Visit to Upton Country Park, near Poole, Dorset on 13th July 2024

It was a lovely morning, so I walked from Rockley Park to Upton Country Park where I saw some playful young calves

There were lots of lovely flowers in the walled garden

Sea Holly

Dahlias

Pale lilac Poppy with bee

More Dahlias

I walked along to the water's edge and saw a Little Egret and Black-tailed Godwit

There was a large group of Black-tailed Godwits in summer plumage some distance away

Unfortunately it began to rain, so I headed to the shelter of the bird hide.  

An Oystercatcher had been digging in the mud.

A Black-tailed Godwit in winter plumage was also looking for food

It was raining quite heavily and I was stuck in the bird hide for a couple of hours!

Little Egret in the rain

The rain eventually stopped.  Here is a view of the railway line that crosses Holes Bay with the Twin Sail bridge in the distance.  This needs to be repaired and, with the twin sections of the bridge in the air, has been out of use for some time.  There is a Little Egret and a Black-tailed Godwit in the foreground.

I called in at Lychett Bay on my way back to the mobile home park and saw a pair of Mute Swan with two little cygnets, one of which is the white Polish version.  It then started raining again!