Inert build a tank assault course, perhaps. 20th April 2019

Finally! Wednesday was nice and sunny. I took an extended walk, starting at the MGLG car park; wandering down to the Blackwater; turning right and hoofing it along Manor farm, past the Bailey bridge and sewage works; across to the Longwater road entrance and back again.

In the near future, new footpaths and bridle paths should allow a circular journey, allowing one to walk along the north edge of Manor farm back to the MGLG car park.  That in itself will be better than the Moor Green Lakes reserve, where there is no footpath along its northern edge.

Much was happening on my little stomp.  Our pump was not pumping. I wonder if it has run out of diesel? Subsequently, lake levels in Cormorant lake and Finch pond were on the high side. Manor lake, however, was on the low side - exposing the mud flats on Manor lake north. These were promptly taken over by gull type things, Lapwings, etc. Mudflats are desperately popular with all sorts of birds. The ones on the west of Cormorant lake are particularly popular.

Workmen were installing more of the snazzy sides to the Bailey bridge. I wonder if insufficient were ordered first time round or perhaps the delivery was short? In any case not only were the yellow sides being welded into place, the paintwork was being touched up. Now that is attention to detail.

Seems odd to be installing these bridge sides now - assuming they are the final design for the bridge once restoration is complete. They are subject to possible damage as various heavy plant trundle across the bridge.

Moving on swiftly from that contentious statement. I hopped over the gate on the Longwater road to take a good look at what was happening with all the piles of soil I could see from said road.  NOTE: normally I wouldn't do this on a week day, due to the heavy plant trundling around the site. However, this particular morning it was obvious there would be no lorries, diggers or bulldozers on Manor farm; partly due to the two transits sat on the Bailey bridge.

Inert have been exceedingly busy gouging out deep trenches and building heaps of soil around the Longwater road entrance. The whole thing reminded me of a tank assault course; heighten by the caterpillar tracks along the sides and top of one of the spoil heaps. I know travellers are a pest, but these 'defences' are on a truly heroic scale...or are they?

There used to be a large slab of concrete a few yards in from the Longwater road entrance.  I often puzzled over it, as well as taking a short respite from all the mud by walking over it. I could never work out what it was, why it was there and, more importantly, why it hadn't been dug up. Perhaps the mighty trench and considerable quantity of earth movement are a clue. Was it, we wonder, not merely a slab of concrete but, instead, some sort of large storage structure?

Chandlers farm was surprisingly quiet.  There was one bulldozer merrily trundling around the north west edge of this site, but compared to previous weeks, all was deserted.  This is not to say that a mighty amount hadn't occurred earlier in the week or that activity picked up after I had returned home. Then there is the question of Easter - perhaps the workers had taken a well earned rest.

More will be revealed next week; perhaps.

I know there are some that visit my blog for updates on wildlife. Well, my Wednesday stomp proved particularly fruitful for me. I like the challenge of BIF (Bird In Flight) photography, and there were a lot of birds flying around. There were also a myriad of other birds, most I could not recognise, regardless of a fleeting glimpse or from their bird song. However, seasoned birders would probably get quite excited by the rich diversity of bird life on and around Manor farm.

There appeared far more Skylark around this year then in previous years.  The air was full of their song. Which is good, considering their endangered state in this country. Lapwings were having a good territorial fight - I think there is a nesting pair on the north part of Cormorant lake, up by the grasslands.

Oyster catchers are nesting on Plover island on the Moor Green Lakes reserve - all our hard work on winter mornings, clearing the islands and shore line, has paid off.