The river Tillingham running under Ferry Road bridge up to the sluices at the Strand is a beautiful stretch of water. The main image taken in the late winter shows its shining waters against the stark background of the trees. The path along it is well frequented and a variety of wildlife live both on, in and next to the river. This piece was supposed to be about the beauties of the river, but other thoughts impinged!
There appears to be a section of the Rye community whose only interest in the river is to dump things in it. At the bottom of the little slipway where people feed the ducks and the jackdaws there are at present a bicycle and a shopping trolley.
The bicycle (there were two at one point) has been in and out of the water at least half a dozen times, but always gets pitched back in. It has now been joined by a shopping trolley, collecting river vegetation as it moves down the river towards the sluice. It isn’t a major problem to the river flow, but it reduces this lovely watercourse to a rubbish dump and there is more detritus by the sluice gates.
This still doesn’t take away from the lovelier aspects of this little piece of water and the gallery below will hopefully show all the advantages of living near a river. The birds on this stretch on the morning of February 15 included a cormorant fishing and it has been seen getting more than six fish out of the river in one feeding frenzy, two drakes asleep on the bank and a kingfisher sitting on a branch over the water. As always, the gulls were about, but not as overwhelming as sometimes. What a pleasure, just don’t look at the shopping trolley!
Image Credits: Gillian Roder , Gillian Roder .