Up the creek

Norfolk Wildlife Trust's David North explores Norfolk’s last true wilderness in a traditional crabbing vessel. 

Henry and My Girls, David North

Its 6.30am and I’m in Wells to meet Henry, and to board his restored crab boat, My Girls. It’s been blowing a brisk northerly for the last couple of days but fortunately the heavy skies and heavy rains of the last 24 hours have been blown elsewhere and the early morning sun is bright on Wells marshes.  And it’s the marshes I have come to explore.  Not many boats could attempt the narrow saltmarsh creeks that wind their way between Cley and Wells. And not many navigators know these creeks well enough to attempt the journey and find safe passage through this maze of sinuous, shallow and ever-changing channels. The great thing about ‘My Girls’ is her shallow draft. As long as we have a couple of feet of water under us Henry says we should be ok and that traditional crab boats were made for just this landscape.  So on a rising tide we are off, and with the town of Wells slowly disappearing behind us we head east towards Stiffkey and into a landscape as wild as anywhere on this planet.

Leaving Wells behind, David North

I love the North Norfolk coast – its wildlife and its wildness – and I think I know this coast quite well.   I have walked the marshes over many years and once was lucky enough to fly over them in a small plane, giving me a birds-eye-view and revealing intricate patterns invisible when you are on the ground.  But being in a boat brings a new perspective. Exploring the marshes on foot means being out at, or near, low tide.  Here in the boat we are out amongst the marshland on a rapidly rising tide. Everywhere is movement and change: what was solid land moments before becomes water. Water that moves in strange patterns with currents running both up and down a creek at the same time, creating swirls, mini-whirl-pools, upwellings, calm, oily flats and silver sunlit ripplings. 

 

Big skies across the Marshes, David North

We ground several times, but, on a rising tide, its usually just minutes before, with Henry at the tiller, our outboard swings us back into the current and eastwards towards Morston.  There are ancient wooden posts that jut from the mud that could easily punch a hole in a keel and in one place a low bridge where we must duck as we pass under.  From the boat of course there are those fantastic huge landscape views across samphire and sea-lavendar-decked marshes and those huge North Norfolk skies, horizon to horizon, above.  These will be familiar to all who love these marshes but for the moment, as we navigate creeks barely wider than the boat, it’s mud that holds my attention.   

'Cauliflower and mashed potato' mud, David North

The English language lacks enough words for mud: there is mud here with the texture of cauliflower and mashed potato. There is mud, shiny, smooth and silvered by sun. There is mud that is black, and brown and grey, and even orange in places. There is mud that sprouts miniature cacti forests of samphire and mud patterned with footprints of shelduck and redshank. There is join-the-dots mud, pricked with sowing-machine regularity, by the beaks of now invisible waders. As the tide rises towards its high it becomes harder to see the edges of the channels that our boat, My Girls, most move within. It’s strange to see just the tops of marsh plants waving over a sea of water. There are forests of sea asters, apparently floating, their flowers not quite open yet, but hinting at yellow and purples soon to come.

Oystercatchers, Blakeney Point, David North

Then a change of scene. We are out into open water and catching the full force of swell from those preceding days of northerly winds. It’s exhilarating, and if not quite a roller-coaster, certainly enough to make me hang on tight until we enter calmer waters in the lee of Blakeney Point.  There are black and white oystercatchers at the seaward end of the spit, roosting out the high tide which has covered their feeding grounds. A more careful look reveals dunlin, grey plovers and a single black-tailed godwit amongst them. The lives of these waders is driven more by tide than by day and night. They will feed all night if that’s when the tide is low and muddy feeding grounds are exposed.  There are common seals hauled up on the Point, but the seals that follow us across Blakeney Pit are greys, heads bobbing above the waves, giving us searching, curious Selkie stares before diving, only to bob up again even closer.

