Rushmoor Country Park ~ Visitors Guide ~ A Day Out
Today’s trip was based around a desire to see some more Birds of Prey. It was whilst searching for the opportunity to do so I came across Rushmoor Country Park.
I went passed a sign the other day whilst out-and-about but other than that I knew nothing of it
Was it worth going there ?
Yes I think it was
It’s situated near Louth by a place called North Cockerington, it’s not too hard to find, especially once the ‘brown tourist signs’ finally kick in.
Whilst not the biggest place in the world I was pleasantly surprised by the number and variety of birds of prey they had there.
There were a number of Owls including Barn, Snowy, Eagle, Great Horned Owls, not to mention Peregrine Falcons as well as others that now escape me.
Not sure what our friend is on the left but he was perfectly happy to pose for pictures.
It was a glorious day, the hottest for some time in fact, and families seemed to be making the most of it. There are donkeys there, which children can ride on, horses, rare breeds of pigs, goats.
Seemingly every type of rabbit even chipmunks and a rescued Wallaby !
I was hoping to see a display of falconry but it seems that the birds are still moulting [thanks D] so not quite ready.
Whilst a slight disappointment it was reassuring that the birds welfare took precedence. A young man who handles the birds could not have been more helpful and informative answering quite a few questions I had about the spread of birds of prey in Lincolnshire and surprised me by the numbers of species we actually have in the wild.
Denied the opportunity of birds in flight I still took plenty of pics which I’ll not bore you with, in fact I’ll delete what I don’t use for the blog - I never save any pictures I take - will I regret that one day ?
Is it Worth Going ?
I think so, especially on a glorious day such as this, there’s plenty for children to do, should you be blighted with the little devils.
As mentioned before, it’s not a huge site but there is plenty there and it’s certainly a place which is up to you to make the most of.
There is also a children’s playground, herb garden, ponds, tea rooms and picnic area so you can take your own picnic - a great idea which combined with reasonable admission prices means it’s not prohibitive for families.
It made up just part of another fantastic day out in the Lincolnshire Wolds for me.
The rest of the places I visited will be coming to a blog near you in the near future - try to contain your excitement 
Contentedly Yours
Rod
Peregrine Falcon ~ I Think ?
chris keyworth said,
August 8, 2009 @ 7:47 pm
I love to see all wildlife however i would much rather see them in there wild habitat, doing what they do naturaly
chris
good pics Rod……
Rod said,
August 8, 2009 @ 8:12 pm
Chris,
I must say I agree and to see the birds caged and those outside tethered did make me hesitate.
The good thing about it is many of these are rescued and captive bred etc and I think the benefit to the birds as a whole, species wise, benefits from the education of seeing them up close.
The handler told me many of the kids think they are pigeons !
Hopefully seeing them and learning will make them keener on securing natural habitats for wild birds in the future.
One thing I learnt today was that many falconry centres keep their birds in the dark at certain times and in heated cages in order to confuse them as to the time of year to ensure they’re ready to fly at prime tourist times.
I was happy in this case I missed out of the flying and falconry displays !
Cheers
Rod
Little Brother said,
August 8, 2009 @ 11:10 pm
Rod,
Awesome! Really good that, love the second one. Must be a Cannon
LB
Rod said,
August 9, 2009 @ 8:24 am
LB,
on the second one I tried using the portrait mode which nicely blurred the background - came out well I thought
Something else I’ve learnt
I couldn’t get any of the ‘man made stuff’ out of shot for the birds so they’re all compromised to an extent
Best
Rod
Chris said,
March 27, 2011 @ 1:51 am
The second bird is a Prairie Falcon.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prairie_falcon
Chris said,
March 27, 2011 @ 1:52 am
Also, as you can see that it has a solid seamless metal band on its leg, it is a captive born bird. Not a wild one.
Rod said,
March 27, 2011 @ 9:37 am
Hi Chris,
thanks for the ID, really is appreciated and welcome to the site.
Regards
Rod