Completing my account of the WNAG visit to Pensthorpe a week ago with the trailer ride.
Welcome to the final post in my series (posts 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 can be viewed by clicking the appropriate number). about the West Norfolk Autism Group trip to Pensthorpe. This post deals with the trailer ride (we had two booked, and I was on the second at 12 noon).
THE JOURNEY
There are some parts of Pensthorpe that cannot be accessed on foot, and others that sufficiently far from the starting point that doing so would take a very long time. The vehicle that pulls the trailer is a Land Rover Defender. In the course of the journey one sees some of the farm area, both old and new growth woodland, lakes, ponds that are a remnant of the last ice age and nesting sites of one sort and another for birds and bats. We got a glimpse of the Aberdeen Angus cattle but not the longhorns that they also have. The route takes in parts of two former railway routes which crossed the land – one was part of a major railway company, the other a smaller local route, and both were killed by Beeching in the 1960s. We also saw a family of greylag geese, with six youngsters. On a day like we had the absence of shelter was never an issue, and being in such an open vehicle did make photography easier. If you do not do the trailer ride you will never have anything close to a complete picture of Pensthorpe.
PHOTOGRAPHS
Here are my photographs from the trailer ride…
A nesting box for barn owls.This is for terns.bat boxes – ensuring that the bats can always be away from the direction of the sun (all the species in this area are tiny, with the pipistrelle the most frequent visitor).The greylag goose family (four shots).
The penultimate post in my series about the West Norfolk Autism Group trip to Pensthorpe, featuring the cranes and flamingos.
Welcome to the penultimate post in my series about the West Norfolk Autism Group trip to Pensthorpe (posts 1, 2, 3 and 4 can be viewed by clicking the relevant number, and the final post, about the trailer ride, will appear tomorrow, one week after the trip took place).
FLAMINGOS AND CRANES
The Flamingo and Crane Enclosures are accessed in the same way when on the way round Pensthorpe. The path into the area that houses both enclosures arrives in between the two – flamingos one way, cranes the other. Although one cannot get close to the flamingos their enclosure is open, with nothing concealed. The cranes, of which Pensthorpe has four distinct species, are viewable only from a hide, which has four separate hatches through which one can look, one for each species. The cranes are one of many conservation projects being undertaken at Pensthorpe.
PHOTOGRAPHS
Here are the photographs I got of the cranes and flamingos:
Flamingo doing a cormorant impression – the feature image is a composite featuring this and the most impressive of the cranes.This shelduck was near the path linking the flamingo and crane areas.The East African Crowned Crane……and a close up of that ‘crown’.
Welcome to the fourth post in my series about the West Norfolk Autism Group trip to Pensthorpe Natural Park (see here, here and here). Today I look at the Waders Aviary.
THE WADERS AVIARY
The Waders Aviary is accessed by a door from the gift shop/ viewing gallery area, and is the only part of the site accessible via that door – it is entirely self contained, and one must therefore fully intend to visit it. It is extremely well worth visiting. There is a walkway along one side of the aviary which is the only part of the enclosure that is accessible to the public. To prepare for the main photo gallery here is the information about which birds can be seen here:
A look at the more artistic elements of Pensthorpe Natural Park.
Welcome to the third post in my mini-series about the West Norfolk Autism Group’s trip to Pensthorpe on Saturday (see here and here). Today I focus on one particular aspect of the site – the artistic element thereof.
ART AT PENSTHORPE
Art is clearly highly appreciated by the people who run Pensthorpe Natural Park, with a number of nature inspired sculptures dotted around the site, at least one very artistic gate (I did actually use it for its intended purpose, as well as photographing it) and a bridge inspired by a great artist of the past. I do not know if Claude Monet ever visited Norfolk (I suspect not) but he would certainly recognize the bridge modelled on his own at Giverny. The artistic element undoubtedly enhances the overall experience.
PHOTOGRAPHS
Here are my photographs of the artistic elements of Pensthorpe (those that I managed to capture anyway).
A look at Pensthorpe in general before I move on to the more specialized posts that will make up the rest of this series.
Welcome to the second post in my mini-series about the WNAG day out at Pensthorpe Natural Park on Saturday. In this post I cover the stuff that does not fit in any of the more specialized posts that will follow. Here is a map of the site:
EXPLORING THE SITE
My general explorations occurred in three phases: before my first visit to the flamingo and crane areas, between that and my first visit to the waders area and between the trailer ride and my second visits to those two areas. On the last occasion I saw some of the stretch of the Wensum which winds through Pensthorpe (incidentally ‘Wensum’ derives from an Anglo-Saxon word meaning ‘winding river’ and it certainly does follow a winding course – Pensthorpe to Norwich is 23 miles by road – and 30 by river). Unfortunately none of the really exotic stuff (otters and voles in one stretch, and the eponymous birds that give Kingfisher Reach its name, while it is too early in the year for dragonflies to be present) was in evidence. The main sights were a huge variety of water birds.
PHOTOGRAPHS
I start with a couple of standalone pictures to help you with identifying the birds I photographed.
Now for the full gallery…
A harvest mouse habitat – these are very tiny creatures and the glass makes photographing one an extra challenge……but I managed one usable picture of it.
Setting the scene for a mini-series about yesterday’s visit to Pensthorpe.
Yesterday was the West Norfolk Autism Group’s third annual outing to Pensthorpe Natural Park. This post will set the stage for a mini-series about the day.
THE PRELIMINARIES
Some of the group were making their own way to Pensthorpe, but there was also a coach laid on which was picking up and dropping back off at Gaywood. The departure time of the coach was set for 9:30AM, so I aimed to arrive at the pick up point at 9:15. I did exactly that, walking by way of the Gaywood river path, and arriving at the pick up point just as the coach was pulling in. We set off promptly, and the roads were clear. On arrival at Pensthorpe a couple of us were presented with trophies from the bowling event on April 7th.
My trophy for winning the adults section.The trophy in its new location, next to The Mallard.
PLANNING THE DAY
Only three parts of the day were fixed: I was booked on a trailer ride at noon, lunch was scheduled for 2PM, and the coach was making its return journey to Gaywood at 3:30PM. For the rest the day was what one chose to make of it. I will now introduce the various parts of my experience, on what was a perfect day for the event – warm and sunny but not absolutely roasting.
PENSTHORPE GENERAL
One starts by putting on a wristband that indicates that admission is paid for, and then proceeds through the gift shop. I opted to start with the exit at the far end of the viewing gallery, which takes one straight to the water fowl. There were many interesting species…
SCULPTURES/ ART
I will be producing a post about this aspect of Pensthorpe. Suffice it to say for the moment that there are a number of sculptures and other art pieces to be seen along the way. Here are a few images to whet your appetite…
I put this bridge among the art elements because it is inspired by Monet’s bridge at Giverny.
THE FLAMINGOS AND CRANES
My two visits to these birds (either side of the trailer ride) will get a full blog post. For the moment…
A flamingo doing a cormorant impression.Group shot of flamingosThe most remarkable of the four crane species at Pensthorpe, the East African Crowned Crane.
THE WADERS
The wading birds have their own special enclosure, with a netting roof over it. I visited it twice, as with the flamingos and cranes, and will be giving it a full blog post. For the moment…
THE TRAILER RIDE
This experience is not to be missed, and will get full blog post treatment. For the moment…
The trailer.Aberdeen Angus cattle grazing.The MaltingsThe structure in the middle of this lake is for migrating terns.bat boxes – all round the tree trunk so that the bats can always be away from direct sunshine during the day.A greylag goose family with six youngsters walking close to the trailer.
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