days out – Page 2 – a spark in your veins

14th March 2013

Lambing Day and Wildlife Walk at Woodlands Farm

The pregnant ewes have been gathered into the barn in preparation for the arrival of their lambs, and the lambing volunteers are signing up for the shifts on the lambing rota. Lambing season has started at Woodlands Farm. There will be a chance to see the new-born lambs at the farm’s Lambing Day on Sunday 7th April. Maureen at the farm e-mailed the details:

?All are welcome at the Woodlands Farm Trust Lambing Day. Come and see our new-born lambs, and enjoy the chance to buy quality local produce at reasonable prices, including home-made preserves, cakes and honey. Relax in our café, enjoy the treasure hunt or get involved in craft activities.

Entry is £1 for adults and 50p for children, and all proceeds go towards caring for our animals. A great family day out!?

What’s it like to be a lambing volunteer? For a graphic description of a ewe giving birth read Suzanna Fitpatrick’s brilliant poem “Lamb 001” which is reproduced at the end of the recent post about Shooters Hill Poets.

Pregnant Ewes in the barn at Woodlands Farm

I also heard from Lorraine, the Wildlife Officer at the farm, that they will be holding a Spring Wildlife Walk at the Farm on Easter Monday, 1^st April:

Winter is behind us so put a spring in your step and enjoy a community countryside and wildlife walk around Woodlands Farm. Led by members of the Woodlands Farm Trust. Please wear appropriate clothing including sensible footwear. The walk will probably be a bit challenging for buggies but supervised children are very welcome.
£1 per person (under 18’s free)
Free for farm volunteers and members
Meet at the Education Centre
The Woodlands Farm Trust
331 Shooters Hill, Welling, Kent DA16 3RP
Website: www.thewoodlandsfarmtrust.org
Email: wildlife@thewoodlandsfarmtrust.org
Tel: 020 8319 8900

The farm is host to many wildlife species that are of high conservation importance, including bats, common toad, hedgehog, song thrush, house sparrows, and stag beetles. There are also frogs, toads and newts at the farm ponds. It’ll be interesting to see how many creatures are out and about already.

Ring-necked Parakeet feeding at Woodlands Farm

26th February 2013

Easter Holiday Activities at Woodlands Farm

Long-tailed Tits feeding at Woodlands Farm

Hannah, the Education Officer at Woodlands Farm, sent me details of their Easter Holiday activities for children:

Easter Holiday Activities at Woodlands Farm, 331 Shooters Hill, Welling DA16 3RP

Friday 29th March (Good Friday) Easter Egg Hunt 10am – 2pm
£1 per child, accompanying adults free
Can you follow our trail to find all the eggs hidden around the farm?
If you manage to find them all you will get your own chocolate egg to take home. This is a drop in activity so pop in anytime between 10am-2pm.

Wednesday 3rd April Dreamcatchers 10am -12pm and 1pm-3pm
£1 per child, accompanying adults free
Do you love having a good dream? Traditionally dream catchers were believed to trap your bad dreams but allow your good dreams through. So come and join us at Woodlands Farm as we make dream catchers using willow and other natural materials. This is a drop in session.

Friday 5th April Tour of Woodlands Farm 10am, 11am, 1pm and 2pm.
Free
Join us for a guided tour of our animals at Woodlands Farm. Meet our new-born lambs and hopefully some piglets too. There will be a chance to stroke our chickens and get up close to our guinea pigs, Lottie and Lola.
Meet in the farmyard by the farm shop. This is a drop in session.

Parking is limited so please use public transport where possible

For more information, see our website at www.thewoodlandsfarmtrust.org or contact Hannah Forshaw on education@thewoodlandsfarmtrust.org

16th January 2013

Crossness Public Steaming Days 2013

Decorative Ironwork in the Octagon at the Crossness Pumping Station

I notice that the episode of Michael Portillo’s Great British Railway Journeys, London Victoria to Abbey Wood, on BBC 2 tonight (Wednesday) includes a sequence about the “Victorian cathedral of ironwork” that is Crossness Pumping Station. As I’ve mentioned before, seeing this amazing example of Victorian engineering fully steamed up and in action is an awe-inspiring sight and well worth a visit on one of their public steaming days.

