I am on my bike cycling to Duncliffe woods, the sky is a changeable hue of black and blue and I am bracing myself for a downpour. It is early Saturday morning and I am hoping to get there before the crowds who come to savour the bluebell display at its best. Duncliffe Woods is …
The sun is out, the wind has dropped and despite the frost the lovely cool air calls me outside. There is something about the light today which has changed. I get togged up, grab my camera and throw my binoculars over my shoulder, excited by what I might see today. But a huge disappointment crept over …
Although I find it difficult to assign any favourite species, swifts are certainly my most favourite bird, and each year I mark their arrival and then their departure. It is the 29th April and I have seen my first swift of 2016. Looking back at my records this is the earliest I have ever seen …
It is the beginning of March and I am taking my usual walk up on top of the Cranborne Chase, a high area of rolling chalk grassland which marks the border between Dorset and West Wiltshire where each year it is possible to see up to a dozen or so hares. I have left it …
It has just gone midnight. The air is warm and still and there is the sound of gentle raindrops caressing the ground outside. Male tawny owls are issuing their haunting calls, vying for their territories and distant blackbirds are singing. It is a secret magical time. I feel at peace with the world, it has …
Two weeks ago, I was in Lima working with a team of British and Peruvian environmental scientists and tourism specialists. We are working on sustainability, green growth and green economy transitions in ground transport, tourism and coastal industries in Peru. Following an intense but very productive week, I had two free days before my flight home; …
It is a lovely bright morning, the calm before storm Imogen. I set out to try and retrace my steps from last year when I happened upon a long tunnel of ancient hazel coppice. Hazel, a lovely sounding Corylus avellanas in Latin, is a mythical tree which if coppiced can last several hundred years. It’s …
As much as I love my forays overseas, it is always a joy to be back in the English countryside. The Sumatran rainforest was full of exotic delights yet it is so welcoming to feel the cool, crisp air on my face and to slosh my way through familiar mud and puddles. In the …
Like many people, winter is not my preferred time of the year but there is something very beautiful about a British winter, not least the arrival of the winter waders, the over-wintering raptors and evenings spent by a log fire. Although sunlight is at a premium, there is a very special, pure quality and intensity …
It was the week between Christmas and New Year and I knew that the starling murmurations on the Somerset Levels were in full glory. I have been a regular visitor of this winter event for over ten years and each time is a surprise. Increasingly large numbers of people come to await the dusk and …
Rewilding journeys 