CANAL on Sunday 15th September 2019

Five members, Eileen and Graham Gill, Brian Smithson, Charles Seymour and Malcolm Swift, left Dronfield and made the 45 minute drive to Cromford. We parked at the Rugby Club Car Park and changed into our boots and walked back to the bus stop on the main A6 road to catch the Trans Peak bus to . It was a really pleasant day weatherwise and the bus was on time. We got off the bus at a stop just before the middle of Ambergate and took the small road called Chase Road up to the canal towpath and made a start on our lists for the day. Among the first flower sightings were Ivy-leaved Toadflax, Broad Leaved Willowherb, White Campion, Yarrow and Common Vetch. As we continued towards and Cromford we also noted Hemp Agrimony and Meadowsweet in great abundance, along with a few less common varieties – Skullcap, Figwort, Stinking Camomile (or Mayweed) and Wild Strawberry. The line of the canal follows the Derby to Matlock railway line for most of the way to Cromford and just before Whatstandwell Station there was a large Buddleia bush overhanging the towpath which was covered in butterflies. Peacock, Red Admiral, Small Tortoiseshell, Painted Lady and Comma were all seen here feeding on the florets. Over the surface of the canal we saw numerous dragonflies but we only managed two positive I.D’s – Common Hawker and Ruddy Darter, with Brown Hawker another possible.

We stopped after Whatstandwell at a handy picnic table (big enough for 5) for our lunch for about half an hour and then continued and not long after saw a pair of Mute Swans with three large sized Cygnets. Shortly after this we spotted our first pair of Little Grebes diving repeatedly for food. We then passed a Sewage Works and as on our last visit in 2016 managed to see a Grey Wagtail picking it’s way around the settling beds. Three good sightings in a few hundred yards. We continued towards Gregory and just before this saw a second pair of little Grebes that were feeding two juvenile chicks. A lovely sight to watch. Passing through the tunnel we then came to the Aqueduct that carries the canal over the River Derwent and shortly after this the Nightingale Branch, named after Florence Nightingale who lived in nearby Holloway village. Crossing over a small footbridge onto the opposite side gave us the opportunity to visit the Leawood Pump House which was in operation, as on our last outing here, and manned by volunteers. This is a really interesting piece of engineering – a massive steam driven beam pump that pumped water from the River Derwent to top up the canal. A little further along you can see the point where it enters the canal with a surge of water every twenty seconds or so. It was then a very welcome stop at Peak Junction for an ice cream and use of the facilities before the last leg of the walk back to and the car park. We all remarked what a great walk this is and it was made even better by the nice weather, and that we should do it more often than every three years.

Flowers 56 Birds 17 Insects 9 Mammals 1 Fungi 2

Report - Brian S. Smithson / Graham Gill

CROMFORD CANAL - 15/9/2019 – Species List

FLOWERS FLOWERS Cont. INSECTS

Marjoram Meadow Cranesbill Small White Hairbell Meadow Vetchling Peacock Herb Robert Common Ragwort Red Admiral Dandelion Creeping Cinquefoil Small Tortoiseshell Ivy-leaved Toadflax Wall Lettuce Painted Lady Creeping Buttercup Feverfew Comma Broad Leaved Willowherb Black Medick Speckled Wood White Campion Marsh Thistle Common Hawker Bramble Common Hemp Nettle Ruddy Darter Yarrow Seeds of Small Teasle Total 9 Common Vetch Lords & Ladies Berries Prickly Sowthistle Nettle Total 56 Himalayan Balsam MAMMALS

Groundsel Grey Squirrel Ribwort Plantain BIRDS Perennial Sowthistle Total 1 Jackdaw Hemp Agrimony Red Clover Carrion Crow Great Hairy Willowherb Wood Pigeon FUNGI Skullcap Mallard Chicken of the Woods Figwort Blue Tit Birch Polypore Mugwort Great Tit Stinking Camomile (Mayweed) Moorhen Total 2 Wild Strawberry Nuthatch

Enchanter's Nightshade Robin Red Hemp Nettle Jay Black Knapweed Dunnock Bush Vetch Grey Wagtail Creeping Thistle Mute Swan Water Mint Little Grebe Meadowsweet Magpie Hedge Bindweed Black-headed Gull White Dead Nettle Buzzard Wood Avens Total 17 Rosebay Willowherb Buddleia Tansy

Nipplewort Angelica Comfrey

Great Bindweed Hogweed Woundwort Red Campion