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Rodwell Trail
The Rodwell Trail is a short-distance footpath that runs from Wyke Regis to the town centre of Weymouth in Dorset – a distance of 3.5 kilometres. The trail, opened in 2000, travels along the former route of the Weymouth and Portland Railway. The section from near Sandsfoot Castle to Ferry Bridge is part of the South West Coast Path. The route follows part of the Jurassic Coast, and Sites of Special Scientific Interest. It is named after a neighbourhood of Weymouth which it passes through. The trail is estimated to be used by thousands of people, often as a means of avoiding traffic congestion in Weymouth. The trail is popular with pedestrians, cyclists and dog walkers. Maintenance of the trail is carried out by the Friends of Rodwell Trail group, who carry out litter picks and clear overgrowth on the route. Their work has been promoted by local publications such as the ''Dorset Echo''. Route The trail starts on Abbotsbury Road in Westham, Weymouth and ends at Ferrybridg ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rodwell Trail, Rodwell Platform
Rodwell, a name of Old English origin, is a locational surname deriving from any one of various places in Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire, and Kent, England.In English, the meaning of the name Rodwell is "lives by the spring near the road". Notable people and characters with the name include: Surname * Benjamin Rodwell, British lawyer and Conservative politician * Brett Rodwell, Australian rugby league footballer * Cecil Hunter-Rodwell, British colonial administrator and Governor * Charles Rodwell (born 1996), British-born French politician *Craig Rodwell, American gay rights activist and founder of the first gay bookstore *Emerson Rodwell, Australian soldier, cricket player, umpire, commentator and administrator * Eric Rodwell, American bridge player * George Herbert Buonaparte Rodwell, English composer, musical director, and author * Jack Rodwell, English footballer * James Rodwell, English rugby union sevens player * Jim Rodwell, English footballer and former chairman of Boston ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Portland Stone
Portland stone is a limestone from the Tithonian stage of the Jurassic period quarried on the Isle of Portland, Dorset. The quarries are cut in beds of white-grey limestone separated by chert beds. It has been used extensively as a building stone throughout the British Isles, notably in major public buildings in London such as St Paul's Cathedral and Buckingham Palace. Portland Stone is also exported to many countries—being used for example in the United Nations headquarters in New York City. Geology Portland Stone formed in a marine environment, on the floor of a shallow, warm, sub-tropical sea probably near land (as evidenced by fossilized driftwood, which is not uncommon). When seawater is warmed by the sun, its capacity to hold dissolved gas is reduced; consequently, dissolved carbon dioxide (CO2) is released into the atmosphere as a gas. Calcium and bicarbonate ions within the water are then able to combine, to form calcium carbonate (CaCO3) as a precipitate. The proces ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Great Crested Grebe
The great crested grebe (''Podiceps cristatus'') is a member of the grebe family of water birds noted for its elaborate mating display. Taxonomy The great crested grebe was formally described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in the tenth edition of his ''Systema Naturae'' under the binomial name ''Colymbus cristatus''. The great crested grebe is now the type species of the genus ''Podiceps'' that was erected by the English naturalist John Latham in 1787. The type locality is Sweden. The scientific name comes from Latin: the genus name ''Podiceps'' is from , "vent" and , "foot", and is a reference to the placement of a grebe's legs towards the rear of its body; the species name, ''cristatus'', means "crested". Three subspecies are recognised: * ''P. c. cristatus'' (Linnaeus, 1758) – Eurasia * ''P. c. infuscatus'' Salvadori, 1884 – Africa * ''P. c. australis'' Gould, 1844 – Australia, Tasmania, South Island of New Zealand Description The great creste ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Redwing
The redwing (''Turdus iliacus'') is a bird in the thrush family, Turdidae, native to Europe and the Palearctic, slightly smaller than the related song thrush. Taxonomy and systematics This species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of ''Systema Naturae'' under its current scientific name. The English name derives from the bird's red underwing. It is not closely related to the red-winged blackbird, a North American species sometimes nicknamed "redwing", which is an icterid, not a thrush. The binomial name derives from the Latin words ''turdus'', "thrush", and ''ile'' "flank". About 65 species of medium to large thrushes are in the genus ''Turdus'', characterised by rounded heads, longish, pointed wings, and usually melodious songs. Although two European thrushes, the song thrush and mistle thrush, are early offshoots from the Eurasian lineage of ''Turdus'' thrushes after they spread north from Africa, the redwing is descended from ancestors that ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kingfisher
Kingfishers are a family, the Alcedinidae, of small to medium-sized, brightly colored birds in the order Coraciiformes. They have a cosmopolitan distribution, with most species found in the tropical regions of Africa, Asia, and Oceania, but also can be seen in Europe. They can be found in deep forests near calm ponds and small rivers. The family contains 114 species and is divided into three subfamilies and 19 genera. All kingfishers have large heads, long, sharp, pointed bills, short legs, and stubby tails. Most species have bright plumage with only small differences between the sexes. Most species are tropical in distribution, and a slight majority are found only in forests. They consume a wide range of prey usually caught by swooping down from a perch. While kingfishers are usually thought to live near rivers and eat fish, many species live away from water and eat small invertebrates. Like other members of their order, they nest in cavities, usually tunnels dug into ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Radipole Lake
