Why I love the Fens
I love the Fens because they are so vast yet teaming with life from waders in the scrapes to birds of prey in the sky and water voles and otters in the drains and rivers. The fens are my happy place what better than the fens to get to see important and rare nature on my doorstep?.
However, the Fens face significant threats, including habitat loss from agriculture and development, drainage of peat soils releasing stored carbon, and climate change impacts. Conservation efforts are crucial to restore and maintain these habitats for wildlife and future generations.
Currently, organizations like the Wildlife Trust for Beds, Cambs and Northants, the RSPB, and The National Trust are leading efforts to protect the Fens. Their projects focus on habitat restoration, such as rewetting drained peatlands, creating nature reserves, and supporting sustainable farming practices.
Fenland is considered very rare, with only a tiny fraction of the original fenland habitat remaining in the UK. Estimates suggest that less than 1% of the original fenland exists today, making it a scarce ecosystem with high conservation value.
Most of the fenland in the UK has been drained and converted for agriculture, leaving only small fragments of the original wetland landscape. Despite its limited size, the remaining fenland supports a diverse range of wildlife, including many rare species, making it a valuable ecological area.
I want to help these organisations protect these landscapes, so I have planned a big event… I’m calling it the Fenathlon!
The Fenathlon… What is it!
I’ve wanted to do a challenge and to raise money for the fens, but it needed to be big, to match the ambitions of the charities working to protect them!
So the Fenathlon is a one-day event linking Woodwalton Fen with Ouse Fen and Wicken Fen by bike, kayak and foot! We’ll be covering an epic 36 miles (58km), passing through six nature reserves on the way!
With my friend James, we’ll cycle from Woodwalton Fen (a Wildlife Trust Reserve) to St Ives, where we will swap into our kayaks and paddle along the river to Ouse Fen (a RSPB reserve), before walking the final leg to Wicken Fen (A National Trust reserve)
The Route in Detail…
1st Leg – Cycle from Woodwalton Fen to St Ives - 13 miles / 21 km
Woodwalton Fen, part of the Great Fen, is one of only four remaining fragments of the ancient wild fens and is a last haven for many rare fen species.
Woodwalton Fen would not exist today if it were not for Charles Rothschild, the "father of modern conservation". Rothschild bought Woodwalton Fen in 1910 to ensure that at least one part of the ancient fens would not disappear forever.
We will cycle from the entrance of the Fen, passing the Ramsey Heights Nature Reserve and then along country roads to the local town of St Ives passing through the villages of Woodwalton, Abbots and Kings Ripton and Houghton. In St Ives we will cycle to the historic quayside and move from bikes to canoes.
2nd Leg – Kayak from St Ives to Ouse Fen - 7.7 miles / 12.3 km
Leaving St Ives by kayak along the River Great Ouse heading downstream we will soon arrive at the edge of RSPB Fen Drayton Lakes.
Fen Drayton Lakes began life as a flooded quarry next to riverside meadows. Now a huge variety of wildlife is drawn to the area. The reserve stands at one end of a string of wetlands and fens that runs along the Great Ouse floodplain.
Continue our journey on the river will take us to Earith, on the edge of RSPB Ouse Fen where the RSPB are working to transform a working sand and gravel quarry into Ouse Fen nature reserve. The reserve is being created in reedbed blocks, with pools of open water linked by ditches and channels, allowing wildlife to move freely.
3rd Leg – Walk from Ouse Fen to Wicken Fen - 15.3 miles / 24.6 km
We will pick up the Rothschild Way, the walking route between Woodwalton and Wicken Fens for the final leg.
Walking along the River Great Ouse for much of this leg, we’ll pass through farmland and Kingfisher’s Bridge Nature Reserve.
Wicken Fen was the National Trust's first nature reserve, with 2 acres bought in 1899. Over the years since then, many acquisitions later, the reserve has expanded to over 2000 acres.
Before 1899, the Sedge Fen area was home to a thriving sedge-harvesting community and was frequented by naturalists who delighted in this remnant of undrained fenland.
Raising money for the Charities…
The money we raise will be split between the three charities equally, with the funds directly benefiting the restoration of this important habitat by supporting projects such as;
· Peatland Progress run by the Wildlife Trust for Beds, Cambs and Northants to achieve a core purpose of the Great Fen, to buffer, protect and link our two precious fragments of fen habitat: Holme Fen and Woodwalton Fen National Nature Reserves.
· Creating a Demonstration Nature-friendly Garden at Wicken Fen right by the start of the Rothschild Way to help people learn about making their gardens wildlife havens.
Here’s how you can help…
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Keep Cheering us on! — Your support will keep us going through every pedal, paddle and step of this challenge.
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