Anderwood is a Forestry Commission Car Park in the New Forest, just off the A35 near Lyndhurst, Hampshire. The car park is of reasonable size off a short gravel track. There are bookable barbeque facilities there – so can occasionally be busy. Photographically the woodlands nearby are probably best in the Autumn, when the seasonal colours are out and there is also a variety of fungi to photograph. There are
Radipole Nature Reserve is an RSPB reservein the centre of Weymouth, Dorest. The reserve is a wetland with lots of reedbeds that provide shelter for a variety of birds, including Bearded Tits and Cetti Warblers. Recent improvements to the walkways and the Visitor Centre have been made in 2012. The walkways allow the photographer to overlook and access more of the reeds than in the past. A hide which is
Blashford Lakes is a Hampshire Wildlife Trust Nature Reserve just North of Ringwood. The reserve overlooks two large lakes with 5 hides that view them, and it also has another woodland hide, and two other lakes without hides on them. The reserve is open all year round except for Christmas Eve and Day. The reserve car parls are open from 09:00 to 16:30. The reserve is known for having Bitterns
Early September is a fairly quiet time for photographing birds, as many of the migrants have left, and we await the winter migrants arrival. Still it was worth a venture out to Blashford Lakes again, though I did not see the reported Little Stint or Osprey, these three all year round residents of the reserve were worth watching and photographing. First a Great Crested Grebe. And from the same hide,
I spent a couple of afternoons at Blashford Lakes Nature Reserve on the late August Bank Holiday, one in reasonably sunny weather, the other far more overcast. On the first afternoon there were good views of a Common Sandpiper outside the Tern Hide. Further around the reserve, at the aptly named Lapwing Hide, there were a number of lapwings nearby. Finally from the first day was this flying gull. On
When birds come close to the front of the Tern Hide at Blashford Lakes, then nice large images can be taken of the them. This was the case today as a Lapwing patrolled the gravel outside of the hide. The wind blowing its head feathers into a punk like appearance. Also close to the shore was a Little Grebe – swimming along next to the gravel.
On a recent visit to Blashford Lakes Nature Reserve, I had the pleasure to watch and photograph some Common Terns feeding their youngsters at close range. Viewing them from the aptly named Tern Hide overlooking Ibsley Water, the young terns perched on posts only a few feet from the windows. Here is a profile picture of one of the juvenilles sitting on one of said posts. I was also fortunate
Radipole Nature Reserve is an RSPB reserve in the centre of Weymouth, Dorest. The reserve is a wetland with lots of reedbeds that provide shelter for a variety of birds, including Bearded Tits and Cetti Warblers. Recent improvements to the walkways and the Visitor Centre have been made in 2012. The walkways allow the photographer to overlook and access more of the reeds than in the past. A hide which
Mount Cairngorm in the Cairngorms National Park is a place to visit in both the Summer and the Winter. In the winter there is the ski and winter sports, and during the summer there is mountain biking and walking. The Mountain has a funicular railway that will allow you to go up near the top ( but you can’t go outside at the top – unless you take a guided
Fleet pond is a bit of a misnomer of a description – it is in fact Fleet Pond is the largest fresh water lake in Hampshire and the nature reserve totals 54.6 hectares in size. It is located near the station at Fleet Hampshire. The pond is a local nature reserve and as such is a haven for wildlife. The pond is also surrounded by woodlands and 3 walking trails