Radipole Lake is a lake on the River Wey, now in the English coastal town of Weymouth, Dorset, once in Radipole, the village and parish of the same name. Along the western shore of the lake, and between Radipole and the town centre of Weymouth, now lies the modern suburb of Southill. The lake is a nature reserve run by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, as it is an important habitat for reedbed A reedbed or reed bed is a natural habitat found in floodplains, waterlogged depressions and estuaries. Reedbeds are part of a succession from young reeds colonising open water or wet ground through a gradation of increasingly dry ground. A ... birds. The Wild Weymouth Discovery Centre at Radipole Lake features nature and bird exhibits and programs, trails and viewing blinds. The lake flows into Weymouth Harbour. External links * Weymouth and Portland council's pages for Radipole Lake Royal Society for the Protection of Birds reserves in England Nature ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RSPB
The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) is a Charitable_organization#United_Kingdom, charitable organisation registered in Charity Commission for England and Wales, England and Wales and in Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator, Scotland. It was founded in 1889. It works to promote bird conservation, conservation and protection of birds and the wider Natural environment, environment through public awareness campaigns, petitions and through the operation of nature reserves throughout the United Kingdom. In 2020/21 the RSPB had an income of £117 million, 2,000 employees, 12,000 volunteers and 1.1 million members (including 195,000 youth members), making it one of the world's largest wildlife conservation organisations. The RSPB has many local groups and maintains 222 nature reserves. As founders, chief officers and presidents, women have been at the helm of the RSPB for over 85 years. History The origins of the RSPB lie with two groups of women, both formed i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Merchant's Railway
Merchant's Railway was a horse drawn and cable operated incline railway on the Isle of Portland, Dorset, England, built for the stone trade on the island. It was the earliest railway in Dorset, opening in 1826. The railway ran two miles from many working quarries at the north of Tophill, along the edge of Verne Hill, to a pier at Castletown, from where the Portland stone was shipped. It was in operation from 1826 to 1939. Since becoming disused the original path of the railway has become a popular public footpath. History The Merchant's Railway was created to transfer stone from the Tophill quarries to Castletown's waterfront. This was originally done using horses, but the method was deemed cruel. After gaining an Act of Parliament in 1825, the railway track was constructed and opened in 1826. it used the unusual gauge of . The route of the railway led from Priory Corner, around Verne Hill to the Freeman's Incline. From this point the stone would be sent downwards to the Ca ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
BBC Two
BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio channels, it is funded by the television licence, and is therefore free of commercial advertising. It is a comparatively well-funded public-service network, regularly attaining a much higher audience share than most public-service networks worldwide. Originally styled BBC2, it was the third British television station to be launched (starting on 21 April 1964), and from 1 July 1967, Europe's first television channel to broadcast regularly in colour. It was envisaged as a home for less mainstream and more ambitious programming, and while this tendency has continued to date, most special-interest programmes of a kind previously broadcast on BBC Two, for example the BBC Proms, no ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
BBC Four
BBC Four is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was launched on 2 March 2002"Culture, controversy and cutting edge documentary: BBC FOUR prepares to launch" BBC Press Office, 14 February 2002. Retrieved 2 April 2010. and shows a wide variety of programmes including arts, documentaries, music, international film and drama, and current affairs. It is required by its licence to air at least 100 hours of new arts and music programmes, 110 hours of new factual programmes, and to premiere twenty foreign films each year. [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Julia Bradbury
Julia Michele Bradbury (born 24 July 1970) is an Irish-born English television presenter, employed by the BBC and ITV, specialising in documentaries and consumer affairs. Her passion is the outdoors and more recently following her cancer diagnosis and surgery, is dedicating her time supporting the benefits of healthy living and the virtues of nature therapy. She is best known for presenting a series of outdoor walking programmes across multiple tv channels in addition to co-presenting the BBC One programme ''Countryfile'' with Matt Baker from 2004 until 2014. She also presented ''Watchdog'' (2005–2009) and '' Planet Earth Live'' (2012) for the BBC and '' Take on the Twisters'' (2013), ''The Wonder of Britain'' (2015) and ''Britain's Best Walks'' (2017) for ITV. She has a website called The Outdoor Guide which is run by her sister Gina. In 2021 they launched The Outdoor Guide Foundation - raising money to donate outdoor kit to State Primary schools making the outdoors accessib ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Railway Walks
Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a prepared flat surface, rail vehicles (rolling stock) are directionally guided by the tracks on which they run. Tracks usually consist of steel rails, installed on sleepers (ties) set in ballast, on which the rolling stock, usually fitted with metal wheels, moves. Other variations are also possible, such as "slab track", in which the rails are fastened to a concrete foundation resting on a prepared subsurface. Rolling stock in a rail transport system generally encounters lower frictional resistance than rubber-tyred road vehicles, so passenger and freight cars (carriages and wagons) can be coupled into longer trains. The operation is carried out by a railway company, providing transport between train stations or freight customer faciliti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
