 Service updates
Dinton Activity Centre and the Coffee Deck, on the upper deck of the activity centre, will be closed on the 15 November (next Tuesday) due to maintenance work at the café.
From today until 11 November (Friday), the Coffee House, located next to the main car park at Dinton Pastures Country Park, is serving all items in takeaway containers as its toilet is out of service. The café is offering a slightly reduced menu as well, with no Full House or Meat Free breakfasts available.
 Santa run for fun and charity
The ever-popular Dinton Santa Dash, organised by Barnes Fitness, will return to Dinton Pastures Country Park on 17 December (Saturday) for the seventh year running.
An annual tradition now, the event is fun-filled, festive and suitable for the whole family. All runners will be dressed in a Santa suit and after crossing the finish line receive a Christmas medal, a mince pie and chocolates.
There is no minimum age requirement. You and your children can choose to complete a 2km Mini-Dash or a full 5km Santa Dash together, both of which are not timed.
Taking part in the run will also help children in need, as £2 of each entry will be donated directly to First Days Children’s Charity. Every £120 raised will buy a nice warm bed with frame, mattress, duvet, pillows and linen, for a child to sleep this winter.
Sign up now before it’s full!
 Festive menus at California Country Park café
It’s now November. Have you started planning for the festive meals with your family and friends?
From late November, Jacksons’ Café at California Country Park will offer Christmas menus for lunches and dinners. If you are throwing a big party, you may reserve the entire café for exclusive use and enjoy an array of buffet food from its Christmas party menu.
The family-run café specialises in fresh, locally sourced produce. It was refurbished earlier this year to give a refreshing look for both regulars and newcomers.
To book for a Christmas meal or party at Jacksons’ Café, give them a call at 01189730776 or email info@jacksonscalifornialake.com.
 Sunday activities by Dinton Activity Centre
If you’ve never joined a Sunday archery or indoor climbing session offered by Dinton Activity Centre, book a session before they end after 27 November!
Archery
Our professional team from Dinton Activity Centre will teach you how to shoot a bow and arrow, and provide you with tips and technique through competition and games.
You don’t need to have any previous experience and all aged six and above are welcome.
Indoor climbing
Equipped with 11 automatic belays, the climbing wall in the activity centre is seven meters high and hand-painted with murals that capture the beautiful lake and woodland scenes from Dinton Pastures Country Park.
The climbs are suitable for beginner to intermediate, and no previous experience is required. For the best climbing experience, we will only book in 10 climbers per session, so there is plenty of room for everyone.
Book a session
Each archery or indoor climbing session lasts for an hour and costs £10 per person. To book a session, visit the information page on archery and indoor climbing on Dinton Activity Centre website.
 Fish survey at Emm Brook
Our Countryside Services team have joined hands with the Loddon Fisheries and Conservation Consultative and volunteers to conduct a fish survey at Emm Brook to learn more about the fish and their habitat in Loddon Rivers.
The activity was part of the Loddon Rivers Week organised by the South East Rivers Trust during 26 September to 2 October aimed at improving the health of the river.
Good news -- the Emm Brook was found to be very well populated with many species like bream, perch roach, rudd, chub stickleback, minnows bullhead and stone loach.
The team shared with us some interesting facts about the fish found in the river:
- A member of the sculpins family that has over 300 species, minnows bullheads are the only one in the family that lives in the British Isles.
- Stone loaches are one of the only two species of loach found in the UK. They are vulnerable to pollution, so are a good indicator of clean water.
All data from the fish survey will be shared with the Environment Agency and Thames Valley Environmental Records Centre.
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