3 ways to go wild in July
It's July and true to British nature the weather has been incredibly changeable and unpredictable.
Here's some simple ways to get some 'wild' in this month, especially if you’re looking to fill the next few heatwave days, or looking for some last minute ideas to fill the beginning of the school summer holidays.
Find wild orchids
There are 52 species of wild orchid that bloom around the UK, flowering between April and September with their peak flowering season in May/June. Many of them are quite rare and are legally protected as a result. They're often more subtle in stature and location, nestled in wildflower meadows, so you've possibly walked past some and just never noticed them!
The key to a successful wild orchid search is research - make sure that you look up local areas that are known to be good for wild orchids and when they flower. The wildilfe trusts has some great locations all around the country on their website here:
https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/where_to_see_orchids
I personally really love the bee orchid, because they look like they're always smiling! This particular one was found as locally in Bristol as up in the downs (where their numbers were decreasing a few years back, I don't know how they're doing now).
2. Visit the puffins
July is one of the peak seasons to see puffins because they are busy busy busy feeding their ever growing chicks. If you're ever seen the iconic photo of a puffin coming in to land with a beak full of sandeels, now is your time. There are plenty of great places that offer day trips out to see the puffins, and I can guarantee you, even the least bird-interested person will be charmed by their antics and personality. Birders will travel to the UK especially to come and see the atlantic puffin on our shores, and along the British Isles we are home to about 10% of the world's atlantic puffin population.
Some of my favourite spots include:
Skomer, Pembrokeshire - daily boat tours and overnight stays but you have to book those way in advance due to limited availability and high demand
Farne Islands, Northumberland - though I hear they're not landing this year?
Sumburgh Head, Shetlands
And I've always wanted to go to Lundy in Devon. You can also see them from Bempton Cliffs, but the gannets kind of outshine them there.
There is a really great book called 'The Seabird's Cry' by Adam Nicholson, which I'd highly recommend. In it, he goes through different seabirds and combines wonderful anecdotes with historical facts and biological information - it's absolutely fascinating. And there are some brilliant facts about puffins in there, with my favourite being that a puffin’s testicles will grow from the size of a poppy seed to the size of a broad bean in the mating season. That's some performance there.
3. Go camping and appreciate the stars
I know camping isn't really everyone's thing - most of my really good friends aren't all that into it. Some are into the idea but only if it's a fair weather camp out (I mean, who doesn't prefer camping in the sun to camping in the rain?). And there's certainly parts of camping that can be less enjoyable than others - if you go to a big campsite for example, the lack of privacy and sound insulation can be difficult, whether it's with families whose children get up early or groups of teenagers that like to party until late in the evening.
But at the same time, camping taps into something really special. A simplicity of living, away from material possessions, sometimes away from mobile reception. You can make camping as comfortable as you need it to be - after all, if you're just going to go to a campsite by car why not throw your duvet and nice pillows in there? Getting up and having a cup of tea on the beach is one of my very simple joys in life that camping can offer. And it allows us to slow down a little and actually notice the things around us, like the stars.
Star gazing can be really good for your mental health because it calms you down - just like in meditation you focus on your breathing, by focusing on shimmering stars in the sky it targets and calms the thinking brain down. It also instantly brings your problems into perspective by taking the time to look beyond our inner world and see just how much is happening out there. Free apps have made stargazing easier than ever, and you can download any of them, hold your phone up to the sky and find all the different constellations. No high tech equipment required.
There's campsites for everyone out there - whether you want campsites with bakeries, campsites where children aren't allowed, campsites with fancy equipment. Shetland's campsites blew me away as they all had an indoor area with washing machines and a microwave! You don't have to even put up a tent to enjoy the outdoor camping experience with glamping now more popular than ever and yurts or huts of all shapes and sizes popping up around the country.
As ever, happy wild-ing!
Ester
Meet Ester
Wildlife camerawoman by day, jewellery designer by night, with a heap of crafting in the middle. Bristol-based but longing for a wilder setting.
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