St Cuthbert's Way Part I

When something is on your doorstep, it's easy to overlook. Saint Cuthbert's Way starts at Melrose and ends just down the coast at Holy Island. I've been meaning to walk it for more than ten years but kept postponing it for journeys further afield. Initially, it was to be a continuous walk of the sixty miles from start to finish, b-and-b-ing or hosteling en route but now I'm content to do it in sections even if it means somewhat circuitous bus journeys before and after each section.

Melrose Abbey

The first leg is from Melrose Abbey up the fairly steep and, after our recent weather, very muddy path to the saddle between the East and Middle Eildon hills. The cold northerly wind was still blowing but at least it was behind me. Once over the hump and into the lea of the big hills, the going was easier and the wind chill factor considerably less.

Dark Ruberslaw ( Blog 06/04/2015)

Past the Siller Stane at the foot of the East Eildon then through the woods towards Bowden. The distinctive call of the cuckoo, a herald of summer, carried through the trees from the slopes of Mid Eildon. belying the cold breeze.

Bowden is an attractive village with a restored pant well at its centre.

 A pant is a covered public well, once a widespread feature of towns but now relatively uncommon. A short deviation from the Way took me to Bowden Kirk once part Kelso Abbey. There is a memorial to a notable Bowden man, Sir Lauder Brunton who pioneered the use of amyl nitrate as a vasodilator in angina and digitalis in cardiac failure.

The path got muddier as I followed the banks of the Bowden burn into Newtown St Boswells – a town that was “new” in the 1600's. The time scales in this part of the world are very long.

The path was fringed with spring flowers – lady's smock, viper bugloss, primroses and dog violets.

A diversion across the Tweed takes you to the secluded Dryburgh Abbey, a foundation by Praemonstratensians or White Canons in 1130. Sir Walter Scott is buried here.

Dryburgh Abbey

 Lore has it that his horse drawing his funeral bier stopped at his favourite view en route to his burial (Blog 07/05/2015) 

The Way continued through a small glen to the banks of the Tweed and followed the river to St Boswells.   A deal of splashing in some overhanging undergrowth made me think of the otters that are regularly seen on the Tweed but it turned out to be mallards involved in some anatine dispute.

I did see a pair of goosanders as well as the mute swans and the mallards

Goosander

St Boswells has a great cafe cum bookshop... The Main Street Trading Company... a relaxing place to wait for the bus home.

www.mainstreetbooks.co.uk 

 The Eildons above the Tweed at St Boswells

That ruddy duck!

Sir Walter Scott's favourite view on the way to the Moss

As we approach the anniversary of V-E Day, it is as well to remember the huge contribution made by the American G I's in the eventual victory. Better dressed, better paid and more interesting to the local lassies, they were often characterised as “over-paid, over-sexed and over here” by their war weary British counterparts. After the celebrations, “Yanks” returned home but another group of American natives arrived from across the pond.

The ruddy duck arrived.

The invasion began in 1948 when the famed conservationist Sir Peter Scott’s love for ducks led him to import three pairs of the colourful US birds to his Slimbridge reserve in Gloucestershire but their escape and subsequent flourishing in the British countryside caused unforeseen problems.

The problem is that the “sexy” male ruddy ducks (Oxyura jamaicensis) are preferred by female white-headed ducks (Oxyura leucocephala) found in Europe, mainly in Spain. The resulting hybrid offspring threatened the survival of the white-headed duck, which was already struggling with habitat loss due to development. Ruddy duck males are particularly aggressive when it comes to breeding and court females more vigorously. This makes them more attractive to female white-headed ducks.

Again, the local lassies showed more interest in their American suitors! 

The UK ruddy ducks also spread their wings across Europe, into France, Belgium, the Netherlands and into Spain. The discovery of hybrids in the latter country in the 1990s showed the ducks had grown into a continent-wide threat and that sealed their fate. A cull was demanded and undertaken at vast cost making a dead ruddy duck the most expensive game bird ever. Certainly, the numbers of ducks was reduced considerably but quite a few still survive and their hybrid offspring must have bred several times by now.

Bemersyde Moss

Bemersyde Moss, an SWT reserve, holds the dubious distinction of being the first place in Scotland where the ruddy duck bred. None breed there now but the shallow “kettle-hole” loch is home to little grebes, mute swans, mallards and other wild fowl, reed buntings, and otters.

Little grebe

For decades, perhaps even centuries, it was the breeding site for thousands of Black-Headed Gulls, up to 14,000 – yes, fourteen thousand- pairs were recorded at one time.

Here, the Black-headed Gull finds a congenial breeding place, and on approaching the loch during the nesting season it may be seen on the wing in immense numbers wheeling round and round in circles over the swamp, while little can be heard but its incessant cackling screams The nests, which are placed amongst the rough herbage of the loch, are so numerous that it is said that upon one occasion as many as sixty dozen of eggs were taken in a night by people from the neighbouring farms, who sold them to the district carrier for 4d. per dozen.

(The Birds of Berwickshire - Muirhead 1895)

Suddenly, in the early years of this twenty-first century, they vanished. No reason was ever found. Some have now returned to breed but in greatly reduced numbers.

The pickie-ma' as it is still sometimes called, is not a true sea-bird and isn't even black headed, more of a chocolate brown colour and is as common as crows but thousands of them at one time in one place must have been a special sight. Maybe they will come again but not the ruddy duck.

 A companion in the hide !

One swallow doesn't make a summer

The swallows haven't returned yet. They are late. They usually arrive at the end of April – the 24^th or 25^th – but, so far, only one or two have I seen. Presumably, it is the strong northerly winds that are delaying their arrival but it gives a feeling of unease not to see them swooping in.  It must be the same winds that are keeping the bees from their visits to the flowering currant bushes now in full bloom and usually humming with nectar seekers.  Hopefully, it is only a lull before summer really arrives. The celandine called after the swallow – chelidonia – and the wood anemone, the gift from the wind god Anemos, are carpeting the woodland floors but no swallows yet.

A visit to Martin Mere wetland centre was great for spotting duck, geese and water birds generally. 

http://www.wwt.org.uk/wetland-centres/martin-mere/wildlife/nature-reserve/ 

A survey in 2002 recorded well over 2,000 different species of birds, mammals, insects, fish, amphibians, reptiles and mini-beasts living in and around the mere which gives the site its name. In addition, the site is a haven for many traditional Lancashire plants, such as the endangered whorled caraway, golden dock, tubular water dropwort, early marsh orchids, the large-flowered hemp nettle and purple ramping fumitory.

 Once the largest body of fresh water in England before it was drained, the lake and surrounding marshland was home to a huge number of birds and animals.

Tufted duck

Shelduck

Garganey

Goldeneye

Now, parts have been returned to the original state to provide a reserve for migratory geese, ducks and waders as well as resident species. A well placed system of hides and walkways allows access to the reserve without disturbance.

In addition, there is a captive breeding programme for the most endangered species form all over the world. The nene or Hawaiian goose, the state bird of the islands was almost extinct on its native home – only 30 remained in 1952 - but from Martin Mere alone 200 have been returned to the wild.

The chance to see some raptors such as hen harrier or hobby was eagerly anticipated but it was too late in the day to be successful and breeding had begun so the chances sighting were fewer.

Still a great day out as someone once said!