The Best of the Cotswolds Naturetrek Tour Itinerary Outline Itinerary Day 1 Arrive Frampton Mansell Day 2/4 Explore the Cotswolds Departs May - August Focus Orchids, Butterflies, Birds, Culture Grading A/B. All walking will be at a slow pace on paths with some hills. Dates and Prices See website (tour code GBR234) or brochure Highlights • Explore the scenic and beautiful Cotswolds with an expert local naturalist. • Orchids may include Lesser Butterfly, Bee, Southern Marsh and possibly Lizard Orchid. • Butterflies searched for include Large Blue, Duke of Burgundy and Marsh Fritillary. • Stop off at picturesque Cotswold villages including Bourton-on-the-Water. • Birds may include Redstart, Cuckoo, Corn Bunting, Hobby, Spotted Flycatcher. • Explore a range of habitats from our base in a classic Cotswold Inn. Large Blue, Bee Orchid and Bourton-on-the-Water Naturetrek Mingledown Barn Wolf’s Lane Chawton Alton Hampshire GU34 3HJ UK T: +44 (0)1962 733051 E: [email protected] W: www.naturetrek.co.uk The Best of the Cotswolds Tour Itinerary Introduction Beautiful villages made from traditional, golden, Cotswold stone, fascinating architecture, quaint, country pubs and wonderful rolling hills, meadows and farmland are all pictures imagined when someone mentions “The Cotswolds”. What is often overlooked somewhat is the flora and fauna that is also found in this special area. We seek to show you the very best of the Cotswolds, focusing on its varied natural history alongside the beautiful scenery, villages and architecture as we go. We will be based for our three nights at The Crown Inn, in the quiet hamlet of Frampton Mansell. This seventeenth century ‘cider house’ is steeped in history and is the perfect village pub with well- appointed comfortable en-suite rooms. We will explore the area each day with varied, gentle walks aimed to take in and enjoy everything we find. Visiting in from mid-May to August we will largely be focusing on the excellent range of orchids and wildflowers of the area, a host of special butterflies, while also enjoying the breeding and migrant birds of course. We will make time to visit some picture postcard villages including the famous Bourton-on-the-Water and some of the less well known, but equally beautiful, villages and hamlets along the way, covering a broad range of habitats to make this a most varied and complete short break. The Cotswolds was designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty back in 1966 and is the second largest protected landscape in England after the Lake District. The boundaries of the Cotswolds are around 25 miles across and 90 miles long and the area includes several counties. Most of the area is within Gloucestershire (the county we shall be focusing the majority of our time) and Oxfordshire with smaller parts in Wiltshire, Somerset, Worcestershire and Warwickshire. Basing ourselves in the heart of the Cotswolds in the tiny hamlet of Frampton Mansell (which is just a 30-minute drive from Cheltenham) we will focus on a number of special sites during our 3-night stay ensuring that sufficient time is spent at each location to find and enjoy the very special flora and fauna. We will walk in flower-rich limestone grasslands, head to the highest point in the Cotswolds on Cleeve Hill, explore some beautiful beech and oak woodlands and visit water meadows too. The sites visited shall depend on how early or late the season is, and with the most Cotswold village of Bourton-on-the Water © Naturetrek March 21 2 The Best of the Cotswolds Tour Itinerary up-to-date local knowledge, our itinerary may change slightly to view other species that are special to this thriving area and make the very best of our time. In the right conditions, these varied habitats will provide views of a host of special butterflies, including the rare Duke of Burgundy, Pearl- bordered and Marsh Fritillary, Green Hairstreak, Brown Argus, Adonis Blue and the very special Large Blue amongst others. Orchids proliferate in the limestone grasslands, abandoned quarries, beech woodlands and sheltered valleys here and across our three full days we hope to find a superb array of species and we will know the locations of everything possible and try to see them during the tour. Such delights as Bee Orchid, Fly Orchid, Greater and Lesser Butterfly Orchid and later in the season, Broad-leaved, Green-flowered, Narrow-lipped and possibly even Violet Helleborine may be found amongst others. Whenever you chose to visit it is sure to be a most rewarding short break. Itinerary Please note that the itinerary below offers our planned programme of excursions. However, adverse weather & other local considerations can necessitate some re-ordering of the programme during the course of