FESTIVAL OF FIRE! THE BIG SHEEP - BIDEFORD THIS SATURDAY 15TH MARCH FROM 6.00PM

A SPONSORED WALK WITH A DIFFERENCE Raising money for Dogs Helping Kids in conjunction with The Jaden Cornelious Foundation
RED HOT TALENT 
Jaden Cornelious, Tamsin Ball and Taya Lambden
Visitors will get to listen to the dulcet tones of Jaden Cornelious, one of North Devon's hottest talents who will be singing a rang of his popular classical crossover songs as well as some new ones and may even slot in a few pop songs. Jaden will be joined on stage by Tamsin Ball, another local classical crossover singer who has performed on the West End, The O2 Arena and the Lourve in Paris. Supporting Jaden and Tamsin will be 14 year old local girl Taya Lambden from Park Community School.

FREE ENTRY FOR SEASON TICKET MEMBERS!
Enjoy a Family Evening of Fun - Watch a Fantastic Fire show, Cheer on the brave fundraisers as they walk on fire, Enjoy Ewetopia Indoor Playground, Listen to Jaden Cornelious, Tamsin Ball and Taya Lambden perform AND you'll all be fundraising for charity as all entry costs are to be given to

Dogs Helping Kids. Doors Open 6.00pm Fire Show : 6.20pm Fire Walk : 7pm £3 entry pp or Family Ticket £10 (2+2) Children Under 3ft FREE FREE ENTRY for season ticket members All entry proceeds will be given to Dogs Helping Kids

FESTIVAL OF FIRE! THE BIG SHEEP - BIDEFORD THIS SATURDAY 15TH MARCH FROM 6.00PM

BIG Sheep Contact Information: Telephone: 01237 472366 Website: www.thebigsheep.co.uk

DEVON'S HOTTEST FIRE ENTERTAINER COOLHAND LUKE Festival of Fire We will be hosting one of the hottest nights of the year on this Saturday 15th March, combining a charity fire walk with a fire juggling and spinning show. You've all heard the idiom 'If you play with fire, you'll get burnt - Coolhand Luke, North Devon's hottest fire entertainer who has been playing with fire for years has yet to be burnt!

A Week of Wildlife at Meeth Quarry Nature Reserve

Devon Wildlife Trust's Northern Devon Nature Improvement Area is planning a special week of wildlife inspired science and art events at its Meeth Quarry nature reserve near Great Torrington. The charity is staging a weekend of free events on Saturday 22nd and Sunday 23rd March, running from 11am-3pm on both days. People can drop in when they wish or stay all day. The theme for these events is 'Artists and Scientists'. Visitors are being encouraged to come along to discover how artists draw inspiration and scientists find fascination in the natural world. And they will also be encouraged to explore their own artistic and scientific interests in a packed two-day's of activity. On Saturday there will be an opportunity to join a painter, a poet and a soil scientist in a series of hands on activities which will draw on Meeth Quarry's unique landscape. On Sunday the focus will be the search for mammals, amphibians and reptiles in the company of experts, along with a music workshop with drumming and animal songs inspired by the nature reserve. Tamasine Addie, Community Outreach Officer for the Northern Devon Nature Improvement Area said: 'During the weekend we want to give people the chance to help us map Meeth Quarry nature reserve, building up a picture of the landscape from different points of view." Tamasine continued: "By 'mapping Meeth' in this way we get a chance to see all the benefits it has to offer for wildlife and local people alike. We hope to see lots of wildlife on site - and lots of people enjoying it too!"
The weekend is being followed by a further event aimed at local school teachers. Tuesday 25th March sees Meeth Quarry open its doors for teachers to find out ways in which they might use the nature reserve as an 'outdoor classroom' with their pupils. The evening will also include a short walk to explore areas of the site suitable for school visits. This session will run from 4-6.30pm. Booking is essential. Please contact Tamasine Addie on 07968 850803. Finally, on Friday 28th March Meeth Quarry is the venue for a 'Dark, Dark Night event' from 4-7pm. Back by popular demand, this event is a drop-in session giving people the chance to find out more about moths, owls and bats as they emerge into the night sky after a winter of hibernation. This is a great opportunity to see bats up close, learn about owl habitats and marvel at moths as they flit through the air at twilight. All events are FREE! People can find out more about the events on the Northern DevonNature Improvement Area website, www.northerndevonnia.org

 Photo Meeth Quarry copyright Devon Wildlife Trust - All Rights Reserved

Winter Exposure Westward Ho!

Arrived at Westward Ho! amazed to find that the tide was still ebbing as we had been looking forward to a long bracing walk. It was another huge surge with the tide refusing to go out and stay out. The Go Kart Track and Adventure Centre is still in disarray so if ever there was a time for the legendary Potwalloping Festival, this is it. Fortunately the Links beyond are no longer flooded. Across the Bay in the direction of Kipling Tors I can see the spray from the wild “White Horses”. A grey day with sporadic sunshine, there was even another fleeting rainbow. When it was finally clear to walk down the beach it was quite other-worldly as the sand, in parts, had been completely washed away revealing mounds of soft grey clay, the rest resembling a shingle beach. In the midst of the normal grey pebbles strewn along the strandline were some quite beautiful marble white ones, washed in from some distant shore. As we walked on down to Sandymere I took a shot of the concrete slabs, the stepping stones over the ridge, now a little askew to say the least. Along the way I took note of the newly exposed Groins, weirdly wonderful clay formations, the outline of a previously unseen wreck and a line of pier posts or were they old WW2 sea defences? The surf although on its way out continued to rush in and I watched as four little Sanderlings skipped the waves then became marooned on their own little island. In 2012 the Pebbles abutting the Dunes at the far end had been washed away and now they were back and it was a relief to see that the missing sand had shifted towards the Spit. I was pleased not to see any rubbish on the beach, although there were pockets of marine litter amongst the pebbles. Here at the Spit of the Northam Burrows Country Park, the Ridge, although covered in pebbles seemed much flatter and even the big boulders were seemingly battered out of place. On a clear day you can look out to the Bideford Bar and over to the Biosphere across the Taw Torridge Estuary from here. It was hard going against the wind on the way back, I did, however stop to take a shot for the records of a dead seabird. Another sad sight was a 4x4 vehicle perched atop the Ridge, exposed and well and truly stuck. Photos and Article copyright Pat Adams 23rd February 2014

I reported the dead bird to the RSPB via Facebook and it was identified as a Guillemot. Guillemots, Razorbills and other seabirds have suffered terribly in the storms and have been washed up in numbers around the UK coast.See also BBC  'Record number' of dead seabirds washed up from storms
If you come across any dead sea birds please send full details to SWseabirds@rspb.org.uk
RSPB If members of the public find live seabirds that can be rescued it is recommended they should contact the RSPCA on 0300 1234 999. We would advise you not to attempt rescuing the seabirds yourself or to handle them.
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Westward Ho! Potwalloping Festival was traditionally held each year on May Bank Holiday, the last one was held in 2012. Potwalloping. An old tradition when, in return for grazing rights, the residents in the Borough of Northam would throw back the pebbles that had been washed down from the Pebble Ridge after Spring Tides.