However there will be fewer opportunities to see it in action this year because the volunteers of the Crossness Engines Trust are starting work on a number of improvements to the site funded by a Heritage Lottery Fund grant: there are pictures of the volunteers in action on their Facebook page. The Trust have announced just 5 public steaming days for 2013. As they say on their website:

… despite the ongoing building works, the Trust has decided that there will several public steaming days during 2013. The dates currently agreed are as follows:
Sunday April 21st – Local History Fair (in association with Bexley Civic Society)
Sunday June 23rd – Model Engineering
Sunday July 28th – Transport
Sunday September 1st – Local History
Sunday October 13th – Local History

Admission will be from 10.30am until 4.00pm and the admission charge will be £5.00.
No booking is required. People under 16: free.
It is recommended that visitors wear flat shoes. Please note that the Trust can only accept payment in cash or by cheque.
There will be no mini-bus service in operation from/to Abbey Wood BR station.

To whet your appetite here’s a brief video sequence of the massive steam engines in action from my visit on London Open House day a couple of years ago:

21st May 2012

June Half Term Events at Woodlands Farm

Hannah, the Education Officer at Woodlands Farm, sent me details of their half term activities for children. I’ve added them to the e-shootershill calendar.

Wednesday 6th June
Pond Dipping
Sessions at 10am, 11am, 1pm and 2pm.
50p per child, accompanying adults free
Come and see what you can find hidden beneath the surface of the water. Using nets we will delve into this mysterious world. Age 4+
Booking is essential, call 020 8319 8900

Thursday 7th June
Toddler Club
10am-12pm
Come and join us as we meet the animals, do craft activities and have a play. Tea and coffee provided.
£2 per adult, children free

Friday 8th June
The Big Bug Survey
Drop by any time between 10am-12pm and 1pm-3pm
Free!
Come join us and help us discover what invertebrates live on the farm.
Using different techniques we will be seeing what insects we have as well as what habitats are on the farm for them, we will be looking mainly at bees but some other insects as well. Who knows what we may find.

For more information or to book contact Hannah on 020 8319 8900 or via email at education@thewoodlandsfarmtrust.org

Woodlands Farm is located on the borders of the London boroughs of Bexley and Greenwich. At 89 acres, it is the largest city farm in the UK. Our priorities are education and conservation, and we are part of the Natural England Higher Level Stewardship Scheme. Our education programme attracts visitors from pre-school to third-age groups. The Trust aims to involve local community groups, schools, volunteers and businesses in farming and conservation, helping to bridge the current town-country divide.
We are open 9.30am-4.30pm, Tuesday-Sunday (except Christmas Day). There is no entry charge except for special events, though donations are always welcome.

Nearest tube: North Greenwich
Nearest BR: Welling
Buses: 486 and 89

We are a farm so sensible shoes and clothing are recommended! We do allow dogs, but please note that these must be kept on a lead and not taken into any farm buildings.

Hannah Forshaw
Education Officer

(registered charity no. 1051680)
The Woodlands Farm Trust
331 Shooters Hill
Welling, Kent
DA16 3RP
Telephone: 020 8319 8900
Email: education@thewoodlandsfarmtrust.org
Website: www.thewoodlandsfarmtrust.org

There’s a new arrival at the farm to visit if you drop in: Cynthia an Oxford Sandy and Black Pig. Cynthia is expecting piglets in a few weeks time, so it’s just possible they may have been born by half term and there’ll be a chance to see some more new arrivals.

21st March 2012

Woodlands Farm Lambing Day 15th April

It’s coming up to a busy time at Woodlands Farm, with the lambing season about to start. The pregnant ewes have been brought in to the barn, and volunteers who have been trained in lambing techniques are preparing themselves for early mornings and late nights as part of the lambing rota. This year I’d imagine there are additional worries about the possible effect of the Schmallenberg virus.

There will be a chance to see the newborn lambs, and to enjoy the stalls and other activities at Lambing Day on Sunday 15th April. Maureen from the farm e-mailed their poster, above, and said:

All are welcome at the Woodlands Farm Trust Lambing Day. Come and see our newborn lambs, and enjoy the chance to buy quality local produce at reasonable prices, including homemade preserves, cakes and honey. Relax in our Café, enjoy the treasure hunt or get involved in craft activities.
Entry is £1 for adults and 50p for children, and all proceeds go towards caring for our animals. A great family day out!”

