Tales from Gazen Salts


Time Will Tell

Season 2

See Here for Season One of Tales from Gazen Salts Nature Reserve Directory

Designs – Earthly Comforts – Inspired by Nature – see collection here

Various locations around Gazen Salts.
There are many projects that will start again next month.

Time Will Tell

A quiet moment in Gazen Salts before the Open Day started.

The Open Day for Gazen Salts was last Saturday, 24th September, and l managed to speak to the treasurer yesterday on a brief afternoon walk between the rain storms. I was walking down past St Clements, and he was walking up, and we bumped into each other. He was returning from the reserve, where he had taken some photos.

Our conversation revealed that although we had more traffic on the Open Day itself than last year’s day in November, we had made less profit. From memory, l think we made £423, give or take a few quid back then. That had been from profit from the table for refreshments and cakes and a few items sold from the table like equipment and some direct donations.


This year we took £360, mainly from the refreshments table; we had no items for sale, we received a few direct donations, and we also managed to sign up for one FROGS membership – Friends of Gazen Salts. Given the state of the financial climate whilst this figure is low, it is still better than nothing.


The weather in November had been appalling whilst last Saturday threatened to be terrible but proved okay with even some sun showing its face for a while.
It wasn’t a bad day this year, and we had a new feature, the Bug Hotel building [l will write about this next time], which proved popular with the kids, of which we had more this year than last November.


I also managed to pin down some time with the chairman, and l spoke to him for two hours on a host of different subjects, including the warden position, which will become available in January. There will be interviews, of which l will be one of those. We also spoke at length about the missing chairs on the committee and the positions that need to be filled.


These are non-paid positions, and whilst l am not destitute, one of the other reasons for applying for the Warden’s part-time job is that the income would be greatly received in today’s climate.


That position would be a 14-hour post and not a 20 hour which would be even more manageable given my working schedule, especially as they want a seven-day-a-week contractee. I don’t think many would like that position as it is pretty demanding, l would love it, and l have expressed that wish.


However, l also put my interest forward in one of the committee chairs, ‘Volunteer Coordinator.’ This is a position l do have experience in – organising and managing people and a position that would enable me to work within the charity and combine it with the Warden’s post. There is a lot of versatility to the situation.


The chairman seemed impressed with my discussions, and it is the first time we have spoken at length properly since l became a volunteer. I also asked him directly what he was looking for regarding the Warden’s role. His answer married my thoughts, so we are on the same page.


So maybe – perhaps – hopefully – this talk of ours will prove fruitful for our futures and that of Gazen Salts.


As to the reserve, sometimes it never seems to change its face, yet you know a significant amount of project work is to be done. I see that from many different angles, and if l play my game right, perhaps l will be able to address it formally as well. Time will tell.

The refreshment’s table at 10am on the left and again on the right at 1pm. The visitors to the Open Day arrived in trickles.

Designs – Earthly Comforts – Inspired by Nature – see collection here

Tales from Gazen Salts Nature Reserve is about my time and stories of my voluntary work with this project.

I’ll see you next episode. Thanks for reading.

Gazen Salts Nature Reserve
Sandwich, Kent, England, UK


Published by The Autistic Composter

Earthly Comforts is a wildlife journaling scrapbook focusing on the countryside, wildlife biodiversity and environmental conservation, flora and fauna volunteering projects, gardening, composting and vermiculture, inspiration, poetry and photography.

6 thoughts on “Tales from Gazen Salts

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