Where we go for an hour to escape

Our life these past few weeks has been filled with children's birthday parties one after the other. So a good long walk or day out has been put aside.
A few of the parents laughed when we told them at one party that our wellingtons and coats were in the car ready for us to have walk after. Two hours of sugar and hyper kids it's great to have some fresh air and walk it off.

running ahead

 So where do we go to escape, nearly always our local BBOWT reserves. We have 2 very close and depending on how much it has rained we argue over which we enjoy the most. One walk has been named the fossil walk the other the board walk, or in real terms Dry Sandford Pit and Lashford Lane Fen.

space to explore and find new things

 We love the freedom to explore, we know the locations well and yet we will find something new and exciting every time. We sometimes find a field vole at one site and this last visit we found a new born tiny baby. It was amazing to see, took us all by surprise. But we crept away quietly as didn't want to scare the mum away. Who doesn't love to get covered in mud, paddle in the streams and then realise your wellies leak. This is the steam we saw a fresh water crayfish in last summer.

who doesn't love an unusual bug

 Hopping from stone to stone through the reed beds until you can't see mummy sitting on the bench waiting.

this bug loves a pink coat

Charlotte knows the routes well so runs along in front zooming round the next bend shouting come on, hurry up to us. So much for that relaxing walk! All the grumbles we had at home are forgotten about and we are having fun.

the best way to learn, outside looking at what nature has created

Without realising it we are also ticking off so many of our 50 things. Dam a stream (well we didn't do very well but had a go), skim a stone, run around in the rain (so many times), make a daisy chain, hunt for fossils and bones, climb a tree, hunt for bugs, track wild animals, discover what's in a pond... and a few more I have missed out.

now Charlotte goes to find the fossils

 Come rain, shine or birthday parties, we still find time to get out and have fun exploring even if it's only for an hour.

Did someone say rain, doesn't stop this little person

I'm joining in with Baby Routes Wildlife Wednesday linky.

Lashford Lane Fen Nature Reserve, Dry Sandford, Oxfordshire

Approx time: 45 mins
Paths: mud, board walks
Points of interest: trees, wildlife, reed beds, streams, cows
Amenities: small car park
Grading: wet and boggy, only suitable for walkers or a baby carrier
Weather: all seasons

On our walk today we saw two woodpeckers and a pheasant, and that's with a noisy 4 year old signing we're going on a bear hunt most of the time. Did get a quiet moment when we listened out for the woodpecker and followed the sound.

Lashford Lane fen is very boggy and wet, with steams running through it. There are 2 circular walks you can do, shorter 30min wildlife walk or the permissive footpath of about 45mins.

 I think in autumn time they allow cattle on the land for grazing. Charlotte loves going from one bridge to another, and walking on the board walks.

We also peek under the pieces of corrugated iron found near the start of the walk to look for grass snakes (not seen one yet).
http://www.bbowt.org.uk/content.asp?did=23593

Dry Sandford Pit Nature Reserve, nr Abingdon, Oxfordshire

Approx time: 30mins - 1 hour
Paths: mud

Points of interest: open areas, pond, lake, wildlife, fossils

Amenities: parking

Grading: not all footpaths would be suitable for pushchairs, you could navigate half the site including the fossils
Weather: Spring, Summer and Autumn

Charlotte wanted to go for a nature walk one day, having exhausted all our usual routes my mum offered to take us out to Dry Sandford Pit. We often went there when we were little and its only a short drive from home. The BBOWT describe the reserve as:
A fascinating mosaic of fossil-rich cliffs, fenland with ponds and streams, grassland, scrub and woodland set in an old quarry in Oxon.
Geological wonders, nationally scarce fen and rich insect life make Dry Sandford Pit a reserve of national importance.

We had a lovely time walking around the site, we did have a hunt for fossils, watched the dragonfly's over the pond, ran through the long grass, saw some beetles, lots of ladybirds, plenty of rabbit holes and probably some badger sets too.

There are some bridges to cross, so we stamped our feet extra hard to scare the troll away, we kissed through each of the kissing gates.

we had so much fun that we took daddy with us at the weekend and took a picnic along. We have to go back soon as they are due to get some Dexter cows any day, we can't wait to see them.
details of how to find the reserve are on the BBOWT website