Nearest tube: North Greenwich
Nearest BR: Welling
Buses: 486 and 89

We are a farm so sensible shoes and clothing are recommended! We do allow dogs, but please note that these must be kept on a lead and not taken into any farm buildings.

If you can’t wait until the 15th to see the baby lambs, here are some pictures from last year’s Lambing Day.

18th March 2012

Dates for the diary 2: Crossness Public Steaming Days

The Crossness Engines Trust have published their programme for 2012 – the Crossness Pumping Station public steaming days. There were long queues when I visited last year on one of the London Open House days, but it was well worth waiting to see this amazing example of Victorian public engineering, which has been described as “a Victorian cathedral of ironwork” by Nikolaus Pevsner. The combination of massive mechanical engineering and detailed decorative ironwork in a romanesque style building fully justifies Pevsner’s description.

The Pumping Station is the final link in Joseph Bazalgette‘s sewerage system for London, developed in reaction to 1858’s Great Stink (and epidemic Cholera). Bazalgette’s massive intercepting sewers fed the effluent by gravity down towards two pumping stations nearer the mouth of the Thames, at Crossness and Abbey Mills. The job of the Crossness pumping stations was to raise the incoming liquid by 30-40 feet into a sewage reservoir containing 27 million gallons of raw sewage which was discharged into the Thames at high tide to flow out to sea with the tide. This required 4 huge pumping engines – believed to be the largest rotative beam engines in the world, with 52 ton flywheels. As part of their restoration work, the Crossness Engines Trust have one of the engines, named the Prince Consort, running as shown in the brief video sequence below:

Work on preserving and restoring the Pumping Station started in 1985 – it’s a huge task, and is staffed entirely by volunteers. Their achievements are already very impressive, and they have an ambitious vision for the future – restoration of the buildings and engines to their 1899 condition.

The Crossness Engines Trust web site gives the dates when they will be open this year:

The dates currently agreed are as follows:

Sunday April 22nd – Local History Fair ( please note that entry to the Fair only is free)
Sunday June 24th – Model Engineering
Sunday July 29th – Transport
Tuesday August 14th – Local History
Sunday September 2nd – General
Sunday September 23rd – Open House London (Free entry)
Sunday October 21st – Local History
Admission will be from 10.30am until 4.00pm and the admission charge will be £5.00 except for Open House London which is free. No booking is required. People under 16: free. It is recommended that visitors wear flat shoes.

Please note that the Trust can only accept payment in cash or by cheque.
A Mini-bus service will operate from Abbey Wood BR station to the Crossness site at approximately 30 minute intervals. The first bus will leave Abbey Wood station at 10.15am and the last bus will depart from the Crossness site at 5.00pm

It’s well worth adding one of these dates to your diary.

Detail of ironwork at Crossness Pumping Station

There are more photographs on Flickr.

18th March 2012

Dates for the diary 1: Falconwood Miniature Railway Public Running 2012

Despite being under threat of eviction, the Welling and District Model Engineering Society have announced their public running dates for 2012:

Welling and District Model Engingeering Society — WDMES

Public Running Dates 2012
We look forward to welcoming you back in 2012 for another summer of nostalgia, riding behind our steam and electric locomotives. The dates and timings have now been confirmed.
The railway and clubhouse will be open from 2:30-5:00pm. Train rides will be available for children and adults(!), with the last ticket issued at 4:30pm. Refreshments are available in the clubhouse.
Sunday April 22nd
Sunday May 6th 20th
Sunday June 3rd 17th
Sunday July 1st 15th 29th
Sunday August 12th 26th
Sunday September 9th 23rd
Sunday October 7th (last running)

The WDMES still haven’t been given a firm date for when they need to vacate the site behind the electricity substation on Rochester Way, so they have planned a full year’s events for 2012.

The Falconwood Miniature Railway is very popular with readers of this site. The railway, in its various wordings, is one of the most frequent searches that brings visitors here, attracted no doubt by my predecessor’s sound recording and video of the miniature railway in action. I’ll certainly be visiting one of their public runnings this year, and I’ve added the dates to the site calendar.

