A walk on the wildside.

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A morning walk in the New Forest with a cold start but soon the sun came up making it a nice Spring Morning walk.

Several small herds of young Fallow Deer spotted us about the same time as we spotted them so a bit of looking at each other before both parties went their own way.

It was nice to see Fallow Deer today so close to seeing a herd of Red Deer last week – what stands out between the 2 species excluding the size is the white and black buts of the Fallow Deer.

Some bird watching along the way and at a hollow tree at the end of the walk with a bit of birdseed to encourage some of the smaller birds closer to the camera.

A Song Thrush. One of this bird’s favourite meals are snails – which they break into by smashing them against a stone with a flick of the head. This one was feeding in the forest under fallen leaves looking for worms and insects.

A Nuthatch is an interesting small bird as they will climb down trees and well as up while looking for a meal. They hold on to a tree from all angles.

A male Chaffinch.

The wren is a tiny brown bird, it has a short, narrow tail that is sometimes cocked up vertically.  For such a small bird it has a remarkably loud voice.

Black-tailed Godwit.

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Black-tailed godwits are a large wader. In winter they are rather dull and grey in colour. Now as we approach the summer they colour up their chests and bellies become a bright orangey-brown

They have distinctive long beaks and legs.

Wintering numbers in the UK are about 44,000 birds from the Icelandic population.

Black-tailed godwits breeding range stretching from Iceland to the far east of Russia. 

A film of Godwits on the River Hamble. (filmed into the sun so not as good quality as I would have liked)

followed by stills taken from the film.

Postcards

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Camper van trip {Pt 6}

Mixed views from a few days away.

River at Lynmouth – On the 15th and 16th of August 1952, a storm broke over south-west England, depositing 9 inches of rain within 24 hours on the already saturated soil of  Exmoor and Devon. Debris in the floodwaters cascaded down streams and rivers converging upon the village of Lynmouth. Above the village in the upper West Lyn valley, fallen trees and other debris formed a dam, which in due course gave way, sending a huge wave of water and debris down the river. Overnight, more than 100 buildings were destroyed or seriously damaged 38 cars were washed out to sea, 34 people died.
The rebuilt Rhenish Tower survived the main flood but was seriously undermined. The tower collapsed into the river the next day. A digger is in the harbour removing gravel that built up after a recent storm blocking some of the harbour.

Views along the coast views of the sea at Blue Anchor and Minehead.

Minehead RNLI B Class rigid-hulled lifeboat and launch tractor are housed in the car park while the 1901 lifeboat house is being refurbished and extended – always ready for the call.

Statue of Lorna Doone at Dulverton. Lorna Doone a Romance of Exmoor is a novel by author Richard Doddridge Blackmore, published in 1869. It is a romance based on a group of historical characters and set in the late 17th century in Devon and Somerset, particularly around the East Lyn Valley area of Exmoor.

footnote flood pictures.

A ruined Church.

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Camper van trip {pt 5}

On the way home after our trip away, we stopped at Knowlton Church And Earthworks (a usual stopping place for us). Situated near the village of Cranborne in Dorset it is on a route we regularly take to avoid the city of Salisbury where there is a traffic bottleneck. The site is now in the care of English Heritage. It is an interesting historic site with a ruin of a 12th-century Norman Church situated at the centre of a Neolithic henge earthwork. Like other Christian sites, it symbolises a transition from much older sites of importance and pagan worship to Christian worship.

As well as the main earthworks the landscape around the church is a part of a larger Neolithic and Bronze Age ceremonial area most of which can now only be seen from aerial study as crop marks.

Below a picture that was taken from online shows an overview of the area and its features.

Nunney Castle.

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Camper van trip {Pt 4}.

Nunney Castle in Somerset dates from the 1370s. It was built for Sir John de la Mare, a local knight. His castle was inspired by French castles seen on campaigns. The castle was modernised in the late 16th century, the castle was besieged and damaged by the Parliamentarians in 1645, during the English Civil War.

Today the ruin is picturesque the moated tower is well preserved and dominates the centre of the village.

Sir John de la Mare and other lords of Nunney Castles are buried in the village church. The Church is a grade1 listed building dating from the 12th century it is said it was built on the site of an earlier church dating from an earlier Saxon or Norman Church.

Some views of Nunney Village.

Valley of the Rocks.

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Camper van trip {pt2}. Valley of the Rocks or Goats

Valley of the Rocks is a dry valley that runs parallel to the coast in north Devon, near the village of Lynton. A spot visited by tourists for years to walk and see the landscape and geology.

There is a herd of feral goats wandering, in the valley, A herd of 75 goats were recorded in the valley in the Domesday Book in 1086. In 1976 the current herd was introduced to the valley when it was realised that they had a role in controlling the vegetation growth. I have visited the valley and seen no goats other times I have had to walk up the rock outcrops to see them but when we visited this week many came down near the car park.

Exmoor Red Deer.

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Camper van trip to Exmoor. {Pt1}

Returning to our campsite and as the light was starting to drop we spotted a herd of Red Deer young Stags (males) and Hinds (females). From the lane, they were interested in us as much as we were in them after a good look at each other they moved off back into the woodland.

Red Deer are the UK’s largest deer. Males have large, branching antlers, increasing in size as they get older. The Stags spotted are young animals given he had fairly small non-branching antlers. Red Deer live on moorland and mountainsides, as well as grasslands near to woodland. They are common in Scotland, particularly the Highlands and Islands. Red Deer are also found in the Lake District, Exmoor, as well as the New Forest.

A host, of golden daffodils.

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A short local walk to collect our trail cameras some nice views of a Muntjac deer on one of the cameras. Introduced from China to the UK in the 20th century. Although an invasive, non-native species today they are protected in the UK under the Deer Act 1991.

Some facts about this small deer which is about the size of a medium-sized dog.

Length: 77-91cm
Shoulder height: 45-52cm
Weight: 10-17kg
Average lifespan: 10-13 years

Wild Daffodils are now out in flower which gives a splash of colour to this dull time of year, I am glad we are moving into spring. Also known as the ‘Lent lily’ or ‘Easter lily’ this native Daffodil is smaller than many garden varieties. They are found in damp woods, fields, grassland and orchards. It is a rare plant but can be abundant in some areas.