Spring – maybe!

Sumer is icumen in, Lhude sing cuccu! Groweþ sed and bloweþ med And springþ þe wde nu, Sing cuccu! I always thought it was written by Chaucer, but apparently it dates from the mid-thirteenth century, over a hundred years before he penned The Canterbury Tales!  It translates (roughly but without scanning) as Summer is a’coming in, Loudly sing, cuckoo! The … Read More

Update on sewage main burst, near West Nooks 26th August

The Environment Agency is gathering data and putting together the evidence supplied to them to understand what impact the burst main had on the river. There were dead fish reported from Haxby down to Foss Islands, as well as other seen struggling to breath in the lower reaches. It is difficult to be sure at this stage how much the … Read More

Help for the Foss

You may have seen in the local news that the Environment Agency have four pumps running along the Foss for the last few days and wondered why. Yorkshire Water reported the presence of both dead fish and others struggling to breath on the surface around Foss Islands Road, as well as in several other places. The cause was found to … Read More

We Have Water Voles!

We talk a lot about Water Voles on the Foss, and from time to time we see traces of them, though the last time was in 2018. The survey done at the behest of the Environment Agency in the area of the Strensall flood alleviation project was quite depressing with no confirmed sightings or active burrows. So here are some … Read More

Can you help, please? Mink Survey

I’m sure you’ve seen and heard quite a bit about otters and mink, recently regarding Covid in farmed mink, but also over many months concerning the effect each of them has on the environment. We have both of these mammals along the Foss from time to time, and have had quite a few reports, as well as photos and videos, … Read More

RFS Activity Videos

We’ve got three new videos on the site for you to enjoy, have a look under “The River” 1) Water Monitoring – carrying out the monthly check of water quality 2) Litter picking – a glimpse of the last water-borne pitter pick 3) Slow ‘TV’ – a trip along the Foss from Huntington Road in a kayak.

Lost Your Way?

The RFS has for quite a while been trying to get the waymarking of the Foss Walk improved and the path maintained. Council budgets did not allow for such activities before Covid, thanks mainly to government cuts, so now it’s going to be impossible for the foreseeable future. We’ve been talking to NYCC for a while and the culmination of … Read More

What a load of Rubbish

A lot of members collect litter as they walk alongside the Foss, either as a useful adjunct to their walk, or as its main purpose. Without these efforts I can’t imagine what state the riverbanks would be in. Tim went one stage further and used a grapnel to haul out a selection of old bikes and supermarket trolleys – the … Read More