Lake Work

After lots of pressure from the Friends, we have had some good work done on the lake. Some vegetation cleared and channels cut to allow the flow of the beck into the lake. A lot of reeds were removed from the north end which has made it a lot clearer and flowing.
Here are some shots of the finished work and lets hope that the council and other agencies get together and finish this lake off .



What do you think of the work done ?

Celabration Event 2008

Saturday 13th September.

Fairy Dell Celebration Day Programme 
There will be lots of activities for children, including Drummer Clare, a magician – Noel Brooks , and a face painter.  Children
will also be able to join in making lots of crafts from a variety of
other organisations, enjoy party games, watch Punch and Judy etc.
 
The programme will include music from two Rye Hills School bands.  There
will be stands from many organisations – the RSPB, Wildflower Ark ,
Groundwork, Recycling, Climate Change, SureStart, the Library, Fire
Brigade, Middlesbrough Environment City and others.
 
One marquee will have the school art competition work displayed in it. 
St. Augustine ’s, Lingfield, Rose Wood and Sunnyside Primary Schools
have entered for the Fairy Dell Cup and it is being judged at the event.
 
Bring your dogs to the event!  The
‘Greyhounds Galore’ charity will be staging competitions for the
waggiest tale, the prettiest bitch and the most handsome dog, starting
at 2pm. Free dog chipping will be available from the Middlesbrough Dog
Warden Service and we hope to have displays from a dog agility team.                           
                                                                        
 
11.00                Rye Hills School Salsa Band
11.30                Rye Hills School ‘Screaming Jelly Babies’ Pop Group
 
11.30               Guided walk around Fairy Dell, meet at notice board
 
12.15                Rye Hills School Salsa Band
12.45                Rye Hills School ‘Screaming Jelly Babies’ Pop Group
 
 1.30                        Guided walk around Fairy Dell, meet at notice board
 
 1.30                         Rye Hills School Salsa Band
 
 2 00                        Greyhounds Galore Fun Dog Show
 
2.30                        Rye Hills School ‘Screaming Jelly Babies’ Pop Group

March 2008

Hello from Fairy Dell, it has been another long absence, with work commitments again taking up so much time.
Spring is upon us once again and all around the Dell new plants are springing up, Dogs Mercury are well on their way as usual and the SnowDrops and Primroses that were planted by the group and local schools are in bloom.

Walking along the Marton Beck on the other side of Gunnergate I found evidence of Deer using the area by the tracks left in the muddy path. I tracked where the single deer had walked along the path until they stopped and it must have headed off through the trees and bushes.

Deer Tracks along Marton West Beck

The Night Heron seems to have gone now as it hasn't been seen for some time at it's usual perch on the island in Gunnergate Lake.

This morning was a good day with lots of birds seen, including a pair of Bullfinches. The highlight of the morning must be the discovery of a female Sparrowhawk carrying nesting material to a half built nest in a crook of a tree. I spent sometime watching the nest from my position behind a bush and saw it fly back and attack a squirrel that ventured a little too close. The squirrel was darting round the trunk with the Sparrowhawk after it with talons out clearly showing it's beautiful wing markings.


Male Bullfinch, Fairy Dell



In the Dell park you might have seen some public art designed and displayed by Julia, one of the Friends of Fairy Dell.

The Bird hide is taking shape.

Pupils from the Kings Academy have been helping out with the carving on the Bird Hide's sleepers.












Birds that can be seen in the Dell have been carved in relief onto both sides of the sleepers. Here's an Owl and a Kingfisher.











Today a rare bird has been spotted around Gunnergate Lake. The bird is a Night Heron, a smaller cousin of the Grey Heron that we normally see down there. The bird has rings on it's legs so it might be that it is an escapee from someone's collection. Hopefully the rings will be identified and then we will know if it is a true wild bird or not. Whatever it's status it is still a great bird to see , last seen having a nap up a tree on the island on the lake.

Spring

A couple of weeks back Chiffchaffs had arrived, this week there was a lot of Blackcaps around the Dell. My highlight of the week was a Great Spotted Woodpecker, it was on the old decaying stump near the Frogspawn Bridge and I managed to get within feet of it as it chiselled out the wood looking for it's food, if only I had taken my camera that day !
The Heron seems to be spending a lot of time around the big lake, I've seen it every day that I have been down the Dell and managed to get a photograph of it when it was feeding just near the island. It didn't notice me hid in the bushes !!

If you have been around the lake in last couple of days you can't have missed the carving on the birdhide. I'll put some pictures up soon.

Building a Bird Screen

The task started with the digging of a two and a half foot deep trench, which didn't take that long really.

We managed to get about ten sleepers in and secure them into the ground. The outcome is a quite pleasing shallow arc.








Slots cut into the sleepers at different heights will give good views over the lake and the proposed feeding area.

The highlight of the days task was the tea making equiptment which suprised us in providing a good hot cuppa.
I really should have got a photograph of it, you set a small fire inside it and that heated the water that was in a jacket around it.










There still remains about five sleepers to fit and then the feeding area needs to be laid out.

Bird screen and Paths

It's been a while since I last updated the blog but hopefully I can find the time to do it again more frequently.

It's coming up to spring again and so another renewal at the Dell . More paths are being made to make walking much easier and a lot safer as anyone who has walked up the hill from the storm pool will know.

There is a big group task for this weekend, 3rd 4th March, with the construction of a screen so that visitors can view the birds that hopefully will be hanging around the new feeding area also to be constructed.

The sleepers have been donated by Teesside Cast Products of Corus and we picked them up and delivered them down the Dell today with the help of Middlesbrough Council.

If anyone is feeling like a bit of hard work, then come down and help out this weekend.