14 September 2012

Out and about in the fens

Hello!

Had a lovely day out with the sketchbook yesterday, arranged by local art group FenVAC, so thanks to them! We met at Woodwalton Fen, part of the Great Fen project which will see a large area of agricultural land returned to its original wetland state.

 This is Gordon's Mere, one of the several small areas of open water amongst the reedbeds.

 Here's a footpath through the reeds.

And this is the bungalow on stilts (the fens are very low-lying so stilts are definitely required!) built by the reserve's originator, Charles Rothschild (of the banking family). The stilts have high water lines drawn onto them so you can see how deep the flooding was in particularly bad years!

3 comments:

  1. Looks like a really nice place to visit and sketch. Your drawings are lovely. The bungalow is interesting and I wonder if it is high enough these days going on the flooding that has gone on in recent years!...must make a mental note to visit if I'm ever that way.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ann, the latest (and highest) high water mark was 1998, so if things carry on like this the stilts may not be high enough! There's another interesting line drawn on one of the stilts, which shows the level of the ground in 1910. The underlying peat has dried out shrunk so much (following the ongoing draining of the fens) that this mark is quite a way above the current ground level!

      Delete
  2. These paintings look very nice. I am also very much fond of photography and painting. I have many beautiful pictures in Picture Frames at my home. Thanks fro sharing your experiences with us.

    ReplyDelete

Related Posts with Thumbnails