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Teifi Marshes >  Google™ Map Sep 2013  Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales Logo

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Sep 2013

"Discover the wonders of nature with regular sightings of kingfisher, otter and wading birds", they say.

Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales Logo

You can discover the wonders of nature with regular sightings of kingfisher, otter and wading birds, alright, but more on that in a minute.

You know that obsessive-compulsive desire to make a mental or in some cases a pencilled note of all the UK counties that you've been to?[1]

If you park up in Cardigan[2] then you're definitely in Ceredigion. If you cross the bridge and follow the River Teifi to your left, the old railway track brings you to the nature reserve at Teifi Marshes that might just be in Pembrokeshire.

They advertise that fact in their address but it looks like here is a little enclave south of the river and Cardigan Castle is the custodian.

[1] No? Then you're clearly not a middle-aged man.
[2] Inexplicably not explored here.

You know that theory about the kingfisher? You should know the drill by now...

These flashy, folk-lored flightsters don't actually exist because SlyBob had never seen one and enough riverbanks had been rambled along to should have done. You know they're just the eye candy in an RSPB™ conspiracy to get you to sign up?

Well, here's one[1].

Teifi Marshes - Alcedo atthis

This was the first in-the-feather so to speak and put an end to all of that nonsense above, which is a bit of a shame as Bob was actually starting to believe it.

Funnily enough, this was seen from the Heron Hide...

[1] Definitely not some discarded Doritos™ wrappers whipped up in the wind.

... then, even funnierly enough, this was seen from the Kingfisher Hide. A couple on a casual day out came in...

Teifi Marshes - Ardea cinerea

It might have been the same one, the shrill call of a kingfisher nearby. Nothing in sight but then, out of the reeds, a technicolour flash as it darted across the pond before poof! Gone in an instant.

Bob gestured 'Did you see that?'
She gestured back 'Was that a...?'
I nodded, she nudged, him, not me, whispering...

'No it wasn't.' he said, still checking his phone for messages. Idiot.

They've done quite a job on the Welsh Wildlife Centre. Unexpectedly good, home cooking in the Glasshouse Café and a 'craft' beer menu two years before it was fashionable.

Some artsy goings-on outdoors, which is a little ironic given that they're prone to the occasional gassing around here. Is this a piece of ballsy postmodernism? Satirical even?

Or is it just what it is? An imaginative use for some leftover twigs.

If you take yourself across the reserve, you might see the resident herd of water buffalo, not shown, doing some conservational grazing on the marshland. At least you might do if you visit between March and late September, outside of that, they're holed up at a local farm.

No such luck today, the most exotic looking thing was this robin. Yes, it's just a robin but this guy was unflappable for a good five minutes, more than happy to pose at about 10 foot.

Teifi Marshes - Welsh Wildlife Centre - Erithacus rubecula

Back in the caff, on your panini, you might well wonder if the buffalo milk is the source of the mozzarella? Not-so-fella!

They get it from the big Tesco™s in Cardigan, probably.

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 Cardigan  
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