the time is quarter to two, much more news coming up the time is quarter to two, much more news coming up at 2pm. now on bbc news it's time for the travel show. this week on the travel show — as the world marks armistice day, we are in america to explore a fleet of abandoned first world war ships. we meet the spider men and women of guizhou in china. the potomac passes some of washington, dc‘s most iconic landmarks. george washington, founding father and original president of the united states, lived on its banks. but follow the river just 30 miles south and you will discover a section that is a world away from the capital's boulevards and monuments. this is mallows bay and it is a paradise for kayakers.

when you look around, you can see why. so much natural beauty here and the wildlife is amazing. when the bay is full, you might assume it isjust another beauty spot. but as the tide rolls out, its secrets are revealed. this is what remains of potentially the largest group of world war i ships anywhere in the world. and i am here a century after the united states entered the conflict. the wreckage of around 100 war—era vessels can be discovered here. to find out how they ended up 30 miles south of washington, dc, i've arranged to meet marine expert donald shomette. hello, there. hello. how are you going?

lovely to meet you. when we entered the war, we didn't have much of an army or a navy or much of anything and when we asked the prime minister of england, lloyd george, what can we do, he said ships, ships and more ships because one out of every two ships was being lost per week that sailed from england to france and the supply line was stretched. there was the threat of starvation. by 1918, we outstripped the united kingdom, great britain, in shipbuilding. while the makeshift vessels were built at a breathtaking speed, they were completed too late to play a major part in the war. after the armistice, the world was in economic turmoil and the wooden ships, obsolete. with few commercial prospects, the us government sold them off

to a salvage company. the company eventually brought them over here in this burning basin over here, they take the ships, burn them down and try and get the maximum metal out of them. so this is a graveyard for ships? yeah. and it's notjust first world war vessels which can be found here. donald claims the oldest wreck goes all the way back to the american war of independence, 240 years ago. in total, it is estimated the area holds the remains of almost 200 ships. this wreck is a latecomer. she is called the accomac and she was built in the late 1920s as a passenger ferry. the crazy thing is, even though this ship has died, there is so much living stuff on it. 0n the surface, the wrecks might

look like an environmental disaster but they have been left alone long enough to be reclaimed by nature. back in my kayak, i am joined by conservationist joel dunn. you can see why they call these shipwrecks flowerpots. in the uk, people pay good money to have biodiversity like this on the roofs of their houses. what sort of wildlife can i expect to see? bald eagles and ospreys and great blue heron and otters and beavers and lots of fish below the water. so you could be eaten by the wildlife if you go back into the bush there? the bay is a relatively shallow water body with a typically muddy bottom so the shipwrecks create structure and from structure, you get diversity and from diversity, you get magic.

joel, donald and other conservation groups have teamed up to have mallows bay recognised as a national marine sanctuary. if approved, the site's wildlife and history will come under the protection of noaa, the national oceanic and atmospheric administration. so there's 13 national marine sanctuaries in the country, we want this to be the 14th. it will bring it more attention, partners in funding and some level of protection from people who may be harvesting historical artefacts. the biggest thing it does, though, is it creates a national tourism resource that brings people from all over the world. but opinions are divided on these new protections. nearby, i meet some commercial fishermen making their living from the river's teeming wildlife. slimy gross thing.

these are the blue catch. they are ugly suckers, aren't they? not real pretty. they migrated down. it's a million—and—a—half dollar industryjust on this river alone... they are concerned that turning mallows bay into a national marine sanctuary could down the line lead to restrictions on our fishing. 0ur problem is the unknowns. we want it to put in writing that they that will never bother our industry because our livelihoods depend on it as they will not give it to us, they say, "we can't do it." they say they have no plans to do it. won't the extra tourism benefit you? no. people go into the restaurants who will want to eat, there'll be demand for more fish, won't there? our sales will not increase that much in that area. people will be going back to dc. the organisations behind the nomination insist their plans won't impact fishing.

the final decision is expected next year. donald is adamant about the benefits that sanctuary status will bring to mallows bay. the visitation will enlarge enormously after it becomes a national marine sanctuary. we want americans to see this, we want the world to see this. this is a world—class site. these ships were involved in saving the world from totalitarianism. this is important. next up, we are travelling to guizhou in china, home of the miao minority, where for centuries they have climbed the region's sheer cliff faces without ropes.

in the past they did it to collect herbs for chinese medicines, but we heard that they are now putting their skills to a different use. so we went to meet them, and it goes without saying, please don't try this at home. the incredible spider men and women of guizhou in china. next week carmen is injapan finding out what's being done to save one of the most beautiful train lines. out what's being done to save one of the most beautiful train lineslj never expected to be so busy. i don't think i'll get seat! and don't forget you can keep up to date in real time by following our social media feed. all the details should be on your screens right now. but for now from me and all the travel show team here in maryland, it's goodbye.

for your latest update on the weather now, it's a cold day. not much time being spent outside today and! some of us seeing sunshine others seeing heavy showers. a double rainbow in shropshire. in wales, and south—west england and western coastal countries the wind is easing a bit. the wind strong along north sea coast this afternoon. plenty of showers. some of those heavy, lots of hail and thunder. some sleet as well. plenty of sunshine inland. tonight it's not going to be as cold. temperatures dipping away to give a widespread frost, colder in the suburbs and countryside. temperatures well below freezing going into the morning,

especially in northern ireland northern england and scotland. we should be scraping ice of cars in the morning. at atm tomorrow we know it's going to be a cold and frosty start, eight good few degrees shaved off these temperatures in towns and cities. if few of those showers in postal parts,. the weather system is poised to move in. as we move into cold air we will see outbreaks of rain. as we go through the day and into cold in we see some snow out and about. the hills, particularly in northern scotland and the southern uplands and pennines, perhaps relatively low levels briefly, but uncertainty about the snow and helmet disruptive it may be. check the forecast heading out in the morning. —— how disruptive it might be. increasing cloud makes it feel colder even though the wind

isn't as strong. this weather system moves gradually southwards through monday night. the rain is going to be weakening. snow finishes off as well with milder in from the atlantic. a change in the feel of things on tuesday, wednesday as well. a good deal of cloud around. not a huge amount of rain left over. still single figures, in scotland, but not that far from the average. that's how it looks for the next few days, cold, but it won't last too long. but by the end of the week, colder again. more forecasts are available online. this is bbc news. the headlines at 2:00 — first secretary of state damian green insists police never told him about pornography allegedly found on his computers. he says the allegations have an ulterior motive. the bbc understands

the foreign secretary has contacted the husband of a british woman who's in prison in iran. michael gove says tehran should be facing criticism over the case as he rejects calls for borisjohnson to resign. a two—minute silence has been observed at ceremonies around the country to honour the dead of two world wars and other conflicts. also in the next hour — the spanish prime minister visits catalonia for the first time since he imposed direct rule on the region.