Roeburn River

View south from public footbridge of Roeburn

 

This account is interesting as it includes mink as wildlife---now writers probably would mention that they are a menace to wildlife. 

Ecology : Wray, Roeburndale 1986

 Wray has temperate weather.
 But sometimes in winter, families on the
 fells are snowed in for days, and most
 of the year there is plenty of rain.  
 This unspoilt area of rolling hills,  
 nurtured by the Rivers Hindburn and   
 Roeburn, is a haven for wildlife.     
 There are roe deer, hares, rabbits,   
 hedgehogs, moles and shrews; rats and 
 mice in the barns; grey squirrels in  
 abundance among the deciduous woods   
 and red squirrels are sometimes seen; 
 foxes are prolific and considered a   
 "pest" by gamekeepers; there are        
 weasels, stoats, mink, some badgers,  
 and the occasional otter. Among the   
 many species of birds, there are      
 owls, dippers, grouse, pheasant.

This is the remains of the quarry cutting. It's not that long ago because there are photos of the men that worked there (see below) . Also Ruth Whittam who lives in Wray village (she is now over 100 years old) remembers taking "a piece"  (sandwich) to her uncle who worked there.

Here is an old photo with the cutting in the background showing the railway used to transport the stone.(courtesy of David Kenyon "Wray Remembered").

This (below) could be in the Mid West, U.S.A, but it is a 10 minute walk from Roeburnscar. Today the quarry is hidden in thick woodland but the remnants can still be seen.

From Backsbottom Farm

Forest Garden

The Forest Garden on the farm is looked after by  our Manchester friends who brave the elements camping in either caravans or sheds for their weekend visits,  of which one has just been.

The Forest Gardeners

The hard work this last weekend included hedge laying and controlling brambles.
Check out Mike's Youtube clip on the above link--thank you Mike.

Autumn is the time for admiring all the wonderful fungi in the woods.

Roeburndale was a favourite place of Pat Livermore's to visit . She was a fungi expert and listed many species, some rare, in these woods.(see some of Pat's list on our thinkfree link here).
Pat and her husband were seen often hunting for microscopic fungi with tiny hand held lenses and collating them for posterity. I have a particular fondness for all things neglected in the natural world and that includes micro organisms that create the beautiful macro environment of woods. Here is another photo showing the texture and intricacy of our mosses, fungi and woods.

After a wet summer Rod managed to get the hay in. Because the fields are at the bottom of the valley , access was too difficult  with large bailer vehicles so after cutting and turning, he collected the hay by hand and loaded onto a trailer. Now, with the new barn on the old farmhouse site he can store the hay there rather than the laborious transporting of heavy bales all the way up to the top farm buildings.                                                 

Here is a photo of our horse Hawthorn taking a much earned rest away from the flies.

Backsbottom Farm

This organic farm has ancient woodlands,upland fells and hay meadows. The Roeburn running through it creates a wonderful variety of river landscapes.