‘Even in the darkest of places, there are treasures to be found’

For the benefit of those who missed my first article last month, explaining how due to my journey with depression I discovered birdwatching, I will give a very brief recap.

It was in the early 1990s that due to stress, a back injury, and despair, that I was signed off with anxiety and depression. Having become a recluse, it was with some trepidation, that I walked as far as the Vale Pond one day. Here I encountered someone, who had also experienced the same mental health issues as myself, and took me under his wing, and encouraged me on my journey with birdwatching.

This pastime grew and grew, and I found that being outside immersed in nature, in many respects, was almost as much of an antidepressant as the medication I was having to take. It was also a wonderful way to make new friends, and to create many memorable moments, that live with me to this day.

Some people look upon birdwatching as quite a nerdy thing to do, and indeed possibly even a hobby for anorak wearers. However, bear with me, let me tell you of some of the highlights which I have encountered over the years.

I got introduced to Bird Race Day. This is an annual event whereby teams of four people have 24 hours to find an identify as many species of bird as possible within the Bailiwick of Guernsey. For many years, this to me was as exciting as Christmas Day to a youngster. In the early years of the 2000s it wasn’t unusual to manage to see, between the teams, up to 100 species in a day – the winning team sometimes getting into the low 90s. One year, I decided to take three novices from the birdwatching course I was running, and because we need to visit Herm to see puffins, it was thought the quickest way was to use a friend’s Rib. However, little did we know that due to lack of oil in the engine, we were going to spend two hours in the Little Russell waiting for a boat to give us a tow.

There was the year, when it rained non-stop for the entire day, another time we were at the reservoir trying to get a long-eared owl to answer to our imitated call, only to learn later that an opposing team had listed long-eared owl as heard – they beat us by one point that year – and I don’t think we had the heart to tell them that the owl had a very human accent to it.

It was in about 2008 that I started running a birdwatching course firstly at our church, then for the College of Further Education, and then in later years I ran it independently with on average a class size of about 16 people. These were 12-week courses which included six classroom sessions and six guided walks.

This was something that I continued for 15 years, and taught probably about 300 people, some of them repeating the course several times over. This was primarily because of the enjoyment that they derived simply by meeting as a group, having loads of laughter, and the reward of learning things that they had never observed before.

It was mainly because of these courses that I started my journey with bird photography. This was to provide me with the necessary material to illustrate the things that I was teaching. As anyone who does bird photography will tell you, if you want to do it well, it is not going to be cheap.

Fortunately, I also did a lot of local landscape photography which I was able to sell, and therefore, pay for my bird photography expenses.

I have also been very blessed, in so far as on two separate occasions I have been contacted by the Guernsey Philatelic Bureau asking if I would be willing to submit some of my images for two issues of postage stamps. You can see an example on these pages. It was quite humbling to be told that due to the fact they were carrying the royal insignia, the Queen had to sign off the stamps before they could go to print.

On another occasion, I had the privilege of winning the Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition. I was fortunate enough to be at one of our local nature reserves when a spoonbill, who had been busy preening at sunset, suddenly looked skyward at a marsh harrier flying overhead. [You can see this picture on the right next to Rod at the exhibition.] The symmetry was perfect, the light was superb, and it was very much a case of being at the right place at the right time.

I have a pop-up hide in my garden, from where I have photographed literally hundreds of birds. I’ve been able to set up a little studio where I have various perches – moss-covered branches – for my avian friends to land on. On one occasion I constructed a reflection pool, with the aim of capturing beautiful bird reflections. To be honest, my bird photography has probably overtaken pretty much my everyday birdwatching.

What has emerged overtime, and continues to this day, have been the opportunities to befriend a number of people who have mental health issues. I have found that taking them out for a birdwatching walk, talking through issues, finishing up with a coffee somewhere, has proved to be tremendous therapy for quite a few.

Being able to share, firstly my passion of birdwatching, my own personal experience of depression, and have such a beautiful island to share with like-minded people, has been a privilege beyond measure.

Obviously, I would never choose depression, but I’m hugely grateful for the world that it opened for me. I wouldn’t be true to myself, or to my Lord, if I wasn’t to say, how much my faith has also carried me through.

‘I would never choose depression, but I’m hugely grateful for the world that it opened for me’

I firmly believe that we are all placed on this earth for a reason, and if one of my reasons for existing is to help another soul to gain some perspective in their darkness, then my suffering has not been in vain.

If this article achieves nothing else, then I hope it enables the reader to grasp that even in the darkest of places, there are treasures to be found. My life has been richer, more fulfilled, as I have shared my passion with those who have crossed my path. This would not have been possible, indeed would never have happened, had I not had mental health issues.

I would urge anybody that finds themselves in a situation similar to mine, to get out of doors, when you don’t feel like it. Meet up when you don’t feel like it, with someone that you can relate to. Be prepared to share how you feel in honesty and enjoy the benefits of nature which has been created for our wellbeing, and which are so accessible on such a beautiful island as ours.

Our local RSPB group has regular meetings and walks which anyone can partake in. They have their own Facebook page and give details of all future activities, they welcome with open arms new members. The ornithological group of La Societe Guernesiaise also welcome members. There is an opportunity to work outdoors with the Guernsey conservation volunteers who meet regularly to maintain our nature reserves, and coastal headlands. Birdwatching courses are currently being held twice a year by my good friend Richard Vowles, and he too welcomes anyone who is just starting on their birdwatching journey.

There is no reason why you too cannot enjoy being introduced into the wonderful world that we are so blessed to live in. Thank you for taking the time and effort to read this article, and I hope it is of some help to someone.

If you are experiencing any of the things discussed in this article, please seek support. Information on available resources can be found here: www.gov.gg/mentalhealthsupport. For more ideas on how you can connect with nature, contact the Nature Commission.