#blashford

Looking back on my first ever visit to Blashford Lakes on 9th February 2008, with some photos I took there in latter years in this set

With a lot of time on my hands the last few days I have been doing some extra posts on a few different themes, and today I felt like something a little different that I did try once before. Going back in time to a specific day I have clear memories of in my birdwatching/wildlife/photography. One momentous day was when we first ever visited this one of my favourite nature reserves. So I will talk through the main events as I might in a post about a day today, with some contextual references along the way too. At the end of the post I will caption the ten pictures I went on to take at this spot.

I shall set the scene a little first though, on 9th February in 2008 I was eleven years old, in my last year of Primary School and had been birdwatching seriously for about a year at that point and had seen into the 100s of species. Titchfield Haven, Lower Test, Farlington Marshes, the Hayling Island oysterbeds and of course our local Lakeside Country Park were the main spots we had birdwatched at before this point.

On that winter’s Saturday, on the suggestion of one of my Primary School teachers from a previous year who is an avid birder and has mentored/helped myself and my Mum over the years especially at that stage who kindly told us how to get there we made our way to the other side of the New Forest for an exciting delve into the unknown, to explore and discover which we loved starting to do back then. We started off at the tern hide overlooking Ibsley Water, where I recall being greeted by a friendly set of birdwatchers in the hide as we were at every hide that day who were great at showing us things back in the infancy of our birdwatching days. I particularly recall the pride at me seeing a Peregrine Falcon that was around before my Mum could spot it and explaining to her where it was by likening it to a post on a gravel spit much to the amusement of the gentleman pointing it out. The big thing that sticks in my mind from the first Blashford visit was the amazing mix of birds we saw for the very first time and one of those came in the roadside trees on the way from the tern hide to the Ivy lake and visitor centre side of the reserve, a beautiful Mistle Thrush. 

We then went next to Ivy north hide looking for a bird at that stage I had heard of and we had heard was about before coming, the Bittern. We didn’t see it after a little look, before we made our way to the woodland hide. I do recall saying the view from the Ivy north hide was pretty beautiful on the day. I remember on the way to Ivy north I managed to get a view of the woodland hide through the trees and we said something like “Wow they’ve got a hide with feeders next to it!”. As at that stage in our birdwatching we’d never seen such a thing, we had feeders in our garden but hadn’t seen them at a reserve, and it excited us so much. Its obvious why now as from visiting the woodland hide many times I have experienced so much the incredible intimacy you get from viewing the feeding birds in this state of the art hide with the special glass. 

One of the moments of the day occurred as soon as we got into the hide and there was a Great Spotted Woodpecker feeding! I remember doing something that seems so silly now, once ensuring I had seen the bird which my Mum had said “oh look its a woodpecker!” I flicked through a trusty bird ID book we had with us to see if I could tell whether it was great or lesser spotted. It seems silly as I now know the differences between them clearly having seen both, the great spotted hundreds of times probably and luckily the lesser spotted a handful now. And also someone would have and probably did tell us. But seeing the Great Spotted Woodpecker that day was a monumental moments for me for birds. It was what I thought at the time was my first woodpecker seen, a type of bird I’d heard of before I was really interested in them and one that was an ultimate goal. It transpires we had seen a Green Woodpecker the spring before at Durlston Country Park in Dorset on a seabird excursion one Saturday but we didn’t know it was one at the time. But seeing this great spotted really got me so excited and allured to woodpeckers, all three of the green and spotted species are among my favourite birds now. That day felt like the beginning of my love affair with Great Spotted Woodpeckers, and woodpeckers generally. A magical childhood moment.

Also in one of my favourite hides the woodland hide that day we saw another bird beginning with B I had not heard of, Brambling, beautifully subtly different birds to Chaffinches among a flock of them on the ground. Another moment I recall in our early birdwatching days that day was seeing a Coal Tit and Great Tit on the feeder at the same time and that being really notable, and I thought or said that it was nice to see the two side by side to know the difference between them. My Mum was full of excitement as she spotted and I then saw our star bird of the day again when a Great Spotted Woodpecker was on a branch walking along the boardwalk/path area after coming out of Ivy south hide.

