News

Monday, 15 August 2011

Male Redstart, RSPB Images

Welcome to the 2011-12 season

Our new season of meetings and field trips started on Wednesday 21st September 2011. We have our usual varied monthly schedule of high-quality speakers sharing their superb photos with us. This year these talks range across four continents, from Africa to Australia; Europe to South America.

Most of our meetings this year will be held at our usual venue at the St Mary's Centre, except the December meeting, which was at the Guildhall. Following the success of our Members' Kaleidoscope slideshow evening the previous December, this was repeated this year.

For those who may not have visited us before, St Mary's is situated in Chester, behind County Hall and the Law Courts, and free parking is available in the large car park in front of the courts. The Guildhall is on Watergate Street, Chester, with free evening parking in the Market car park.

Everyone is welcome to attend our meetings, which start at 7.30 p.m. and the admission charge this year is being kept at £3.00 (refreshments included), or £2.00 for Chester Group members. Annual membership is £5 waged, £8 family or £4 concessionary.

We also have seven field trips planned for the 2011-12 season. These started on Saturday 1 October, with a walk from West Kirby across the sands to Hilbre Island, to watch the migrants and waders and of course, we hope to see the inquisitive seals. Following the success of last season's weekend in Norfolk, we will repeat this in February, and the April highlight will be a coach trip to Lake Vyrnwy. Full details of these trips will appear on the Events page.

If you'd like to come on any of our trips, please call the contact person a few days before the event to book your place, and to check where the meeting place is. For coach trips, you need to book at least a month in advance to avoid disappointment.

There is normally a meeting point in or around Chester, but sometimes we meet at the reserve if it's not far away, so it's important to ask the leader exactly where to meet and when. Don't feel left out if you don't have a car, as we can usually arrange for another member to give you a lift.

For all the trips, we recommend stout footwear, and appropriate outdoor clothing for the prevailing weather. Many of the trips will last well into the afternoon, so you may want to bring a packed lunch and something to drink. If you'd like to know more, get in touch with us via the 'Contact Us' page.