It was a damp, drizzly day in half term in the New Forest. We feel it compulsory for us to go for an autumn walk in the forest every time we visit, so we were not going to let a little dampness put us off. Into the woods we went and discovered a fungi walk we could do, little did we know it would also turn into a deer hunt!
The forest is always so beautiful to us, even in the rain. The colours are vibrant, the shapes from the trees are fascinating. We even discovered a base of a tree that looked like the back end of a dog!
We were armed with fungi trail questions. We followed the route reading fascinating facts about fungi along the way and we had to guess what each fungi’s name was. That was very interesting as they have such weird names, like stinkhorn and beefsteak fungus. We did have a bit of a laugh about guessing the names, though mummy and daddy ended up trying to answer the questions as they were rather hard.
Then in the distance, we spotted something amazing, It was big, with large antlers. It was shy, hiding amongst the trees. We desperately tried to stay quiet, so as not to scare it away, but the excitement got the better of the children and the deer ran off. It was wonderful for the children to see real nature, real animals living free. They thought it was amazing.
However, there was an even more amazing sighting…a whole herd of deer prancing along in a line, some young and small, some bigger. The children stood still, quietly taking in the moment. It was quite magical.Deer hunting
At the end of the walk there were signs for all the different types of deer living there. We discussed which we thought we had seen.
It was a lovely fun autumn walk together, very educational and inspiring in a beautiful setting.
It looks like a lovely walk and what an amazing site to come across! It sounds like a really special walk.
I always think the forest looks particularly pretty after rainfall… you’re right – the colours are so vibrant! And in autumn its particularly stunning! And the surprise deer spotting must have been a real treat! Lovely!
I absolutely adore deer, they’re such beautiful, peaceful animals and so majestic. I’m so jealous you got to see lots of them up close. This sounds like so a fun little walk, especially with the trail! I love going on walks when they’re a bit more interactive like this and where you can learn new things.
That’s so lovely that you saw a herd of deer prancing along, it’s amazing how quiet the deer can be (and the children too when they were watching?!), they are fantastic animals.
When I was working as an ecologist I was walking beside a forest in the middle of nowhere, I went to step down from a raised part of ground and then got such a fright as a fawn jumped up and ran off! It must have been lying in the hollow below waiting for it’s mother to come back.
I couldn’t believe how quiet it was, even when it jumped up and ran away! Anyway, a lovely post!
such a lovely area – really beautiful. Climbing trees is a must!
Wow, I have seen does but never a buck in real life. Amazing for your kids.
Aww, I love woods in autumn. And fungi are so interesting! Your deer encounter sounds so magical! It’s brilliant when the kids just seam to ‘get it’ too. Wonderful 🙂
Three of my favourite things, trees, fungi and deer! I would love to take my kids to the New Forest one day it looks fantastic.
How fun and exciting! All these posts set against lovely looking forests have made me long for the woods. We do have one nearby, must, must plan an adventure soon 🙂
It’s always exciting when you can learn about real nature and animals that run in the wild when you’re not expecting it. It’s a shame the fungi walk was quite difficult to complete for the kids but at least they got to enjoy exploring the woods and climbing trees.
It’s great that the kids found it magical watching the wild deer running through the woods.