Half-way house, David North

We pass inland, or should that be ‘inwater’, of the bright blue National Trust former lifeboat house and then, sail now rigged,  past ‘half-way house’, the watch-house, where once  ‘preventative men’, the early coastguards, pitted their wits against smugglers of brandy, baccy and geneva (gin). I wonder if there are still smugglers today, but sadly, if so, then it’ more likely drugs or human trafficking that’s plied. A sad  reflection on today’s world.   There are gulls and terns that fly over the boat with raucous calls; black-headed, herring and great-black backed gulls and both common and little terns.  Little terns are one of my favourite birds, elegant, graceful with and almost ethereal beauty as they hover before plunge-diving for small fish. I’m not alone in admiring them. It was Simon Barnes who described little terns as ‘what black-headed gulls dream of becoming when they die and go to heaven’.

Coming in to Cley, David North

Our journey ends navigating the newly dredged, but still narrow, river channel through waving reeds to disembark at the quayside next to Cley windmill.  So what will I take away from this voyage though North Norfolk’s wild marshes under the lovely terracotta sails of My Girls.  What I value most is the privilege of time spent in a truly wild place where the only sounds are wind, waves and the calls of curlew and redshank.  Salt-marshes are truly wild: shaped by the forces of nature, scorched by summer sun, swept by winter storm.  Places that are home for waders, seals and some highly specialised and very fascinating plants, but where we humans are never quite at home. Fleeting visitors, like me, that pass through on an adventure, always aware that tide and change makes these challenging places to explore.

Wild places, like these Norfolk saltmarshes, are rare as hen’s teeth in our modern world.  In North Norfolk we have some of the finest, least spoilt and most extensive saltmarshes in Western Europe.  Priceless!  Let’s make sure they, and their wildlife, are protected and valued as one of Norfolk’s most precious assets.

 Exploring  the saltmarsh coast:

Norfolk Wildlife Trust reserves at Holme Dunes and Cley and Salthouse Marshes are great places to see some of the wildlife characteristic of North Norfolk’s coastal marshes.

The North Norfolk coast path between Wells and Cley follows the top of the saltmarshes providing great views over the marshes.

Under sail, David North

If you are interested in exploring the creeks by boat then details of how to book a trip with Henry on his restored, traditional crab boat My Girls, and other coastal adventure trips can be found at www.coastalexplorationcompany.co.uk  

A week of coastal experiences at NWT Cley Marshes

Amanda Schrem recently completed a week's work experience at NWT Cley Marshes and discovered what a lot goes on  at this busy visitor centre and reserve.

Amanda on the beach at West Runton

On my first day, we started off with the mandatory staff health and safety procedures and paperwork. Once that was done, we went to Sheringham for the Coastal Creations event, which involves collecting various interesting objects from the strandline and using them to make art. It was great fun and I learned a lot about all the objects found on the strandline, for example that mermaid's purses are actually egg cases, that cat sharks exist in Norfolk and something that looks like dried seaweed but is actually a type of animal called hornwrack, smells like lemon when first washed up.

In the afternoon we went up to Cley beach to collect some plankton samples, as preparation for an upcoming sea dipping event- this was something I had never done before.

A bit of 'Marine Mayhem'

On the second day, I went on "A Walk with the Warden" event, which included birdwatching. I learnt a huge amount about the history of Cley and, as a complete birdwatching novice, the difference between an avocet and a black-tailed godwit.  In the afternoon I worked on reception. This was completely new to me and a bit daunting at first but I ended up really enjoying it. On day three I had the morning off! In the afternoon I invented some arts and crafts that children could make during the "Marine Mayhem" event on Saturday. I made a fish out of a recycled bottle and tissue paper, and an 'egg-box rock pool'. I also did some odd jobs in the office, like laminating. In the evening, I got involved with the "Coastal Stroll and Supper".

Rockpooling at West Runton

In the morning of the fourth day, we ran the Rockpooling event at West Runton. There were a lot of people and it was great fun, I hadn't been rockpooling for years. Someone caught a scorpion fish, which was fascinating to see! It was great learning about other life in the rock pools as well,  a highlight was seeing a velvet swimming crab. In the afternoon I helped set up the room and organise tea and coffee for the afternoon talk on "Life between the Tides".

