Locations where big cats have been seen around Biggleswade

Posted on by Natalie Doig

I completely forgot to share photographs of the sites where big cats have been seen in Biggleswade. So here they are! You can listen to the big cat episode of the podcast here or wherever you get your podcasts.

Penny’s sighting: water meadows between the Ivel River and A1

a field of long grass some of which is brown and yellow. There are bushes to the left and then a line of trees in the distance curling around to the right. The trees in the background mark where the A1 is. The sky is grey.

The image is above is looking towards where Penny saw the cat like creature running, being chased by her old grey hound. The trees line the A1 road.

A panoramic view with the path and fence on both sides and the field of tall yellowing grass in the middle. The sky is grey.

A panoramic view of the water meadow from the path by the river. Apologies for its wonkiness!

Although these photos were taken in late July, Penny saw the cat some years ago and earlier in the spring.

A field of very green grass with a line of newly green trees in the background. To the left there is a darker green oak tree. The sky is white clouds and pale blue.

This photo is the same water meadow but slightly further south from where Penny saw her sighting. This picture was taken in the June of 2018.

In the foreground there is a large swathe of water then mud streaked with more water then skeletal winter trees in the background. The sky is golden on the horizon then there is a band of fluffy grey and white clouds and above them darker grey sky. The water in the foreground reflects the trees and sky in a blurry way.

This is what the meadows are like in the winter when they are waterlogged.

Sam’s sighting: The RSPB Lodge

A crumbling old wall and pilar between which can be seen a hill with purple heather on it studded with tall trees. The sky is blue.

The RSPB Lodge is just north of Biggleswade between the common and the town of Sandy. The image above shows the heathland between the trees which gives a good idea of the different habitat up there.

Two little girls are balancing across a cattle grid on a tarmac road which curves away to the right behind them. There are dark green trees on both sides of the road behind them but it is more open where the cattle grid is. Fence posts can be seen on the right by the grid.

This picture was taken on the road Sam was walking up towards the car park when he saw the cat run across and jump onto a fence post. This is probably a lot further south on the road than where the cat was. The cattle grid is fairly near to the lodge. The picture is of two of my nieces, who are now grown up, trying to walk across the grid when we visited with them back in 2011!

A sandy path curves to the right through purple heather. Tall green trees are in the distance and the sky above them is a bright blue and white.

Here’s an image of the heath.

A muddy path leads away from us on the left towards a line of tall trees dark against a low sun. To the right there is scrubby grass and a fence. The sky behind the trees is gold and above it blue.

And this is the path leading down to the iron age fort which is in the south westerly corner of the reserve.

The sun is setting over low hills which are hazy. water shines in a thin silver strip there are trees dotted and fences separating fields. The nearest field is just grass.

Finally this is an image of the fields looking across to the river and railway that run along side the reserve to give you a feel for the countryside around Biggleswade and Sandy.

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Published by Natalie Doig

"Science and sorcery." It's a quote from a beekeeper I saw on the TV, about how he sees the work he does keeping bees, a balance between science and sorcery. For me it also sums up my experience of life, my interests and my outlook. I love photography which is a perfect blend of science and sorcery, using light and technology to create magical images. But when I'm not taking photos you'll find me making the podcast Weird in the Wade. I'm also often to be found writing, reading, knitting, riding my mountain bike or drinking coffee watching the world go by. By day I fight for disability rights, equality and inclusion for all.

1 thought on “Locations where big cats have been seen around Biggleswade”

  1. I was driving back from an evening class back in the late 1990s. The course was in Penzance and I lived in a small hamlet at Trezelah, when, driving along a narrow lane a large feline type animal leapt down from the left hand hedge and up the right hand hedge. You know Cornish hedges, they are quite high in places and usually thickly overgrown. The animal was definitely cat like and much larger than a domestic moggy and very graceful in movement. Another strange thing that had happened about 15 years before was when I and a group of friends were driving back from a Sunday on Sennen beach and were taking a lane to St Buryan to avoid the holiday traffic. I was idly looking out a window when I did a double take, I swear that what I saw was a classic garden gnome but moving. It was no corner of the eye sighting but right in front of my eyes, it vanished a second or so later. I looked for it every time I went that way afterwards but have never seen it since sadly. I had a haunted attic bedroom through teenage years with a green orb that seemed to like the top of the wardrobe, it never bothered me and a poltergeist that knocked the door. My then sister in law who stayed in that room after I had moved out came running down the stairs in her underwear after the ghost knocked, she wouldn’t go in there on her own afterwards.

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