We got out and about again despite the rain... In fact this whole 30 Days Wild has taught us that getting out is always fun, whatever the weather...
Today, we decided to walk along the canal, from where it joins the river in Widcombe, up to Sydney Gardens. It was such a lovely walk and we discovered a peaceful and interesting part of Bath, right on our doorstep, that we had never explored before!
Building on our scientific theme yesterday we started our trail by carrying out a water sampling experiment as part of the Waterblitz from Fresh Water Watch, which is a global project to understand the state of fresh water.
We choose a quiet spot near the first lock, behind the Travelodge. (Long 51.377 / Lat -2.354). There was a stone wall, grass and trees in the area. We couldn't see any obvious signs of pollution (no oil, floating algae, litter or foam). The water was clear and green.
Then we collected our water sample. The time was 14.53.
We put it in the special tester - one to test for nitrate levels, which are increased by agricultural fertiliser.
And one to test for phosphate levels, which comes from agricultural run-off and domestic waste water and can cause algae blooms. Excess amounts of either nitrates or phosphates in the water can damage the natural flora and fauna of the ecosystem.
We waited 3 minutes for the nitrate test and 5 minutes for the phosphate test
And then we recorded the results... between 2-5 ppm nitrates
And less than 0.02 ppm phosphates
We continued along the canal...
...spotting a kingfisher, this heron and several ducks
We finally reached Sydney Gardens and enjoyed a brief dry spell before the rain started again.
We really enjoyed our walk even if we were a bit soggy when we got home!
We finished off our water sampling by inputing the data online. If you want to find out more or get involved yourselves here's the link:
https://freshwaterwatch.thewaterhub.org
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