To bring that afternoon to a close, me and my Mum that night told the story slightly differently. I said we took a wrong turn going back to the car park (I think we must have parked by the tern hide) and ended up back there before leaving, my Mum said we’d have checked again anyway just in case. But we ended up back in the Ivy north hide and amazingly managed to see the Bittern! A stunning bird to see. A firework end to a brilliant day out that captivated and inspired me and is a key part of the fabric of my love of nature and Hampshire’s wildlife/wild places.

After that visit Blashford Lakes soon sailed to the top of my charts as a Hampshire nature reserve and generally. We came several times after including the same month and it wasn’t until spring 2009 that we came and didn’t manage to see a new bird for us on the visit such was the diversity of species it hosts. Over the past fourteen years it went onto become one of our most treasured birding spots, always allowing chances to see brilliant and important species year round with many rarities. It has also been a key spot for us for butterflies, moths, mammals, fungi and flowers, and since I first picked up a camera in 2009 this has been one of my favourite places to take photos especially wildlife but landscapes too. 

The pictures of mine in this photoset are; Bittern seen from the Ivy north hide in March 2019, Coal Tit from the woodland hide in 2016, two of Great Spotted Woodpeckers from the woodland hide in March 2020 and late 2014, Brambling from the woodland hide in March 2019 and landscapes from Ivy north hide on our latest visit there last month, from Ivy south hide in January this year, the pool beside the path frozen and misty in December 2017 and two of Ibsley Water taken from the tern hide on polar opposite days a rainy and blustery one in March 2016 and a fine sunny one in December 2021.

11/03/16-Quick call into Harbridge and walk at Rockford Common in the New Forest 

In what’ll probably prove to be the penultimate trip of my time off before starting work we headed this way today in search of a bird before the walk. I got a hat-trick of year ticks today and like another hat-trick early this year in this trip http://dansnaturepictures.tumblr.com/post/137228364772/130115-river-itchen-and-portsmouth-as-predicted I seemed to predict it. The first year tick of the day at Hardbridge was easy to predict as we’d been reading about it being there all week, the Bewick’s Swan. We got quite a distant view but it was great to see its yellow bill and always a bird I love to see. 

We then moved onto Rockford Common where I took the 2 pictures today, where I could sense spring in the air with it nice and sunny and me not needing a coat. I had a sense that I might see something spring like today, most likely something I considered a spring bird or a butterfly. It was the former, a Chiffchaff which is always a milestone as you feel the season’s changing. 

The third year tick was probably the most special, a Jack Snipe flying up as we wondered through the heathland. This was predicted as it was becoming one of my targets and on Tuesday I got a picture of a Common Snipe. Just out of curiosity I revisited the ID between the Snipe and Jack Snipe so was looking at Jack Snipes this week and then I saw one today. This is probably one of the best Jack Snipe views I’ve ever got, I heard my Mum shout it and saw it flying up, and then I was just able to get the binoculars on as it was going down to see the distinct stripes. 

This ends a great week for birdwatching for me taking my year list to 122. Its still much higher at this stage than my last 2 year lists and its only 3 behind my 2011 year list total. It feels amazing once again to be so close. 

8 years of going to Blashford Lakes, why I love it so much 

8 years ago today I went for the first time to a place that’s become one of my favourite and most visited nature reserves, Blashford Lakes. So I thought I’d do a post exploring why I love it so much and remembering some of the many highlights I’ve had. I’ll initially explore why I love it so much generally then I’ll write a section about each hide/area of the reserve which I go to. In each section I will indicate which of the 10 pictures from the photoset of some of my favourite Blashford images of mine from over the years was from this area if any, before saying some of my favourite wildlife I’ve seen from this area over the years. I will end by writing specifically about that visit 8 years ago today. 

What I love about Blashford Lakes is its sheer variety. Its a cluster of lakes from former gravel pits, with wetlands, woodland and grassland nestled around them, so it just attracts so many different species. Its largely thought of as a bird reserve and that is what you see most there, but there’s plenty of other wildlife too. I had been birdwatching for little over a year when I first visited in 2008, so every single visit in 2008 led to me seeing at least 1 new bird, both common and quite rare. There is definitely a closeness and intimacy about the wildlife at Blashford, and it allows for lots of picture opportunities of so many different things. Its also a beautiful area on the edge of the New Forest, I had to pick only 10 pictures of mine from it since 2008 for this photoset so its all wildlife with it being a wildlife dominated place but I have taken some landscapes there over the years too. Because of all this there is a great spirit about visiting Blashford with really friendly staff and it attracts people from many different walks of life. Now I will explore different areas of it individually allowing me to remember some of my highlights from the 8 years. 