the tour, though this will always be done to maximise best use of the time and weather conditions available. Day 1 Arrive at The Crown Inn You are welcome to check in to your rooms from 2pm today and your tour leader will meet you at the bar area at 6pm for an introduction and outline plan for the days ahead before enjoying our first dinner together and further discussions of what lies ahead. Days 2 - 4 Exploring the beautiful Cotswolds The next three full days will be spent exploring this superb area with varied walks across a range of habitats and locations in search of the area’s orchids, butterflies, birds and rich natural history. We will be sure to visit some of the beautiful villages of the region including Bourton-on-the-Water, and Withington as we go and enjoy some superb hospitality and cuisine at our excellent, family run inn. The order of the itinerary, as always, will be kept flexible to react to the weather conditions and some of the areas and sites we shall visit during the break are listed below. Our leader will know the best sites to visit at any time to find an array of special species, living locally and having many years of experience in finding wildlife across the Cotswolds. While out in the field at any of the sites, we will be enjoying everything and walking at a slow, relaxed pace. The main focus will be on the flora and in particular orchids and also the butterflies, with birds and culture along the way as we pass through and stop in beautiful villages for lunches and coffee stops. © Naturetrek March 21 3 The Best of the Cotswolds Tour Itinerary The seasons for orchids and butterflies can differ year to year and so not all species listed will be flowering or on the wing at the same time. At the bottom of the itinerary, under “Focus” we have listed some key species and the usual flight and flowering season which will help if you have specific species you hope to see. Our leader knows the area very well and the often very specific locations for certain orchids having tracked down all of Gloucestershire’s orchid species as well as butterflies and breeding birds. Whichever Orchid meadow time you chose to visit, there is sure to be a great deal to enjoy and this tour provides the opportunity to see some of the Cotswolds finest natural history as well as its famous culture and architecture. Rodborough Common The botanically rich limestone grassland of Rodborough Common is home to an array of wildflowers and butterflies and we shall be sure to explore this excellent area. A SSSI, Rodborough Common is also designated as a European Special Area of Conservation, in particular for its flowers and invertebrates. There are various swathes of limestone grassland through the Cotswolds but this is in fact the most extensive area of semi-natural dry limestone grassland. A range of butterflies may include such star species as Duke of Burgundy and Adonis Blue and the wonderful Large Blue was re-introduced here and is thriving. We may also find Brown Argus, Green Hairstreak, Dingy Skipper and Small Blue among others with the grasslands often alive with more common species such as Marbled White and Meadow Brown. We will search for orchids including Early Purple, Pyramidal, Common and Spotted Orchid with Chalk Fragrant Orchid also found here and in fewer numbers, Bee, Musk and Frog Orchid with Sword-leaved Helleborine also possible. There is also a site nearby where Gloucestershire’s only known Lizard Orchid is found, and we will visit this site Duke of Burgundy too if this special plant is possible to see during our visit. A little later in the season, Pasque-Flower may be found and other species we may find include, Milkwort, Harebell, Common Rock Rose, Germander Speedwell, Knapweed and Field Scabious. © Naturetrek March 21 4 The Best of the Cotswolds Tour Itinerary Our excursion here will be to the backdrop of Skylarks singing and wonderful views, west towards the Severn and beyond to the Welsh mountains, with beautiful views over the Slad and Painswick Valleys towards Stroud. Strawberry Banks Formed by a tributary of the River Frome, this site lies very close to our base in Frampton Mansell. The area is essentially two fields above a small wooded valley which holds a very good selection of grassland plants and butterflies. The area is named as it is believed strawberries were once grown here, although there is no sign of any now. With no agricultural improvements, and only occasional grazing by horses, to reduce growth of Lesser Butterfly Orchid grasses and scrub. Among more common species including Common Rock-rose, Devil's-bit Scabious, Nettle-leaved Bellflower and Carline Thistle, we hope to find Lesser Butterfly Orchid here as well as Pyramidal and Common Spotted Orchids.