The Catcott Reserve
Catcott is a microcosm of the Avalon Marshes as it was before the major agricultural changes of the 20th century. There are areas of traditional hay meadow and grazing marsh, heath and fen, reedbed and open water, wet woodland with tree-lined droves. This wonderful variety brings with it a magnificent diversity of wildlife ranging from the impressive Marsh Harrier through to the tiny rare Shining Ram’s-horn Snail; from stately oaks to the rare Marsh Pea.
The Wildlife Trust website is here. The Avalon Marshes website is here.
(The above links are here for information only, and Geocaching.Com is not responsible for any content on them.)
History
In 1964 the Somerset Trust for Nature Conservation was formed; four years later it acquired the first section of what is now the Catcott Complex. Since then other parcels of land have been purchased and access improved, creating a diverse reserve. In 2014, what is now Somerset Wildlife Trust, celebrated its 50th anniversary and, with support from the Heritage Lottery Fund, the Tower Hide was constructed together with new boardwalks.
Catcott Lows
The “lows”, as its name suggests, is some of the lowest lying land in the Avalon Marshes. Former arable farmland has been turned into an internationally important haven for wintering waterfowl and waders. In front of the Lows Hide Wigeon, Pintail, Shoveler and Teal can be seen in abundance on the flooded fields, whilst waders such as Lapwing and Snipe pick their way around the margins.
Catcott Heath
Catcott Heath was the first area of the complex to be purchased. It is a mix of species rich fen with such species as Bog Myrtle and carr (or wet) woodland. The “heath trail plots”, which date from an early research project, are home to Great Crested, Smooth and Palmate newts.
Great Fen & Little Fen
Great Fen and Little Fen are restored peat workings with reed beds, open water and islands. Great Fen’s tower hide is a superb platform to see such birds as Kingfisher, Gadwall and Little Egret. If you are lucky you may see a hunting Marsh Harrier and hear the harsh screech of the shy Water Rail.
Traditional Hay Meadows
Catcott Reserve has several wet meadows which are managed in a traditional way. They contain many different flowers, unusual plants and rarities which used to be found in the landscape as it once was. Whilst there is no public access to these areas in the spring you can look over a carpet of colour and variety.
The Leather Track
As well as a long history of wildlife conservation, Catcott Reserve also has tales of earlier history. Not of Neolithic trackways or Iron Age villages but the industrial revolution. Along Higher Ropes Drove, which runs through the heart of the complex, you may see strips of leather. This is waste from Glastonbury and Street’s old leather industry, which was used to surface the boggy peat droves.
Until around 4,500 BC, the sea covered the Catcott Area. When it gradually began to retreat, reed beds, followed by a mixture of sedge and fen woodlands, colonised the drying marshes. Then, as the old vegetation died and decayed, thick seams of peat were formed.
The Romans were the first to harvest peat to burn as fuel. Between April and September, when the ground was at its driest, men would cut the peat by hand, while women and children would stack the turfs to dry, before loading them onto carts or flat-bottomed boats. The peat was cut this way for hundreds of years until the 1940s, when coal became more popular. In the 1960s, peat was removed by huge machines for horticultural use, but this stopped in the 1990s. Today, these former peat pits have been transformed into a landscape of open lakes, reed beds, fens and wet woodland, and have become a hugely important area for nature conservation.
The richness of habitats at Catcott make it a fantastic place to visit at any time of year whether geocaching or otherwise! It’s a superb place to watch wildlife, whether it’s an elusive bittern or otter lurking in the reed beds, or the fantastic, swirling flocks (murmurations) of starlings that come here to roost in winter.
Winter is also a good time to watch waterfowl, such as gadwall, shoveler and tufted duck, gathering to feed on the reserve’s lakes. Visit in spring for a cacophony of birdsong and fantastic displays of flowering plants. In the summer, hundreds of migrating hobbies visit the reserve, while families of otters are frequently seen in streams and lakes.
All the geocaches on Catcott Reserve are placed under the guidance of, and with kind permission from the Senior Reserve Manager. Please stay on the paths unless looking for a cache. No cache is more than 3m from a path.
Dogs are allowed on the reserve, but must be kept on a lead.
This is just one of the geocaches at Catcott. Finding them all will illustrate the diversity of flora and fauna across the reserve. It can get very muddy on the reserve paths in winter.
Walk round the marsh, then cross the bridge. You are looking for a 400ml beaker, please hide as best you can after signing.