NEW FOR SCHOOL SUMMER HOLIDAYS – LORTON MEADOWS FAMILY ACTIVITY BOXES – FREE! Want to explore Lorton Meadows, but not sure where to start? Why not book an activity box, collect it from the Conservation Centre & unearth the wildlife of Lorton! Each box contains all you need to get started: equipment (bug boxes, nets, trays), ID guides & activity sheets to record your favourite bugs or flowers. Borrow one for half an hour, or a whole day & explore the reserve.The activities available include: Meadow Minibeasts, Fabulous Flowers, Dragonflies & Ponds, Tree-mendous Hedges & Bugs & Slugs in the Woods. Boxes free to borrow, but a small refundable deposit will be required on collection. Available throughout school holidays – phone Sam to book: 01305 816546.For further information, please contact the Community Conservation Officer on 01305 816546 .Lorton Meadows Conservation Centre, Lorton Lane, Upwey, Weymouth, DT3 5QH. [SY 674 826].
SAT 2 BREAKFASTING WITH MOTHS, 10.30am. Find out more about the fascinating world of moths as we open our local moth trap at the Chesil Beach Centre, followed by a delicious breakfast in the Taste* Café. £5 to include breakfast baguette (bacon, egg or sausage), & donation to DWT. Children £3. Drinks not included. The Chesil Beach Centre. Fine Foundation Chesil Beach Centre, Portland Road, Weymouth, DT4 9XE. [SY 668 755]. Tel: 01305 206191.
SAT 2/ WILD ABOUT SEAHORSES,
SUN 3 all day, family fun at Knoll Beach Discovery Centre, Studland. Celebrate Marine Week with beach activities, crafts, wildlife trail, competitions & more. See some of the creatures that live in the Studland seagrass meadows & make a seahorse pencil-top to take home. Free PANACHE Event. Tel:01929 450500.
SAT 2/ POOLE BAY SURVEY DIVES.
SUN 3 For further information & booking contact Charlotte Bolton ([email protected]). Seasearch Event.
SUN 3 CHESIL BEACH CLEAN, 11am – 12.30pm. Come & help us clean one of Dorset’s most spectacular beaches to protect our local wildlife in National Marine Week. Meet at Chesil Beach Centre.Fine Foundation Chesil Beach Centre, Portland Road, Weymouth, DT4 9XE. [SY 668 755]. Tel: 01305 206191.
TUES 5 BUTTERFLIES & BUGS ON THE BEACH, 11am – 12.30pm. Come & find out about butterflies & bugs on Chesil & Hamm beaches. We will play insect bingo, meet a moth, make our own butterflies & see if we can find any butterflies on the beach! Meet at the Chesil Beach Centre. £2 per person.The Chesil Beach Centre. Fine Foundation Chesil Beach Centre, Portland Road, Weymouth, DT4 9XE. [SY 668 755]. Tel: 01305 206191.
TUES 5 KAYAK SAFARI, Fine Foundation Marine Centre, Kimmeridge. Celebrate Marine Week, experience wildlife like never before with our clear-bottomed kayaks & goggle viewers in Kimmeridge Bay. 3 x 2-hr sessions. £25 per person per session. 12+ yr-olds only. BOOKING ESSENTIAL (max. of 6 per session). Please contact The Fine Foundation Marine Centre on 01929 481044. Please meet at the Fine Foundation Marine Centre (SY 909787) unless otherwise stated. BH20 5PF.
TUES 5 SUMMER SCAVENGER HUNT, 10am – 12pm, £3 per child. It’s the height of summer, so it’s time for a scavenger hunt to see what the reserve can offer up! Using a trail guided map, solve the wildlife riddles to collect an item, sight or sound specific to summer. Collect as many as you can to go home with a special Summer prize! Book your place on: 01300 321409 or visit our website for more information: www.kingcombe.org KKC Event.The Kingcombe Centre, Lower Kingcombe, Toller Porcorum, DT2 0EQ.
TUES 5 WEST DORSET VOLUNTEER WORK PARTY: Please contact DWT Warden Steve Masters on 07557 561624.
WED 6 ARTY OCEAN ACTIVITIES, 11am – 1pm & 2 – 4pm, Fine Foundation Marine Centre, Kimmeridge, 50p per item made. Celebrate Marine Week, have-a-go marine art & craft activities for children. Just call in during either of the sessions & choose what you want to make. Parents must accompany all children.Please contact The Fine Foundation Marine Centre on 01929 481044. Meet at the Fine Foundation Marine Centre (SY 909787) unless otherwise stated. BH20 5PF.
WED 6 BAT WALK led by Nick Tomlinson (bat expert). Meet at 8.45pm at Sturminster Newton Mill. Numbers limited, please contact Roy Davies on 01258 880699 to book. North Dorset Group.
THUR 7 PASTURES NEW VOLUNTEER TASK, 10am. Join the regular volunteering group in west Dorset. Tasks can range from hedge laying to Himalayan balsam pulling, in locations all over west Dorset. Please contact Nick Gray on 07824 438974 or at [email protected] for details.
THUR 7 MOTH TRAP & WALK with David Godfrey, 9am. Limited numbers: please phone to book on 01202 882866. Wimborne Group.This is a Great Heath Living Landscape project event.
THUR 7 FOREST SCHOOL SUMMER PROGRAMME, 10am – 12pm, £5 per child. Drop in to any Thursday session over the summer holiday for £5. Our forest school is set in our beautiful Kingcombe Meadows nature reserve, where children can expect to be building dens, learning how to identify wildlife, making natural crafts, looking at different habitats, learning knots, tool use, & much more! Meet at 10am at the Kingcombe Centre, Lower Kingcombe, Toller Porcorum, DT2 0EQ. Book your place on: 01300 321409 or visit our website for more information: www.kingcombe.org/forest_school
THUR 7 KAYAK SAFARI, Fine Foundation Marine Centre, Kimmeridge. Celebrate Marine Week, experience wildlife like never before with our clear-bottomed kayaks & goggle viewers in Kimmeridge Bay. 3 x 2-hr sessions. £25 per person per session. 12+ yr-olds only. BOOKING ESSENTIAL (max. of 6 per session).Please contact The Fine Foundation Marine Centre on 01929 481044. Meet at the Fine Foundation Marine Centre (SY 909787) unless otherwise stated. BH20 5PF.
THUR 7 AUGUST BIOBLITZ AT KNOLL GARDENS, 10am – 4pm plus bat walk 8pm. Come & help Dorset Wildlife Trust discover the wildlife of Knoll Gardens, from moths to mammals, bugs to birds. Suitable for all ages, beginners & experts alike. Joint Knoll Gardens Foundation (KGF) & Dorset Wildlife Trust Event. Please check dorsetwildlifetrust.org.uk, contact Nicky Hoar on 01202 692033 or email [email protected] for more information. 50% of garden entry fees will be donated to KGF. To join the evening bat walk, which costs £5 for adults & £2 for children, please book with Nicky Hoar. Knoll Gardens,Stapehill Rd, Hampreston, Wimborne, BH21 7ND. Tel:01202 873931. This is a Great Heath Living Landscape project event.
FRI 8 ECO-FRIENDLY CRABBING, 11.30am – 1pm, Fine Foundation Marine Centre, Kimmeridge. Celebrate Marine Week, learn how to catch & care for crabs without harm to other rockpool animals. