16 June 2007
By the middle of June we had expected a return of the earlier spring sunshine but it was not to be and some beefy showers proved off-putting for this Saturday event at Durgan. A handful of adult HMCG members joined Margaret on the shore but the younger generation were less robust and missed a very pleasant morning on the shore.
Sunday, 18th April 2010
What a pleasure to be in the open air, ambling gently along the Calamansack road with the blackthorn bushes in full flower and listening to bird song. The sun shone warmly from a cloudless blue sky and a goldfinch popped on to a nearby hedge to greet the 21-strong party with a cheerful tune. Chaffinch and blue tits added to the chorus, a couple of linnets flew over, twittering, and an unseen dunnock gave forth a beautiful melody. As if in contrast, a green woodpecker ‘yaffled’ in the distance. Turning off the road and across pastured fields we had an uncommon view along Polwheveral Creek, with white houses at its head and above them the village of Constantine, dominated by the church, whose bells were ringing out clearly across the valley.
Saturday, 16th October 2010
Justin Whitehouse, National Trust Area Warden for the Lizard, first became associated with the National Trust as a volunteer shortly after graduating as a botanist and moving to Cornwall in 1994. His daily journey to work involved rowing across the river from Porth Navas to the office at Helford. Subsequently came five years work at Trelissick and then a return permanently to the Lizard, back to the woodlands and creeks that he preferred.
19th January 2008
The hidden world of our Helford creeks was revealed to a large gathering by the well-known marine broadcaster and retired lecturer of the University of Exeter, Dr Tegwyn Harris.
Sunday, 11th July 2010
Once again, the weather was kind, producing a warm, dry and wind-free day. With 95 passengers on board, plus tanks containing a variety of live fish, crabs and other creatures, the Enterprise boat headed to the mouth of the estuary and around into Gillan Creek, in sight of St Anthony church. The National Trust owns two small properties on the south bank, one containing Bronze Age barrows and an Iron Age cliff castle. Looking seaward there was a clear view of Nare Point and its observation post, now occupied by Coastwatch, but, during WWII, part of a testing range for air-drop torpedoes.
3rd November 2007
National sea bass expert Graham Pickett described the life-cycle of this fish so familiar to our shores and also commercially important, these days attracting higher prices than salmon.
Saturday, 11th December 2010
Is that a pin-tailed duck? No, it’s a long-tailed duck. Isn’t that a gannet? No, it’s a black-tailed godwit. We were trying to identify birds on David Chapman’s jumper, knitted by his mother who had produced separate jerseys for different talks. His outdoor gear depended on conditions, one photograph showing military-style camouflaged top and trousers, plus a back-pack to carry a tripod, camera and lenses and a chest-pack containing a portable hide. When erected, the last looked like a camouflaged igloo, just large enough to accommodate David and Adrian Langdon for several hours bird watching at the Walmsley Reserve. His account of that outing was returned by Adrian with the comment that the phrase “the mud came nearly to the top of our wellies” had a typographical error in the final word!
