Chelmsford 100 (Chelmsford CVS) #5, Pennant 632

*In the Skies * Everyone speaks of the sunsets in the area being quite spectacular. As the flood wall forms a high pathway it makes for some incredible silhouettes of the land, trees, yachts and birds as they come in to roost. The area is abounded by farmland, fen and salt marsh making it a haven for a wide variety of birdlife. This includes over 300 acres of Marsh Farm Country Park which is recognised as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) because of its importance for overwintering dark bellied Brent geese. It also provides an overwintering site for many species of waders and ducks in the autumn and winter, and several species breed here in the Spring including sedge warblers, cuckoos and sky larks, making it the perfect spot for year-round birdwatching. Swans are a well know feature of this stretch of the river and people say its exciting when the black Swans fly in. Stories of around 20 Egrets roosting in just one tree at dusk were also shared.
So, the sunset, Swans and Egrets form the inspiration for this pennant (spot the Brent on another pennant). We’ve used images from an old map of the crossing and area around it shared by the Local History Society on each of our six pennants about this stretch of coastline.

Continue conservation work to improve biodiversity.