The tail end of the year has been a mixture of blue sky days, wind and wet as the sounds of the thousands of geese returning to the Bay are heard. The work of the trust proceeds from strength to strength with some new projects and possibilities raising their heads and others just carrying on in the background.
Walking the land the other day I had a lovely and fulfilling feeling that arose from seeing the land being so well looked after and valued by the many – new trees well protected and staked, new glades in the woods starting to sprout regenerating tree seedlings, ponies contented in their field, maritime heath areas cleared of invasive species, a flow of chatting children and adults proceeding to their fire and bench area as part of their Friday morning Fledglings gathering, the Conservation Hub there as a beautiful structure in the woods and working so well as a base for the conservation work and… So many things to be thankful for. Much of this good work would not happen without you as members over the last fifteen plus years being out there the last Saturday of each month putting in your love and effort during our regular work parties and of course the sterling work of our Land Manager Kajedo Wanderer who is now the backbone of the good work that happens on the land – thank you Kajedo, thank you all!
Ongoing projects are progressing such as the large scale Dune Restoration work planned for next year which looks like it will involve working collaboratively with neighbouring landowner the Findhorn Dunes Trust (See Sean Reed’s update elsewhere). It also feels good that we are working with the charity Moray Supports Migrants and Refugees (MSMR) to put in place four work party events combining getting asylum seekers in Moray together with regular trust members to carry out brash clearance on the land we look after to the north of Wilkies Wood. MSMR has secured funding from the charity Migrant Help for transport for these events, the Findhorn Foundation will be supplying the bus, Volunteering Matters through their Action Earth grant will be contributing by enabling the purchase of tools and gloves and the FHT will be organising the work this end – a magnificent and positive collaborative venture that we trust will be supported by our members and will fulfil both our conservation and local community building charitable purposes.
Other projects that are progressing include the erecting of the new pony shed from the recycling of the old food buyers office that we saved when clearing the sanctuary site, an offer is now in to help secure the acquisition of Duneland Ltd wild land and the long overdue project of painting the tractor trailer is happening with the help of Louna our new long term Swiss volunteer. Louna has been a great asset and is looking to be with us until March staying in the Shepherd’s Hut and working half time on the land ( see the interview elsewhere which gives a little more background.
I have also been pleased to have Roy Simpson lead another Sharing Nature with Children workshop on the land and next year would like to see this promoted more widely so that more people within the local community and beyond can benefit from this inspiring way of learning more about the nature that surrounds and nourishes us every day.
We are aware of upcoming events such as our annual Christmas tree happening up at the Woodland Shelter this year on the 2nd December from 11am until 2pm and in the new year we hope to have a fundraising event which involves the showing of the film Alan Watson- Featherstone has been involved in called ‘When the Bough Breaks’. In the coming months we will also be working with round wood crafts personHenry Fosbrooke finishing the preparation of the columns and beams for the new sanctuary as part of the FHT’s contribution to this important community project.
Thanking the whole team that help make the good work of the FHT possible – together with each person leaning in a little we can make miracles happen! Wishing you all a pleasant and safe festive season.
Blessings,
Jonathan Caddy
FHT Chair
16th November 2023
Chair’s Report – Autumn/Winter 2023
The tail end of the year has been a mixture of blue sky days, wind and wet as the sounds of the thousands of geese returning to the Bay are heard. The work of the trust proceeds from strength to strength with some new projects and possibilities raising their heads and others just carrying on in the background.
Walking the land the other day I had a lovely and fulfilling feeling that arose from seeing the land being so well looked after and valued by the many – new trees well protected and staked, new glades in the woods starting to sprout regenerating tree seedlings, ponies contented in their field, maritime heath areas cleared of invasive species, a flow of chatting children and adults proceeding to their fire and bench area as part of their Friday morning Fledglings gathering, the Conservation Hub there as a beautiful structure in the woods and working so well as a base for the conservation work and… So many things to be thankful for. Much of this good work would not happen without you as members over the last fifteen plus years being out there the last Saturday of each month putting in your love and effort during our regular work parties and of course the sterling work of our Land Manager Kajedo Wanderer who is now the backbone of the good work that happens on the land – thank you Kajedo, thank you all!
Ongoing projects are progressing such as the large scale Dune Restoration work planned for next year which looks like it will involve working collaboratively with neighbouring landowner the Findhorn Dunes Trust (See Sean Reed’s update elsewhere). It also feels good that we are working with the charity Moray Supports Migrants and Refugees (MSMR) to put in place four work party events combining getting asylum seekers in Moray together with regular trust members to carry out brash clearance on the land we look after to the north of Wilkies Wood. MSMR has secured funding from the charity Migrant Help for transport for these events, the Findhorn Foundation will be supplying the bus, Volunteering Matters through their Action Earth grant will be contributing by enabling the purchase of tools and gloves and the FHT will be organising the work this end – a magnificent and positive collaborative venture that we trust will be supported by our members and will fulfil both our conservation and local community building charitable purposes.
Other projects that are progressing include the erecting of the new pony shed from the recycling of the old food buyers office that we saved when clearing the sanctuary site, an offer is now in to help secure the acquisition of Duneland Ltd wild land and the long overdue project of painting the tractor trailer is happening with the help of Louna our new long term Swiss volunteer. Louna has been a great asset and is looking to be with us until March staying in the Shepherd’s Hut and working half time on the land ( see the interview elsewhere which gives a little more background.
I have also been pleased to have Roy Simpson lead another Sharing Nature with Children workshop on the land and next year would like to see this promoted more widely so that more people within the local community and beyond can benefit from this inspiring way of learning more about the nature that surrounds and nourishes us every day.
We are aware of upcoming events such as our annual Christmas tree happening up at the Woodland Shelter this year on the 2nd December from 11am until 2pm and in the new year we hope to have a fundraising event which involves the showing of the film Alan Watson- Featherstone has been involved in called ‘When the Bough Breaks’. In the coming months we will also be working with round wood crafts personHenry Fosbrooke finishing the preparation of the columns and beams for the new sanctuary as part of the FHT’s contribution to this important community project.
Thanking the whole team that help make the good work of the FHT possible – together with each person leaning in a little we can make miracles happen! Wishing you all a pleasant and safe festive season.
Blessings,
Jonathan Caddy
FHT Chair
16th November 2023