Good news! Sheffield Environment is organising a Hen Harrier Day event in central Sheffield on Saturday 5 August. A big ‘Thank you!’ to them.
I’ll be there, and at an event at Boat of Garten the next day. It wouldn’t be Hen Harrier day without a visit to the Peak District area. It’s a great move to have an event in a city centre this year. Maybe Manchester next year?
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Sorry but i will not be attending anymore pointless Hen Harrier days, listening to well meaning speakers condemn raptor Persecution to no avail..
I strongly feel that the next Hen Harrier Day should be held at the Gun butts on a Grouse Moor not in a city centre.
I really fear that our Hen Harriers will not outlive our reluctance to take positive action, prefering insteaf to continue this endless annual cycle of talking about the killing of raptors instead of stopping the Persecution by direct action.
See you at the Gun butts. One day maybe Mark but i won’t hold my breath!
Next year I will gladly help take Derick and a group onto the Peak District / Derbyshire moors (would have offered this year but have been very heavily preoccupied with personal matters).
I propose a good route would be to gather as we did in 2016 at Edale, then walk up through the village, past the Peak Park’s new visitor centre, scramble steeply up Grindsbrook (which passes through Tom Noel’s privately owned bit of moorland,) and up onto the Kinder Scout plateau to see the amazing moorland restoration going on in places there, then head eastwards along the southern edge of the plateau towards Crookstone Knoll. You would then pass into the National Trust-owned “Hope Woodlands” estate where, though still in the SSSI/SPA/SAC, signs of burning and medicated grit trays abound.
By 2018 we’ll know whether the National Trust has decided to make the wise choice of no longer letting out our land for intensive grouse rearing and business profit. So, a gathering above the grouse butts at Crookstone Knoll would be a good opportunity to a) praise the NT (Midlands Director, Andy Beer, in particular, or b) condemn the NT for reinstating archaic practices that go against their own High Peak Vision of restoring the moorlands and a failure to create a large shooting-free moorland zone amongst a sea of death, destruction, over-management and predator persecution. Returning down the recently restored walkers/shooters path from Ringing Roger back to Edale, could be the end to an energetic but informative day.
Alternatively, a walk on the privately owned moors above could show up a whole suite of appalling practices that have devastated parts of this landscape.
I’d be happy to post more route details for anyone wanting to do this on under their own steam.
Nick Moyes
Can I suggest inviting Chris Williamson and Dennis Skinner to come speak at the Sheffield event. Chris has spoken previously, but getting Dennis Skinner to speak will kind of force him to organise his thoughts on this issue.