Katharine has just got back from spending a few days in London with our daughter Lucy and her family. It was a very busy visit, with lots of activities with our grandchildren.
On one of the days Katharine, Lucy and Lucy's son Asa went for a walk to Barnes Pond. Asa likes to see the water birds there. On this occasion he was quite disappointed that there were no mallards to be seen, though there were other birds.
In this shot, taken by Katharine, we see reflections in Barnes Pond. The pond and its surroundings give the feel of a village centre rather than a London suburb.
Barnes Pond has long been the community focal point of Barnes Village, known to generations of children as a place to feed the ducks and to people in general as somewhere to spare a moment to sit and watch the world go by. Just how long the pond has been there, nobody knows, although its origins are thought to date back far earlier than the 17th century. In April 2001, locals were surprised to find the pond minus its water and no definitive cause was ever established. The local community together with Richmond Council raised a substantial amount of money that enabled the pond to be repaired and fitted for the first time in its long history with an artificial liner. The total cost of the project was around £150,000.
Thank you all for your lovely comments and favs, they are all very much appreciated.
It must have been quite a surprise for the residents to wake to a waterless pond back in 2001, but the restoration using council and community money has been a great success. I do wonder though what would happen now if the water vanished. With council funding so short now it would be a much greater challenge to raise the funds for restoration.
Ian
November 17th, 2023
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Thank you all for your lovely comments and favs, they are all very much appreciated.
It must have been quite a surprise for the residents to wake to a waterless pond back in 2001, but the restoration using council and community money has been a great success. I do wonder though what would happen now if the water vanished. With council funding so short now it would be a much greater challenge to raise the funds for restoration.
Ian