Day five was the day of the "Marine Mayhem" event with crafts and activities for families. I was helping out with that, doing things like using the badge machine and helping with the recycled bottle craft.

Puppets from the Norfolk Girl puppet show

On my last day of work experience, we set up the "Norfolk Girl" event, an interactive puppet show based on a chapter from the book "Mystery of the Mystery Mist".  In the afternoon I organised some event promotion and designed some news posters for upcoming events.

Overall, I had a very interesting week that gave me a great insight into work on and around a nature reserve. I would like to thank all the staff at NWT Cley Marshes, in particular Rachael Wright, Cley Community Education Officer for organising my fantastic week!

For more information about events and activities at NWT Cley Marshes visit https://www.norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/whats-on

Your voice matters

Why now is a good time to take positive action for the future of Norfolk's wildlife by David North, Head of People and Wildlife.  

Swallowtail by Tim Melling

If you are reading this then the chances are that you, like me, care about Norfolk’s wildlife.  Fortunately huge numbers of people in our county do value nature and now is an important time to make our voices heard.
 
Norfolk Wildlife Trust is making its voice heard by writing to our MPs asking them to sign a ‘Pledge for the Environment’.  The Wildlife Trusts, along with many other conservation organisations, including RSPB, WWF, and CPRE, are all asking MPs to support measures to ensure protection for the environment and wildlife. The full text of the pledge can be read here:http://www.green-alliance.org.uk/GreenerUK
 
There are real concerns that the protection of our environment may suffer when we leave the EU and it’s not just environmentalists that are raising this concern.

You may have heard on the news that in a recent report,  The Future of the Environment after the EU Referendum (4 January 2017),cross-party MPs from  the Environmental Audit Committee (EAC) have warned  the Government of the very real risk that vital protections for our environment, countryside and wildlife could be weakened  through the process of leaving the EU. This Committee of MPs is therefore calling on Government to introduce a new Environmental Protection Act before we leave the EU.

Currently around 80% of our environmental laws are tied in with the EU so ensuring these protections for our wildlife and countryside are not weakened during Brexit is absolutely vital if we want a positive future for our wildlife. Currently more than 170 MPs nationally have signed up to the ‘Pledge for the Environment’ but only three of our Norfolk MPs are on this list.

Water vole by Kevin Anderson

If you care about wildlife then now is the time to write to your MP raising your concern that protection for wildlife must not be lost when we leave the European Union.  Let’s show our leaders that protection of the environment is not a side-issue to be thought about only after other concerns, like the economy and immigration, have been addressed but is an issue that is fundamental.
 
 
We all know and understand that a healthy environment rich in wildlife is actually essential to human well-being and the bedrock on which a sustainable economy can be built.  Let’s make sure our MPs understand this too and that they know we want Britain to set a world standard in environmental protection ensuring that our wildlife recovers from current declines.

To see a list of MPs that have signed the Pledge for the Environment and to check if your MP is on the list visit: http://www.green-alliance.org.uk/GreenerUK http://www.green-alliance.org.uk/GreenerUK http://www.green-alliance.org.uk/GreenerUK 

Please add your voice now by writing to your MP asking them to sign this pledge if they have not already done so.   For the Wildlife Trust’s top tips on how to contact your MP visit www.wildlifetrusts.org/Greener-UK/Take-Action www.wildlifetrusts.org/Greener-UK/Take-Action   Decisions made in the next two years are likely to determine the fate of our wildlife and countryside for decades to come.


Help us protect Hickling Broad – the heart of the Norfolk Broads

Please donate today:

•  Call: 01603 625540 

• Visit our website: www.norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/support-us/hickling-broad-land-purchase-appeal.aspx www.norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/support-us/hickling-broad-land-purchase-appeal.aspx

• Or, Just Giving: www.justgiving.com/campaigns/charity/norfolkwildlifetrust/hickling  

Crafts and Curiosities at Wells Carnival

Ellie Howell, Cley Marketing Intern

On Monday 1^st August Community Education Officer Rachael and I went to Wells Carnival for an afternoon of marine inspired creativity and learning. 

