Giant Poohstick

After the recent snow and heavy rain, the River Alyn over which the Sarn Bridge crosses, is full and flowing quickly. When this happens it is not unusual to see a large log in the the river.

What I don't fully understand is how they come to be in the river. Is there someone upstream thinning out their woodland and seeing the river as the obvious vehicle for disposing of unwanted tree trunks? Or is nature performing its own thinning out and are these fallen trees or snapped off branches that river bank erosion or heavy runoff has pushed into the river. 

This particular example from this week is beached on the river bed just short of the bridge. It will probably stay there, providing a perch for the birds, until it gets refloated the next time the river swells. It will then make its way down the river past the Packhorse Bridge, over the weir by the Bridge Inn and on the the Alyn Waters Country Park. At any of these points it may cause an obstruction and potentially flooding. Alternatively it may get lodged in the river bank and enhance the habitat for the wildlife until it rots away.

The river is in constant flux. But it does not explain where the log came from in the first place. Maybe its a giant Poohstick.

Slush Fall

This morning the Lane looked like there had been a slush fall overnight. Although it was very soft and unpleasant underfoot, the result of snow followed quickly by rain as the temperature increased, it was a lucky escape given the conditions elsewhere in the country.

Catkins

Strolling along the Lane today I noticed catkins emerging on a Hazel. As the seasons roll by, there will be a lot of squirrel activity around this tree.

Apple Corner

On the inside of the elbow of the lane, opposite the spur that leads off to the Dee Valley Water plant which is visited by very wide trucks that barely fit down the lane (one of them made me squash myself into the hedge today), is Apple Corner. Scattered on the ground, pretty much all year round, are small apples. The fact that no one or no thing collects them suggests to me that they don't taste great. Or they're poisonous. I haven't attempted to find out.

As you can see from the first photo, the tree that the apples have fallen from is almost entirely covered in ivy. In the spring, when the tree's own leaves reappear, it will be an opportunity to understand the tree further.

Mystery Nut Piles

Someone, I do not know who, is leaving piles of nuts on the verge of Sarn Lane. I haven't inspected them too closely but they look like a mix of peanuts and hazels. Unsalted. I hope. They are being left on the stretch between the elbow of the lane and Hope railway station.

The first photo was taken on December 15th. The second on December 18th. The locations were different.

I'm guessing that they are being left for the birds. I suspect they are being eaten by squirrels. It is something to keep an eye on.

Sarn Bridge

It's hard to believe today that once upon a time it was possible to drive a car across the river here. But that is what my father-in-law can remember doing in the mid 1960s. It is possible to take a car down the lane. Trucks regularly drive down to the water works just off the elbow of the lane. but this is litererally the end of the road from the Caergwrle side of the river. The River Alyn.

The river itself is running very high today because of the recent snow. The video shows that it is so high that it is partially covering the drainage outlet for the surrounding fields which is usually fully exposed.

What is Sarn Lane? And what is this blog about?

What is Sarn Lane?

Sarn Lane is a stretch of road that connects the Flintshire villages of Hope and Caergwrle. "Live in Hope and die in Caergwrle" is the often quoted phrase that describes how close the villages are. Sarn Lane itself is a couple of miles long but this blog is only concerned with the middle section which is a dog leg of tarmac thoroughfare flanked on either side by tree and hedges. The extent can be seen from this aerial photo with key features labelled.

What is this blog about?

The idea behind this blog is to record what happens over time along this particular track. I'm not expecting anything dramatic. Sometimes it will be farm activity. Sometimes it will be flora and fauna. Sometimes it will be weather related, for example, the recent snowfall made it look like this.