October 2026 Update

One of our summer engineering projects has been the construction of a pond dipping platform suitable for visiting school pupils. This has been preposterously expensive (at about £10k) but has thankfully been funded by the Netflix advert for The Gentlemen Season 2 (see August 2026 blog).

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A passenger flying into Gatwick captures the Netflix advert for The Gentlemen Season 2 in a video from the August 2026 blog post.

The high cost is mainly due to the need to ensure the platform is safe. Each of the pylons has been tested to withstand a weight of over 40 tonnes (assuming a child weighs around 40 kg and the platform carries 10 children at a time, that means each of the dozen or so pylons can support roughly 100x the expected weight).

After weeks of construction the platform was finally completed! It is spectacular and is currently my favourite place to sit and have lunch. All we need now is some rain so that the pond will fill with water.

Aerial shot of the pond completely dried up from the drought back in August 2026.

Our two engineers (Angus and Brady) doing the initial measurements to assess the site back in August 2026.

Platform completed … just need some rain now!

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Me joining Angus and Brady (the builders of the platform) for a celebratory post-construction lunch.

Other highlights from this month include:

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A Tawny Owl using our Mink Trap as a perch.

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A Grey Heron. Watch for the Wagtail which flies across the camera after a few seconds.

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A Buzzard having an evening drink.

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A magnificent Brown Rat.

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We have recently created a 2km network of paths through Mount Wood which would be suitable for horse riders to use.

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One way to fell a tree!

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A key benefit in having horse-riders visit is it helps scare the deer away (deer eat young trees). Here is a horse rider using our new paths. Watch to the end as they appear to have a companion who has lost their horse…

A morning cobweb.

With autumn finally arriving we are beginning to see some lovely fungi appear.

Finally, on Sat 31st October we will be hosting an event at Aspect with details below:

Saturday, 31st October

4pm - 6pm: Child Friendly Halloween

Under the protection of marquee, we will carve pumpkins, play games (apple and donut ‘bobbing’ etc.), make a Guy and then have a small, safe, controlled fire. No fireworks but we have sparklers, s’mores etc.

Designed to be suitable for children but who says adults can’t enjoy this sort of fun just as much (I intend to!)

6pm - 8pm: Proper Bonfire and BBQ

Bigger fire (still no fireworks) in the orchard, with a BBQ.

From 8pm: Live music, laughter, evening of fun

Once the fire is over, we will de-camp to the marquee to chat, drink and laugh our way through the evening. If you play an instrument and want to ‘perform’ bring it along!

Photos from Night Under the Stars at Aspect last September 2026

There will be a band attending who will jam away creating the ideal atmosphere, they are excellent and very welcoming to anyone who wants to join in/singalong/play along.

When the evening finally ends some people are camping on site.

Sunday, 1st November

From 9am:

Campfire breakfast of eggs, bacon etc. We will then do the main task of the weekend, which is the dismantling/moving of the marquee to a safe winter location. Ideally, we need at least 10 people to help with this task. So if you are free to join (even if you didn’t join the night before), please let me know.

Let me know if you want to come to any of the above so we can plan food /drink accordingly. Email me at piers.clark@aspectnaturereserve.com