While the stalls were not due to open when we finished setting up, there were lots of children eager to explore and to create. 

With ties to the Wildlife Trusts’ Living Seas vision, we wanted to discover what in particular makes the seas valuable to the families that came along. We also wanted to get them thinking about what helps and what harms our marine environment. 

 

We spent the afternoon creating wildlife pictures with natural materials found on the beach. We decorated crabs, fish and starfish with sea lettuce, crab claws, horn-wrack and other things that wash up on the shore. The children also enjoyed making jellyfish from the plastic materials we’d scavenged on the beach. 

Grandmother Angie Richards who travelled from Romford to spend time with her grandchildren said the activities were ‘fab for teaching and educating children on sea life and the environment.’ Her grandchild Ruby said she’d like to make fifty more for her bedroom!

There was also a display of marine objects for inquisitive minds to discover with items such as belemnites over 900 million years old. It was also a chance for the families reacquaint themselves with objects of childhood memory – mermaid’s purses (or egg cases as they are more scientifically known), razor shells, whelk eggs, cuttlebones and horse mussels.

Discover more crafts and family activities taking place at NWT Cley Marshes

Norfolk’s first marine conservation zone: a glimmer of hope in troubled waters

David North, Head of People and Wildlife

Today Defra announced the designation of 23 new Marine Conservation Zones (MCZs). The welcome and long-awaited inclusion of Norfolk’s chalk reef, the Cromer Shoal Chalk Beds as it’s more properly known, means that Norfolk now has its first MCZ. But what does this actually mean? And will it really bring benefits for wildlife or local people?
 
On hearing the news that our chalk reef, perhaps the longest such area in Europe, was to gain recognition in this way I am feeling buoyed up with hope. It’s a great feeling! For anyone working in conservation, hope is more than important, it’s an absolute essential.  Hope that we can make a difference. Hope that beautiful places can be saved. Hope that threatened species can become just a bit less threatened and hope that enough people will care to make our politicians and decision makers understand that wildlife matters and protecting wild places is an essential, not a luxury. 

Hope is what keeps me fired up to work for wildlife and fortunately working for NWT, though we all know how horrendously daunting the global issues and threats facing wildlife are, there are always things happening, places protected and species helped that bring glimmers of hope. For me, and I’m sure for many others who have supported our Living Seas campaigns, signed fish scale petitions, and attended our marine events, our first Norfolk MCZ is also a symbol of hope. Hope that the tide is changing for marine conservation and that the future may bring wiser and more sustainable use and better protection for marine wildlife. What also brings hope is that so many people care, and care deeply, about an environment which they may never see, about wildlife which for most of us can only be experienced through images and film taken by divers.

Yet so many of us do care. So many joined together as Friends of Marine Conservation Zones, to campaign for these MCZ designations. Let’s all feel a little bit more hopeful today and celebrate the recognition of yet another wonderful Norfolk wildlife habitat or national and international importance. Hope is a good thing it gives us the energy to do even more for wildlife.
 

Tompot Blenny, photo by Rob Spray

But what will this new designation really achieve? What will it mean for the colourful sea slugs (nubdibranchs), the extraordinary anemones that wave their tentacles in the current, the smiling tompot blenny in its chalk lair, and the shoals of bib that dart in and out of white chalk arches and seaweed encrusted crannies. Though of course blissfully unaware of our human designations, of Defra, or even of NWT, will this MCZ in anyway affect their lives? 

The designation will at minimum mean that the chalk reef area is better protected against any future damaging developments. And that the area’s wildlife is better monitored ensuring that existing activities are sustainable and cause no harm to the reef’s stunning and diverse wildlife. Eastern Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authority, which monitors activities in other areas of the Wash and Norfolk coast, will be responsible for ensuring that the MCZ is managed sustainably The designation will certainly encourage further studies of the reef’s wildlife which can only help as currently we know so little about the species that live there. Divers have already discovered a species of purple sponge new to science and unknown anywhere else in the world and doubtless there are many more exciting discoveries still to be made.
 
