we came across, sometimes spending time searching for the shells. We could not record every plant in the same way - there are too many common ones - so we were more selective, noting all coastal plants and any others that were not run-of-the-mill.

In our daily posts, edited from our original diaries, we include a star-rating from no star to **** according to our subjective estimate as to how special that day was from the point of view of natural history. This score (and our daily records) will, however, have been affected by the weather - it is difficult to appreciate the environment fully, for instance, in torrential rain, and there are many more butterflies and other insects to be seen in warm sunshine!

A summary of all our natural history records on the walk can be found using this link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B1LLGD55lKRHYXd1SGU1QndrcUU/edit?usp=sharing





Friday, 24 January 2014

Offa's Dyke: Buttington to Llanymynech 30/8/2003****


 

Buttington Wharf
 
Yellow water-lily
 
Breiddin Hills
This day was dominated by two water systems – the River Severn (here flowing northwards) and the Shropshire Union Canal (Montgomery branch).  We started off from the edge of Welshpool at Buttington Wharf along a short stretch of the canal.  The canal had abundant floating water-plantain, none in flower, but some with the floating leaves.  Other aquatic plants on this day included water chickweed, yellow water-lily, and the pondweeds Potamogeton obtusifolius and P. compressus.  At Pool Quay we crossed to the Severn, very close to the canal at this point, and walked along the top of the flood embankment for several miles, always a little way from the bank itself, which was dominated by Indian balsam.  At lunch-time there was a short-turf bank raised very high above the river where we could sit.  There was little sign of wildlife along the river, while the canal had abundant plants and dragonflies.  We looked across at the Breidden Hills, eaten away by a road-stone quarry, being used for hang-gliding and supporting the Admiral Rodney Monument.  There was an intermediate walk across country through uninteresting farmland into Four Crosses, following some raised portions of the Dyke (the Severn having previously provided a boundary in itself).  At Four Crosses we went down Parsonage Lane back to the canal and followed this all the way to our destination Llanymynech, travelling all the way on the tow-path under several bridges and beside locks, with sightings of common hawker dragonflies and coots.  At one point the canal was carried aloft above the River Vyrnwy, a strange sensation.  We cooperated with another walker we had met, Francis Clark-Lowes, to place one car at our destination and return to the start point in the other, saving the problem of finding taxis, the bus service being inadequate here.
Water chickweed
 
 
 
Common hawker

 
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