Fenland

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Cheating a little here - two blogs in one ! Time getting in the way as usual …..

Weather Report

Warm and sunny both days (Tuesday and Wednesday). Both days clouded over in the late afternoon.

Exploring the fenland area to the south of Ely. The fens are in some respects an acquired taste best seen from the air or the water. Almost devoid of relief they are so low that in most locations it is very difficult to achieve any perspective. The best vantage points are the small islands of higher land which has given rise to names such as ‘villages in the isles’. From Stuntley you have a marvellous view of Ely cathedral from a safe vantage point away from traffic.

The agricultural landscape lacks interest to the uneducated eye but look below the surface and there is contrast with the intensive cultivation of vegetables on the dark peat and the cattle lazing in the washes between drainage channels. That this is a cosmopolitan landscape is emphasised by the ‘beware of the bull’ sign in several east European languages … and English. Most of the immigrant workers are legal and very well treated by companies such as G’s which has large hostel accommodation set within its fields.

There is some history here and Ely cathedral yet to be visited. There are many medieval churches some with exquisite family memorials such as that of Robert Peyton (died 1590) in Isleham parish church. The drainage of the area in the seventeenth century is of course part of history and this we can see with the Bedford Levels, Denver Sluice and drainage engine museums such as that at Stretham.

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