However what we already know demonstrates just how special Norfolk’s marine reef is for wildlife, supporting  an incredible diversity of species, including endangered European eels and species such as bass which are in decline in the North Sea. Just imagine. If the chalk reef and its wildlife were on land, easy to explore and view then without doubt not only would the area have been protected long ago but it would be a major attraction to visitors, a place of wonder and awe and extraordinary beauty.  One of the wonders of Norfolk and at last, though out of sight it’s no longer out of mind.

So what about people? Will this MCZ designation make any difference? The politicians answer would  be, ‘that depends’. It depends on ensuring that MCZs are not just ‘paper parks’, a line on the marine map that is largely ignored. There is of course still much work to be done. Marine wildlife, just like wildlife on land, needs enough protected areas to thrive in and more sustainable use of the wider environment. In the jargon this is what is meant by ‘an ecologically coherent network’ or MCZs. There are now 50  MCZs nationally and just six in the North Sea. All will contribute towards a network of areas which is urgently needed to ensure a healthy future for our seas. But we need more to complete the network, and not just the current  handful in the North Sea.

As Joan Edwards, head of Living Seas at The Wildlife Trusts has said: "We are pleased by this Government’s commitment to addressing the decimation of our seabed over the past century, and to delivering an ecologically coherent network of Marine Protected Areas. This second step towards the completion of a ‘blue belt’ in UK seas is crucial in turning the tide on the state of our seas but there’s still work to be done. We look forward to working with Government and stakeholders to ensure these 50 MCZs are properly managed and to achieve the much-needed ambitious and comprehensive third and final tranche. This will be the start of turning our over-fished, over-exploited and currently under-protected waters back into a healthy and sustainable environment.”

I do hope that like me you will feel joy in this glimmer of hope in the troubled global waters of marine conservation. So, yes let’s celebrate Norfolk’s  first MCZ, but let’s also use our glimmer of hope to inspire us to increase our efforts to secure Living Seas.
 
If you would like to find out more about what you can do to help then please go to .   www.wildlifetrusts.org/MCZfriends to sign up as a Friend of Marine Conservation Zones.  It’s free and your details will never be used by anyone else, or for any other purpose. Or to learn more about the Cromer Chalk Shoal visit www.northseawildlife.org.uk to explore how  we are working to protect North Sea wildlife.

Photos by Rob Spray

Storm Surge: wildlife on the edge

David North, Head of People and Wildlife

   
The night of 5 December 2013 was memorable – at least for those who live and work on our Norfolk coast. 
 

Photo by Richard Porter

The biggest storm surge since 1953: a night that brought flooding and damage to homes and businesses on parts of the North Norfolk coast. But at least, unlike 1953, there was good advance warning. But think again. There were some who make their homes on this coast who had no warning of the great flood to come that night. These were the wild mammals and birds who spend the winter on these coastal marshes. The myriads of tiny creatures which depend on freshwater habitats on our wonderful nature reserves at Cley Marshes, Blakeney Point and Salthouse Marshes.


Related blog post: CEO Brendan Joyce visits the site the morning after the night before. 
 
I remember the weekend after the storm surge walking from Salthouse village to Cley and back again and looking in awe and wonder at a landscape transformed. The usually busy main coast road transformed into a medieval looking footpath covered in parts with a debris of reed and mud waist high. It was extraordinary : odd bits of wood washed off the marshes, plastic boxes from the fishing industry, planks with nails in, all jumbled together. The familiar landscape of marsh and reedbed I know and love transformed into a vast expanse of water. The distant shingle ridge almost invisible, with huge waves still battering and overtopping the shingle in many places.

The silence of walking a usually busy road with no passing cars was striking. Just the calls of thousands of gulls feeding on earthworms killed by the salt water and brent geese bobbing on water where usually they would be busy grazing on marsh. No warning for the wildlife. What could possibly survive?

