Monday 28 May 2012

Cwm Hesgyn SH84X Merioneth Nats, 24 May 2012

It was a beautiful early summer’s day when we, Rod, Sarah and Polly, collected Jacky after her marathon drive from Kent to the hamlet of Fron Goch, where there is a plaque commemorating the several thousand Irish prisoners interned there after the Easter Risings.  We travelled in one car to our second meeting place where we found Jenny Lees waiting, making 5 botanists in all in the group which set off towards Llyn Hesgyn.

First sight of Llyn Hesgyn with most of the team!
We decided not to record until we got into our target monad but in the event that was not too difficult as we set off over rather dull improved grassland and then into dry heather moorland - the whole day was notable for the paucity of records, so we were not too tempted!  We reached the Llyn just about midday, and at the very damp spot where we ate lunch we began to see a few interesting plants – but although it was very hot by this time no-one was moved to follow Rod’s example in going for a swim.  Sadly he didn’t produce any extra records from the deeper water than the Myriophyllum alternifolium and Littorella uniflora which fringed the lake.

Eriophorum vaginatum in full flower
Walking round the lake to the only willow we saw [from which the eponymous warbler entertained us], we were able to get nearer to the Water- lilies and to determine that both the Yellow Water-lily Nuphar lutea and the White, Nymphaea alba, were there. They turned out to be first hectad records, as was the Carex canescens [C. curta] White Sedge we found by the outflow stream.

The journey back was as hot and unproductive as the way in, but some of us were rewarded with a cream tea in the Hen Siop Fron Goch before setting off home.  Sadly we failed to make the half-century – even the Sheep’s Sorrel, Rumex acetosella, in the neighbouring monad on the way home made our score for the day only 49 recorded species!

                                                                       

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