{"id":6596,"date":"2018-01-19T15:17:03","date_gmt":"2018-01-19T15:17:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/martinblack.com\/?p=6596"},"modified":"2018-01-19T16:35:30","modified_gmt":"2018-01-19T16:35:30","slug":"winter-fens-on-the-old-bedford-river","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/2018\/01\/winter-fens-on-the-old-bedford-river\/","title":{"rendered":"Fen winter on the Old Bedford"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>One cold January lunchtime the dog and I catch a ride to the fen village of Mepal, our plan is to walk six or seven miles or so up the <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Old_Bedford_River\">Old Bedford river<\/a>.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"mt-insert\"><br \/>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-6617 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/martinblack.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/pano-start.jpg\" alt=\"big skies\" width=\"1000\" height=\"290\" srcset=\"https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/pano-start.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/pano-start-300x87.jpg 300w, https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/pano-start-768x223.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" \/><br \/>\n<\/figure>\n<p>It&#8217;s a windy, bright day, some clouds on the horizon, the sun low in the winter sky spreading some cheer, if not warmth, on the flat, flat fen.<\/p>\n<p>The fields to the right of the Old Bedford are flooded, and give the impression, at times, of an inland sea. With the force of the wind, the waves are choppy, dark and slightly threatening.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wc-gallery\"><div id='gallery-1' data-gutter-width='5' data-columns='2' class='gallery wc-gallery-captions-onhover gallery-link-none gallery-masonry galleryid-6596 gallery-columns-2 gallery-size-full wc-gallery-bottomspace-default wc-gallery-clear'><div class='gallery-item gallery-item-position-1 gallery-item-attachment-6618'>\n\t\t\t\t<div class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t\t<img width=\"450\" height=\"337\" src=\"https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/inland1.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"Floodlands\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/inland1.jpg 450w, https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/inland1-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 450px) 100vw, 450px\" \/>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div><\/div><div class='gallery-item gallery-item-position-2 gallery-item-attachment-6619'>\n\t\t\t\t<div class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t\t<img width=\"450\" height=\"338\" src=\"https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/inland2.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"Floodlands\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/inland2.jpg 450w, https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/inland2-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 450px) 100vw, 450px\" \/>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>We have the riverbank to ourselves and, other than a solitary bird spotter, meet not another person, this is the glory of the fens at winter.<\/p>\n<p>I release the dog from his lead and watch him run, run, run with gleeful abandon; chasing down imaginary rabbits and sniffing around molehills.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-6620 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/martinblack.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/smithy-bank.jpg\" alt=\"The dog on the bank\" width=\"961\" height=\"721\" srcset=\"https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/smithy-bank.jpg 961w, https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/smithy-bank-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/smithy-bank-768x576.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 961px) 100vw, 961px\" \/><\/p>\n<div class=\"wc-gallery\"><div id='gallery-2' data-gutter-width='5' data-columns='2' class='gallery wc-gallery-captions-onhover gallery-link-none gallery-masonry galleryid-6596 gallery-columns-2 gallery-size-full wc-gallery-bottomspace-default wc-gallery-clear'><div class='gallery-item gallery-item-position-1 gallery-item-attachment-6622'>\n\t\t\t\t<div class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t\t<img width=\"450\" height=\"337\" src=\"https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/inland-3.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"Fences\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/inland-3.jpg 450w, https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/inland-3-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 450px) 100vw, 450px\" \/>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div><\/div><div class='gallery-item gallery-item-position-2 gallery-item-attachment-6627'>\n\t\t\t\t<div class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t\t<img width=\"450\" height=\"337\" src=\"https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/inland4.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"Trees\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/inland4.jpg 450w, https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/inland4-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 450px) 100vw, 450px\" \/>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>It&#8217;s the birds though that claim my attention, Oh, those birds. Birds, birds everywhere.<\/p>\n<p>Huge rook families roost on naked, black trees. Watchful, journeying from one branch to another.<\/p>\n<p>Numberless small birds, some on the water, others darting past us, up and over the bank.<\/p>\n<p>A hawk, circling the fields, hungry for a mouse.<\/p>\n<p>But here, along the Old Bedford, the swans steal the show. Escaping harsh Icelandic and Siberian winters, more than 8,000 Bewick and Whooper swans over-winter on these flooded fields.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-6629 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/martinblack.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/swans-formation-bank-horiz.jpg\" alt=\"Swan squadron\" width=\"961\" height=\"383\" srcset=\"https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/swans-formation-bank-horiz.jpg 961w, https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/swans-formation-bank-horiz-300x120.jpg 300w, https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/swans-formation-bank-horiz-768x306.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 961px) 100vw, 961px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>They chatter to each other as they bob up and down on the river, as they fly over the bank, as they flock together, making a glorious cacophony.<\/p>\n<!--[if lt IE 9]><script>document.createElement('audio');<\/script><![endif]-->\n<audio class=\"wp-audio-shortcode\" id=\"audio-6596-1\" preload=\"none\" style=\"width: 100%;\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"audio\/mpeg\" src=\"http:\/\/martinblack.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/Swans-2.m4a?_=1\" \/><a href=\"http:\/\/martinblack.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/Swans-2.m4a\">http:\/\/martinblack.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/Swans-2.m4a<\/a><\/audio>\n<p>Squadrons of swans flying in formation appear out of nowhere, or rise up from the river in groups. They make their way to a black fen field and feast on sugar beet tops left over from last year&#8217;s harvest.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"mt-insert\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-6597 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/martinblack.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/flying-swans.jpg\" alt=\"Swans and sunset\" width=\"1000\" height=\"647\" srcset=\"https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/flying-swans.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/flying-swans-300x194.jpg 300w, https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/flying-swans-768x497.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><\/figure>\n<p>As we enter the late afternoon, the sun drops beneath the horizon and the sky is awash with reds, purples and pinks.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"mt-insert\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-6643\" src=\"http:\/\/martinblack.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/wash.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1027\" height=\"521\" srcset=\"https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/wash.jpg 1027w, https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/wash-300x152.jpg 300w, https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/wash-768x390.jpg 768w, https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/wash-1024x519.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1027px) 100vw, 1027px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><\/figure>\n<p>The temperature drops a notch or two, the wind picks up, the light is fading. Eventually we leave the riverbank and head off across muddy fields to the Rose and Crown in the village of Manea.<\/p>\n<p>The pub is warm and welcoming, the landlady gives the dog a bowl of water and a couple of biscuits while I sup on a pint and watch the football.<\/p>\n<p>Sated and rested, we walk a mile up to the lonely train station and catch the train back home to Ely.<\/p>\n<h2>Extra!<\/h2>\n<p>Here&#8217;s an aerial photo of the flooded fields (borrowed from the excellent <a href=\"http:\/\/www.ousewashes.info\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Ouse Washes website<\/a>)<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-6607 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/martinblack.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/flooded-washes.jpg\" alt=\"flooded washes\" width=\"800\" height=\"517\" srcset=\"https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/flooded-washes.jpg 800w, https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/flooded-washes-300x194.jpg 300w, https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/flooded-washes-768x496.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A brisk walk with the dog and many birds<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6641,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[12],"tags":[162,35,43,59,50],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6596"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6596"}],"version-history":[{"count":23,"href":"https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6596\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6644,"href":"https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6596\/revisions\/6644"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6641"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6596"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6596"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/martinblack.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6596"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}