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Waterside Natural History Society walk from Beaulieu to Bucklers Hard

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On a beautiful Spring day in late Autumn we set off from the centre of Beaulieu to walk to Bucklers Hard and back.

 

This is an extremely popular walk and our usually ponderous stroll was frequently interrupted by people overtaking us or passing from the opposite direction.

 

Some people use the walk as a means of keeping fit and walk at a brisk pace with eyes firmly on their destination.

 

Some people walk at a moderate pace enjoying the open air.

 

We however shuffle along with as much movement of the eyes and head as the feet looking at the scenery, the birds, the trees and the flowers or anything else that takes our interest.

We were not the only things that have been fooled by the weather this autumn.

 

The prolonged warm weather of the last few weeks has changed the look of Autumn and given us many surprises.

 

Red Admiral butterflies for instance which may be seen at any time of the year provided the weather is warm or sunny were flying in several parts of our walk.

 

We were even more surprised to come across a Song Thrush singing near the top of a tree which obviously had its heart set on the coming Spring.

Plants that are normally associated with Spring such as the primrose were in flower although cross pollination with garden varieties mean this is not as great a surprise as it once was.

 

We also saw an Alder bush with green buds ready to burst into leaf but hopefully being near the river they will not be too affected by frosts.

 

Most plants that are knocked back by frost have a remarkable ability to recover ready for next summer.

 

Others that have normally stopped flowering by now still have some colour such as the Ragwort, Knapweed, Saw wort and Herb Robert that we saw by the side of the path.

 

Even Self Heal and Betony which have been flowering since summer still had one or two flowers at the top of the flower spikes.

We came across a group of impressively large fungi at the edge of a wood that turned out to be ‘Giant Funnel Cap’.

 

Other fungi included ‘Clouded Agaric’ and the smaller ‘Butter Cap’.

 

It is difficult to tell what conditions make the fungi appear above ground but they have a remarkable ability to synchronise their appearance.

 

If you come across one variety you inevitably find more of the same type appearing at the same time even miles apart.

The walk between Beaulieu and Bucklers Hard is interesting for other reasons besides the natural history.

 

The archaeological history of the riverside for instance is rich in detail and several features remain to bring it to life for the walker.

 

Remains of the old slipways at Bucklers Hard show where many wooden hulled ships were built.

 

The chimneys of an old brick works still exist together with clay pits and docking facilities.

 

All these features are described in recently erected information boards along the route.

Beaulieu River along which we walked for most of the walk is tidal as far as Beaulieu and the tidal range means that the scenery changes depending on the tide.

 

The tide was very low when we were there so mud banks were exposed but during high spring tide the path is sometimes flooded.

 

It is always interesting to watch the yachts, rowing boats and motor boats that contain the people messing about on the river.

 

We took the riverside path on the way to Bucklers Hard but the more direct path on the way back which made a circular route for part of the walk.

 

Natural England together with the Beaulieu estate which manages the area have provided a magnificent day out for walkers- not forgetting the refreshment opportunities at both ends.

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