Thorpeness

Can you imagine inheriting an old fishing hamlet, and then transforming it into a picturesque seaside village, complete with golf club and boating lake?

Well that's what happened in the early 1900's when the Scottish playwright and barrister Glencairn Stuart Ogilvie decided to build a seaside village at Thorpe on the Suffolk coast.

The hamlet was inherited, along with the family estate of Sizewell, when Ogilvie's mother passed away in 1908.

Ogilvie, being a visionary and a romanticist, wanted to create a seaside retreat in the Jacobean and Tudor styles. He was inspired by the works of J. M. Barrie, the Scottish novelist better known for creating Peter Pan.

Work began in 1910, when open fields were flooded to create a 65 acre artificial lake called 'The Meare'.


Rowing boats on The Meare

Rowing boats, canoes, and dinghies can be hired to explore the many islands on the lake, which are based around the Wendy and Peter Pan themes.


Boats are named after childrens fictional characters

Buildings were then constructed around the lake, many of which are of a mock Tudor style.


Ogilvie Hall


House on the beach-front


The Dunes

Having said that, these colourful buildings overlooking the shingle beach don't really fit into any category.


Brightly coloured beach-front houses

The Dolphin Inn can be found in the centre of the village. It's an ideal location to visit at the start of your trip, as it offers good food and refreshments, and provides a bicycle hire service.


The Dolphin Inn

The House in the Clouds is one of the more unusual and extraordinary sights. It was originally constructed in 1923 as a water tower, but was later imaginatively disguised as a house.


The House in the Clouds

From a distance, it appears as though there's a cottage lodged high in the trees.


The House in the Clouds as seen from The Meare

The village is also home to a working post mill that was originally built in 1824, and was last used to pump water into the tank within the House in the Clouds.



The mill was designed so that the upper structure could rotate around a central post, enabling it to face into the wind at all times.


Post Mill interior

The beach itself is well worth a visit too. Overlooking the North Sea, the shingle beach offers spectacular views.


Looking North up the beach

It's also a popular location for watersports enthusiasts such as the Kitesurfer below.


Kitesurfing

Thorpeness is an excellent place to visit for young and old alike. If you visit in August, there's a regatta held on the Meare, followed by a huge firework display.

There are plenty of things to see and do, and lots of opportunities to explore, but as the village wasn't really built with cars in mind, I would recommend hiring or bringing along a bicycle.

Thorpeness is about 4km North of Aldeburgh, map reference TM470590

Dunwich

I visited the coastal town of Dunwich today. I arrived at around twelve thirty, and despite the inclement weather, the car park and cafe were very busy.

I'd heard that the cafe served excellent fish and chips, so I thought I'd give it a try. I ordered a plate of haddock and chips, and sat outside to relax for a while. I expected a long wait, but I was pleasantly suprised when one of the friendly staff brought my order out within five minutes.

The haddock was absolutely delicious; about twelve inches long and with just the right amount of batter. It was accompanied by a fairly large portion of chips that were quite thick and not too crunchy, but at just over £7 it wasn't cheap.

Despite the cost, I'd still give it 10 out of 10, and I'll certainly be coming back again.

Before setting off this morning, I was in a dilemma over whether to bring the binoculars or the camera (it's difficult carrying them together). I wanted to take some photo's for this article, but after reading about a Suffolk Wildlife Trust reserve called Dingle Marshes I decided to take the binoculars instead.

I wasn't disappointed, as I got to see some amazing sights, but more on that later.

I decided to start the afternoon off by walking south along the beach towards the Sizewell nuclear power stations. I could see the Sizewell B reactor in the distance, but the imposing white dome of its pressurised water reactor looked a little out of place. Sizewell A, which was designed around the now obsolete Magnox reactor, is currently being decommissioned.

While walking along the shore (which is a mixture of shingle and sand), I immediately became aware of the devastating effects of erosion on the cliffs. As is often a familiar sight on East Anglian coastlines, large amounts of clay, soil, and rock, have been sheared away from the cliff face, exposing the Tertiary and Pleistocene clays that it's composed of.

As a result of this, large amounts of land and buildings, have been lost to the sea since the beginning of the 13th century. It's hard to believe, but the buildings that currently sit on these cliffs were once a mile inland!

The Sand martins that inhabit this stretch of cliff didn't seem to be deterred by the erosion. I managed to observe a few chicks peering out from within their nests.

After walking for about four miles, I decided to take a rest before turning back. I found a comfortable spot among the shingle and rested my weary feet. Looking out to sea, I spotted a large Cormorant in the distance. It flew low over the waves before landing clumsily in the water. I watched it for a few minutes and then it dived and I lost sight of it.

