Chris Bucke led a walk in the lower Pang valley on Wednesday 16th January, starting from BBOWT’s Moor Copse reserve car park. The temperature remained below freezing, which froze the mud but not the flowing water. Following the exceptional rainfall of the preceding months, water levels were very high for much of the route. The walk started out along the bank of the Pang. The river was very high, with eddies flowing backwards at the sharpest bends. There were fresh molehills next to the path. Catkins were fully out on a few of the Hazels. After the bridge over the Pang into Park Wood, the route continued along the river bank, emerging from the reserve opposite the old rectory at Tidmarsh. A big Black Poplar on the east bank of the river had the round exit holes of the Hornet Moth near its base. Chris led the party through the churchyard at Tidmarsh and along the pavement through the village, before turning back through the fields towards the Pang. Streams were flowing across what are normally dry fields, posing frequent challenges to all those who were not wearing wellington boots. There were clumps of Mistletoe in a number of trees, in particuler Poplars and Hawthorns, with Redwings were feeding on the Mistletoe berries. Just upstream from Pangbourne, the party followed the footpath across the valley, then turned south along Sulham Lane. The woods on either side of the road were under water. A Buzzard was sitting on top of a telegraph pole at the side of the road. The next footpath ran along above the back gardens of Sulham, where there was a lot of Butcher’s-broom, with a few red berries. There was a single Barberry bush in the hedge next to the footpath. In Sulham Churchyard, the Snowdrops were in flower and there were a few frozen Primrose flowers. The route then continued along Nunhide Lane. At a WWII gun emplacement, a flock of about 2 dozen Goldfinches flew into a tree which posed an initial identification challenge. It was in flower and turned out to be a big English Elm which had not succumbed to Dutch Elm Disease. Crossing the fields back towards the Pang, a Buzzard was seen down on the ground to the right, and not long afterwards, a Red Kite settled on the ground to the left. The final stretch went through the meadows of Moor Copse reserve and once again it was a challenge to get across with dry feet. Just before the end of the walk, a Bullfinch flew across the path. Some of the party then had lunch at the Greyhound in Tidmarsh.
