page | Christine Lucas

Day 27: At the weekend a post on the Facebook 30 Days Wild page caught my eye. The post was all about species with a link to The Wildlife Trusts Wildlife Explorer. I noticed that ferns and horsetails were in their own species category, so I decided to look more closely at the ferns in the yarden.

We seem to have only one species of fern growing which I’ve ID’d as bracken! I think of bracken in woodland and heath-land, but apparently we have at least three bracken plants flourishing in the yarden.

Bracken

Bracken Spores

They are ancient plants, far older than the dinosaurs, and can grow up to 1.5 meters.

Bracken spreads by underground rhizomes or horizontal stems but can germinate from spores (sporangia) carried on the wind. I noticed spores on the underside of the fronds and found them fascinating. I read that this bracken is fertile (due to the presence of spores) as not all have them.

Bracken is deciduous and dies back during winter and turns the landscape a tinge of brown. The plant is highly toxic to animals and should not be eaten. I read many scare stories associated with bracken online, that they harbour ticks and are carcinogenic.

What’s your thoughts on this ancient plant?

Thanks for reading, and stay wild!

Christine x

Debra from Cultivating Time asked me a while back where my first swim of 2017 would be. This got me thinking. I haven’t planned on a specific place to do my first swim this year. I just keep adding to the many walks/swims I could do in the future. So, I sat down and decided to make a list of possible first swims. Let me know in the poll below which one you would like to see me do as my first for 2017!

The date for my first swim of the season will be around mid to end of April, (hopefully around Easter). The water should be just as cool or warmer than when I last swam in October.

1 . Blea Tarn.

I have had many opportunities to visit Blea Tarn, but as yet none have materialised. On a fine day you get to see wonderful views across the tarn towards the Langdale Pikes.

Blea Tarn

Loughrigg Tarn

2. Loughrigg Tarn.

As yet, I’ve yet to see the Langdales, and Loughrigg, like Blea is another tarn with these mountainous views. Both tarns have miles without stiles walks, so are in easy reach of little legs like mine. 🙂

3 . Bowscale Tarn.

As featured in William Wordsworth’s 1888’s, Song, at the Feast of Brougham Castle. According to folklore there are two immortal fish that swim in the depths of this tarn and if you are lucky, they may talk to you!

And both the undying Fish that swim
Through Bowscale-Tarn did wait on him,
The pair were Servants of his eye
In their immortality,
They moved about in open sight,
To and fro, for his delight.

Bowscale Tarn from Karlswalks.co.uk

Brothers Water

4 . Brothers Water.

I keep seeing some lovely pictures of this tarn on the ILTLD page on Facebook. The shots confuse me, as in some angles it looks like Wast Water (or to me at least). Perhaps it’s a mini Wast Water? There is an easy two mile walk to the lakeside.

I’ve decided to leave the Welsh Llyns for later in the year. LLyn Cau of Cadris Idris and Llyn Glaslyn of Snowdon beckon later on this summer.

Let me know from the above which is your preferred lake.