As I headed north up the beach, I spotted a pair of Common tern. They were flying headlong into the wind, which was so strong that it caused them to slow down almost to a stall. I watched as they struggled along, occasionally swooping to take some prey off the surface. They flew in this manner for a few hundred metres, before turning around and letting the wind blow them back again to their starting point.

By the time I'd reached the car park, I'd walked a total of 8 miles and I could certainly feel it. The shingle had taken its toll on my legs, which were beginning to ache, so I decided to ease off the pace a little.

I'd originally wanted to walk from Dunwich to Southwold, but that would have meant crossing the River Blyth. So instead, I settled on reaching the mouth of the estuary just beyond Walberswick (which is about 3 miles from the car park).

I took advantage of the retreating tide and walked upon the firm, wet sand, which was a real pleasure compared with the shingle.

I came across a large number of stranded jellyfish, the majority of which were Common jellyfish (Aurelia aurita). I also spotted a few Compass jellyfish (Chrysaora hysoscella).

As I approached the stretch of beach adjacent to Dingle Marshes I was surprised to see a Ringed plover less than 20 feet away! Hoping not to scare it, I carefully reached for my binoculars. Standing as still as possible, I focussed on the bird and was instantly taken aback by the clarity, and level of detail which I was seeing. I was fortunate to observe it for almost five minutes before it flew off.

I left the sandy shoreline and cautiously ascended the steep, shingle bank, leading up to Dingle Marshes. When I reached the top, I was pleased to see a wide variety of different species. I saw Little egret, Grey heron, Little tern, Herring gull, Black-headed gull, Ringed plover, Redshank, Cormorant, Shelduck, Greylag goose, and Mute swan. The reserve is also home to Bittern and Avocet, but I didn't see any on this visit.

After spending some time observing the wildlife, I resumed my walk to the mouth of the River Blyth.

This last stretch of beach appeared to be busier than the section near the car park. There were people walking dogs, couples walking hand in hand, families with children, and people flying power kites.

I quickly reached my goal, and took a well deserved rest on one of the concrete groynes at the rivers mouth. I spent the next 15 minutes relaxing and taking in the stunning scenery. The retreating tide had left some rock pools behind, so I had a quick look to see what I could find before setting off on the return journey.

It was after six o'clock when I finally arrived at the car park. I'd walked 16 miles in about five hours. I was hot, sweating, and I had a bright red face!

I thoroughly enjoyed myself though. I saw lots of interesting wildlife and the exercise will have done me good.

Whether you're a birder, a walker, into extreme sports, or just fancy a stroll by the sea, I'm sure Dunwich will have something to offer you.

Please visit the following links for further information:

A history of Dunwich
The Geology of Dunwich
Dunwich All Saints
Sizewell A RIP
Jellyfish Page
Dunwich - Google Maps

Butterflies

Ever since I was a young boy, I've enjoyed watching butterflies. Whether lazily flitting along the bank of a river, or perched warily among flowers in a garden, they've always aroused my curiousity.

I often marvelled at their acrobatic courtship displays and their agility, and I'm still amazed that such gaily coloured insects have managed to evolve without being driven to extinction by birds and other predators.

After a cold and dark winter, I'm at my happiest when I see the first butterfly of the year, because I know that Spring is finally here.

I hope that after reading this article you will find the world of butterflies as interesting as I do. If you want to get involved with butterfly conservation and monitoring, or you'd simply like to learn more, I've included some useful links at the end of the article for you to visit.

I intend to record the various species of butterfly observed throughout the year in the county of Suffolk. Due to the dynamic nature of the subject, I will update this article with photographs of new species when they are seen.

Butterflies are Insects belonging to the order Lepidoptera, which basically means "Scale Wing". As is common with all lepidoptera, they have a four stage life-cycle:

• egg
• larva/caterpillar
• pupa/chrysalis
• imago/adult

The egg is usually laid on or near a host-plant that will later become the caterpillars food. The egg is held in place by a fast drying glue which prevents it from being separated from the plant.

Larvae, or caterpillars, are the second stage in a butterflies life-cycle and are frequently observed amongst the host-plants. They consume an enormous amount of plant material and spend the majority of their time searching for food. During this period, the caterpillar matures through a series of stages, called instars. At the end of each instar, the skin is moulted and promptly replaced by a new one.

When the larva is fully grown, it transforms into a pupa by anchoring itself to a suitable surface and moulting its skin for the last time.

The mature, adult insect, is known as the imago. It has the following characteristics:


A - Forewing B - Antenna C - Compound eye D - Proboscis
E - Thorax F - Leg G- Abdomen H - Hindwing I - Tail
(image courtesy of Wikipedia)

At this point, I'll introduce some of the species that I've observed throughout the year in Suffolk.