The Tern Hide-Ibsley Water 

Pictures in photoset: The first 2 of the Grey Heron and Lapwing in 2014 and 15 respectively. 

Great species I’ve seen from it: Ring-billed Gull, Yellow-legged Gull, Goldeneye, Goosander, Long-tailed Duck, Bewicks Swan, Little Ringed Plover and Water Pipit. 

The Tern Hide offers a great view over Ibsley Water and is especially well thought of for its large number of Gulls. Its a great location for Ducks, Geese and Swans too especially in the winter, with some more seasonal birds in the spring. The areas of gravel in front of the hide offers a great chance for pictures. 

Goosander and Lapwing Hides-Ibsley Water 

Great species I’ve seen from them: Sand Martin, Black-necked Grebe and Buzzard. 

I visit these 2 less frequently as it overlooks the same water as the Tern, but both are very good for getting close to Sand Martins in the spring and summer and also offer beautiful views. 

Ivy North and South Hides-Ivy Lake 

Pictures in photoset: The 3rd one of the Great White Egret in 2015 

Great species I’ve seen from them: Bittern, Great White Egret, Water Rail, Bearded Tit and Kingfisher. 

Nestled in the wood and both looking at different but habitat similar bits of Ivy lake these 2 hides are key to the reserve, with both being good for water species. Ivy North especially is very good for reedbed species, and both offer a host of duck species and lots of Cormorants. The Kingfisher wood perches right in front of Ivy South make for great photo opportunities. 

Woodland Hide-Beside Ivy Lake

Pictures in photoset: The 4th, 5th and 6th of various shots of one of my favourite birds the Great Spotted Woodpecker, and the 7th and 8th picture of another of my favourites the Jay and the Siskin and Brambling. 

Great species I’ve seen from it: Great Spotted Woodpecker, Jay, Siskin, Brambling, Lesser Redpoll, Nuthatch and my first ever Badgers during a night watch event in 2010. 

The Woodland Hide is my favourite at Blashford and indeed anywhere. It was the second of this type of hide at a reserve we’d ever seen when we first visited in 2008 and it certainly is very unique. Its been featured on Autumnwatch where they mentioned the glass that means the birds can’t see in but we can see out. It is definitely the place where intimacy is offered as you can get so close to woodland feeding birds and Squirrels, and you rarely need binoculars. Over the years I’ve seen such a range of species there and there’s usually something slightly different each season. I nearly always leave having appreciated a really common bird so its great to make you do that. I also nearly always leave having seen a Great Spotted Woodpecker and the closeness to this species its allowed me over the 8 years has been key to it becoming one of my favourite birds. 

Around the centre 

Pictures in photoset: The last 2 of the Earthstar Mushroom between it and the Woodland Hide in 2015 and an Elephant Hawkmoth from a Moth trap in 2011 around the back of it. 

Great species I’ve seen from it: Elephant Hawkmoth, Emperor Dragonfly, Raft Spider, one of my favourite butterflies the Silver-washed Fritillary and a similar selection of woodland birds to the hide at the feeders. 

The centre is what it describes itself to be the hub beside the car park. Its almost the bit that focuses on wildlife other than birds. It has feeders nearby and a kind of pond and plant area around the back. Its often the first place you touch upon I’m sure and its very welcoming on the inside and out. 

Rockford Lake and the screens looking over Ivy Lake 

Great species I’ve seen from it: Whooper Swan, Smew and Great White Egret 

This is the very edge of the reserve as it borders the fishing parts of the lakes, and its always quite eerie exploring it and its a nice escape when there’s lots of people there. We only discovered this bit because of seeing the Whooper Swans there in 2008 which is probably the standout moment in my 8 years of going to Blashford Lakes. We’d seen our first Goldeneye and Long-tailed Duck from the Tern Hide and just as we were leaving content someone said Whooper Swans had been spotted on Rockford Lake. We worked out where to go and headed straight there and were able to spot them from a distance. These were in a different league to many of the birds I’d ever seen at Blashford as they are very rare for Hampshire, and I just felt on top of the world. The screens looking across Ivy Lake also allow for a overview that the hides don’t really give and I felt great when I managed to spot the Great White Egret from it last year in a position where it couldn’t be seen from either of the hides.