Spring Bank Half Term: The best time to explore the Forest of Bowland?
Late May or early June is quite possibly the best time of year to visit the Forest of Bowland. All the spring migrants are back from their overwintering grounds and the wild flowers are beginning to peak out from the lush burst of verdant meadow grass.
Up on the moorland, If you’re lucky, you might catch a glimpse of hen harriers exchanging food over their nesting grounds, while in the woodlands, rarities like the pied flycatcher and redstart are busy feeding their young.
High overhead above large bodies of water like Stocks Reservoir, the occasional osprey can be seen. They don’t nest in the Forest of Bowland… yet, but these majestic fish-eating hawks are sometimes seen patrolling lakes and rivers on the lookout for an unsuspecting trout to pluck from the water.
The insect life this spring has been boosted by the warm, dry weather, so it should be a bumper year for butterflies and the abundance of invertebrates should also benefit insect-eating visitors like swift, swallows and house martins.
As summer unfolds, the hillsides are cloaked in a glorious late summer mantle of mauve and green as the heather blooms and dense swards of emerald bracken burst forth across the fells. This is when the whinberry or bilberry – our native blueberry – can be picked at many locations around the Forest of Bowland. The season is short and it’s hard work, but this tart little berry has a uniquely subtle flavour when sweetened and cooked in crumbles or shortcrust pastry pies.
The almost endless summer daylight makes this the best time of year to explore the most remote corners of the AONB, losing yourself on lonely tracks and footpaths miles away from public roads or habitation.
The northern and western fringes of the Forest offer the wildest and most challenging terrain to explore on foot. This is the ideal time of year to climb rugged hills like Parlick and Fair Snape, Tarnbrook Fell and Clougha Pike and an expedition to the Ward Stone – the highest point in the Bowland Fells – guarantees some breath-taking panoramas.
The Hornby Road is a classic route which traverses the Bowland Plateau from north to south, stretching the 15 miles (24km) from Hornby to Slaidburn. Allow at least eight hours to complete the route and take plenty of water and snacks with you because there are no opportunities to refuel along the way.
WHERE TO WATCH WILDLIFE
- * Wander along Cross Lane, between Bashall Eaves and Waddington to see rarities like the pied flycatcher and redstart flitting between the hedgerows either side of this quiet country lane.
- * Head down to the Hodder at Whitewell or the Ribble at Brungerley Park to see Daubentons or Noctule bats hunting insects in the evenings.
- * Look out for fox cubs frolicking under the hedgerows in the corners of hay meadows and otters fishing on the Hodder early in the morning or late in the evening.
- * Pick bilberries on Birdie Brow and Longridge Fell in late June.
Posted
17th May 2025
in News