If you stop at the highest point of the road into Northward Hill rspb reserve and look northward on a clear day the towers of finance at Canary Wharf are clearly visible and then slightly beyond and to the left a little is the unmistakeable spike of the Shard. With binoculars it is then possible to see the top of the Gherkin and the Cheesegrater. With a scope the Post Office Tower can be spied and way over to the North West the just dicernable prong that is the Radio TV mast at Alexandra Palace near Haringey is mistily pointing skyward.
The working party yesterday was making slight alterations to the electric predator fence making it hopefully more problematic for the not so Fantastic Mr Fox to slip in through the wire like some sort of canine Catherine Zita Jones in Entrapment to reap havoc with the ground nesting waders and water birds. This is Ruby one of the residential volunteers enhancing the fence. Thanks to Dave Munns for the image.
The rspb Medway local group are having a guided wallk at the reserve on Sunday the 20th of March led by one of their committee members, it's free and potential new members will get a pair of complimentary tickets to allow them into one of the indoor meeting at Rainham.
Another fabulous view is from the Ernest View Point affording views across to the Thames and beyond into Essex, I stood there one day with a couple who'd not been to the reserve for a few years and we watched a huge red container shlp glide up the river, he said "You know I've never forgotten the sight of huge ships ploughing across the open fields". You know he was right for that was exactly what it looked like.
Last week I spoke about the fabulous sunrises for those enthusiastic enough to get out of bed to witness the spectacle. So here a little belatedly is Rob Budgens' fab foto taken fron Gordons' hide.
It is with sadness that I have to record it was that great champion of nature, Owen Sweeney's funeral on Wednesday here in Medway, Looking at the wicker casket, I thought how typical of the man even at the end. As the coffin slowly made its' way behind the curtain no sad song played, but the joyful uplifting song of Northward Hill nightingales came over the sound system, I looked around and amongst sad faces there were some smiles. I like to think Owen would have been very pleased.
As I drove off site today hoping to capture photos of the iconic buildings as mentioned at the beginning of the blog, a hundred or so Fieldfare and Redwing flew up out of the orchard. Which usually means 'watch out, watch out there's a raptor about! Sure enough slightly above them was a Sparrowhawk, wheeling on high.
Northward Hill, well worth a visit at any time of the year.