Brimstone - Gonepteryx rhamni

The Brimstone is often seen from March to late October. The male is yellow, the female is pale green or delicate yellow, it usually rests with its wings together. This specimen was photographed feeding on a Buddleia bush in my garden. Note the perfectly camouflaged undersides which mimic a leaf.


Comma - Polygonia c-album

The Comma can be seen from April to November. It hibernates during the winter and emerges in the spring. It has a white mark on its underwing that resembles a comma.


Comma showing its characteristic "comma shaped" white mark


Peacock - Inachis io

The Peacock gets its name from the large, colourful spots on its wings, that resemble the markings on a peacocks tail. They can be seen from March to August, and hibernate in trees during the winter. The specimen in this photograph can be clearly seen feeding on the Buddleia.


Note the Peacocks camouflage, which looks remarkably like wood bark


Front view of a Peacock showing the downy hair on its thorax and abdomen


Small Tortoiseshell - Aglais urticae

The Small Tortoiseshell can be seen from March to late October. It drinks nectar from a wide variety of flowers, but Buddleia seems to be its favourite.


Small Tortoiseshell feeding, note the extended proboscis


Small White - Pieris rapae

The Small White (also known as a Cabbage White), is usually seen between April and October. Unfortunately, it is disliked by most of the gardening and farming community because of its tendancy to lay eggs on members of the cabbage family.


Speckled Wood - Pararge aegeria

The Speckled Wood can often be seen from February to October. This species inhabits woodlands and hedgerows, and feed on Aphid honey-dew rather than nectar.


Red Admiral - Vanessa atalanta

The Red Admiral can be seen between March and October. This species migrates in winter and returns in early spring.



The specimen above, appears to have the tip of its left forewing missing. Remarkably, it could still fly without any problems.


Side view of a Red Admiral showing its bark-like camouflage


Small Skipper - Thymelicus sylvestris

The Small Skipper can be found at the edge of woodland, meadows and grasslands, from May to July. It usually rests with its forewings angled slightly above its hindwings.


Meadow Brown - Maniola jurtina

The Meadow Brown is very common throughout Britain and Ireland. It can be found in a wide range of habitats, between the months of May and September.

Please click on any of the following links for further information:

UK Butterflies
Butterfly Conservation
Suffolk Butterflies
UK Butterfly Monitoring Scheme
Learn about Butterflies
Butterflies and Moths
UK Lepidopterists - Yahoo Group
Anglian Lepidopterist Supplies

Barton Mills Scarecrow Festival

This years theme for the 7th Barton Mills Scarecrow Festival was 'Recycling'.



For readers unfamiliar with this annual event I highly recommend paying a visit the next time you're in the area.



Weather permitting, there's usually a huge turnout with numbers estimated to be in the ten thousands.



In 1999 Barton Mills was featured in the Guinness Book of Records for having the most scarecrows ever built at any one time!



Almost all the village residents took part, creating scarecrows out of various household objects.



Visitors to this years festival were entertained with a magnificent performance by the Bunbury Players accompanied by the K.A.T.S School of Dancing.



In addition to this, there were various stalls run by charities and local groups, as well as barbeques, a bar, and plenty of ice cream vans.



There were various interpretations of the recycling theme. From popular television characters such as Dr. Who and Postman Pat, to persuasive slogans extolling the many virtues of recycling.



I think we would all agree that recycling has been in the media a lot lately, but it's only with local events like this that we can really get the message across to more people.



New to this years festival was the 'Turn Off' prize awarded to the best scarecrow made out of recycled materials. The competition was judged by the Channel 4 news presenter Alex Thomson.



For those visitors with an interest in gardening there were around 20 gardens open to the public.



As this is a charity event, any money collected will benefit the Barton Mills Parish Church Preservation Trust, who's aim is to raise enough funding to maintain the 900 year old St Mary's Church.



In St Mary's church there was a flower festival with a difference..........all the flowers were made out of recycled or left-over materials!



On Sunday, there was a performance by the Green Dragon Morris Dancers.



On Saturday evening until 11pm there was a family music night with bar, barbeque, and bring your own food.



There were also some interesting displays by the Suffolk County Council recycling team, and the R.S.P.B staff from Lakenheath Fen.



A great place to spend a lazy hour or so would be 'The Manor' where you can enjoy a delicious cream tea while relaxing in their magnificent gardens. On the island opposite the tea lawn you'll find scenes from the popular animated movie 'Ice Age'.















I think this picture says it all.............