16th March 2012

Easter Holiday Activities at Woodlands Farm

Bluebell the Saddleback pig at Woodlands Farm

Hannah, the Education Officer at Woodlands Farm, sent me details of their Easter Holiday activities for children. I’ve added them to the e-shootershill calendar.

1st April – 9th April
Animal Egg Spotting trail
Not only chickens lay eggs – come and explore the farm and find the hidden animals which lay eggs – you may be surprised what you find!
Self guided trail available when farm open – Free!

Tuesday 10th April
Spring on the Farm
10am-12pm
£1 per child, accompanying adults free
Spring is here and this is the chance to meet the baby animals on the farm. We will be doing crafts, games and seeing the new animals.
Booking is essential, call 0208 319 8900.

Wednesday 11th April
Marvellous Minibeasts
10am -12pm
£1 per child, accompanying adults free
What is crawling around in the leaves and what is hiding under those logs? Join us as we go exploring in the woods to find what minibeasts are lurking about.
Booking is essential, call 0208 319 8900

Thursday 12th April
Toddler Club
10am-12pm
£2 per adult, children free
Meet the animals, enjoy some crafts or just play.

For more information, see our website or contact Hannah Forshaw on education@thewoodlandsfarmtrust.org

Woodlands Farm is located on the borders of the London boroughs of Bexley and Greenwich. At 89 acres, it is the largest city farm in the UK. Our priorities are education and conservation, and we are part of the Natural England Higher Level Stewardship Scheme. Our education programme attracts visitors from pre-school to third-age groups. The Trust aims to involve local community groups, schools, volunteers and businesses in farming and conservation, helping to bridge the current town-country divide.

We are open 9.30am-4.30pm, Tuesday-Sunday (except Christmas Day). There is no entry charge except for special events, though donations are always welcome.

Nearest tube: North Greenwich
Nearest BR: Welling
Buses: 486 and 89

We are a farm so sensible shoes and clothing are recommended! We do allow dogs, but please note that these must be kept on a lead and not taken into any farm buildings.

There are more pictures of animals at Woodlands farm here.

19th November 2010

Welling and District Model Engineering Society – A Film

Last year I uploaded a sound recording of the model railway at falconwood, well now here’s a video to go with it. It was filmed whilst holding on to the driver with one hand and the camera with the other, which looking back on it was probably a bit reckless and could have ended up with me falling into the suspension bridge, but in a way it was worth a bit of a risk. I especially like the bit where we go through the tunnel and you can see the steam on the lens, plus all the friendly bystanders of course.

4th September 2010

Punch and Judy

This is from the well hall pleasaunce fun day last sunday, ok ok it’s not on shooters hill, but the pleasaunce is a nice place to visit locally (apart from the so-called ‘relief’ road[1. Relief roads often turn out to provide little relief in the long run, although i did read somewhere that the rochester relief road had the completely unanticipated effect of reducing traffic trouble on shooters hill, although it’s obvious a new tube station would have given more relief than that brutalist monstrosity]), what with the newly refurbished tudor barn, and the most romantic (ex-)cinema around.

We join the story at the point where a policeman arrives to take mr punch to be hung for beating up his wife and child, only to get a beating himself. Luckily joey the clown arrives in time to save the day, following a bizarre interlude where the bexley basher and the woolwich walloper have a quick boxing match. The show was performed by award winning professor john styles, one of the grandest of them all. He introduced the show by explaining that mr punch hits people, and that anyone of a politically correct disposition might be advised to ‘clear off’ (twirl of the hand), which is curious because a lot of professors handle the domestic violence aspect of the show a bit differently; the guy at the plumstead make merry for example, who pulls of the tricky feat of modernising the show whilst keeping the tradition alive. The problems about violence were pointed out in advance, and the audience were invited to challenge punch’s behaviour. Also, it does have a happy end, mainly thanks to the crocodile, who eats mr punch’s stick, and nearly finishes off mr punch too, who then, having been resuscitated by joey the clown, realises the error of his ways and promises to turn over a new leaf.

This would have been better as a video as it includes lots of visual jokes, there’s the odd decent one on youtube, such as the weymouth beach version.

Punch and Judy by eshootershill