For me the memory of this post-storm surge walk, my awe at the sheer power of nature to transform in a single night the familiar into a territory strange and unknown, will live with me a life time.

The National Trust rangers inspect the damage to the Blakeney Freshes, photo by Richard Porter

For those who didn’t experience the storm surge so personally (and indeed for those who did!) Norfolk Wildlife Trust, in a partnership with the Forum Trust, have put together photos and video of the impact of this one December night on the well-known and much loved nature reserves of Blakeney Point, Cley and Salthouse. Come along see what happened on that night and how the next morning the coastal landscape was changed beyond recognition. Hear about the work of National Trust and Norfolk Wildlife Trust to repair and restore these nature reserves: rebuilding pathways, repairing hides, replacing bridges and enabling visitors to once again enjoy these special places.

 

Grey seals in the innundated Lifeboat Station garden, photo by Richard Porter

But most important of all, what of the wildlife that makes these places so vital and important? This is a story of the amazing powers of nature to recover. The resilience of species to survive. The grey seals on Blakeney Point are testament to this. The storm surge hit at the worst possible time, the height of the breeding season with young seal pubs unweaned, and completely dependent on their mother’s milk. Wardens feared the worst. Surely most of these seals, just weeks old, would have been washed far away and separated from their mothers. Amazingly last winter was the most successful breeding season for grey seals in the history of this nature reserve. To me this remains almost incredible. Did the seals with some sense unknown to us mere humans somehow know to move their pups to the highest part of Blakeney’s dunes before the storm surge hit? Whatever the reason nearly all the pups survived.

As you will see in the Fusion show nature is resilient. If you visit the shingle ridge at Cley Marshes today you will see this process of recovery; yellow-horned poppies already colonising areas of raw shingle pushed inland by the surge. New life flowering in an evolving landscape. Come along to Fusion in the Forum. It’s free admission and open every day from Monday 1 September until Saturday 6 Saturday from 10am to 4pm and see for yourself the beauty and power of nature at these ever-changing but always wonderful nature reserves. See how Norfolk Wildlife Trust and National Trust continue to keep these places special for our wildlife and special for visitors to enjoy.

Rocking Time at West Runton Beach

Rachael Wright, Seasonal Education Officer

What a fantastic start to the season we are having! For our first rockpool rummage and rocks and relics sessions we spent a beautiful sunny and rather windy day at West Runton beach. Shoals flocked to the beach to learn about life under the waves and we had the pleasure of running a rockpool session for 162 people! It was great to see so many people exploring the rockpools that were full of life. 

Rockpooling at West Runton, photo by Matthew Roberts

We had some wonderful finds including a large spider crab which are rare to find in rockpools as they tend to favour deeper waters. Crabs shed their carapace in order to grow. One group were lucky enough to watch a crab moulting in their bucket. It’s great to see a natural process like this happen before your eyes and it’s something I have never seen before either. Other great finds included blennies, scorpion fish, shrimp, lots of crab, anemones, periwinkles and whelks. 

In the afternoon we ran a rocks and relics session, taking a walk through time and exploring the fantastic selection of fossils at West Runton. We had another great turn out with 113 people to guide along the beach it was quite a challenge but great to see so many people keen to  know more about Norfolk’s changing coastline. 

We started by exploring the ice age, and then went on to look for fossils in the ancient river bed. West Runton is particularly famous for the fossil of an ancient mammoth/ elephant that was found sticking out of the rocks about 20 years ago. We reconstructed this giant mammal using ourselves as part of the artwork to try and understand the scale of this huge animal. Walking back through time even further we investigated the chalk laying on the sand at West Runton beach. Both the children and adults had a great time hunting for paramoudras and belemnites along the beach. 

If you missed out this time, then don’t worry you can join us again on our next session on Tuesday 27 May. Why not visit the website for information on other events activities we will be running throughout the summer season.  Hope to see you at an event soon.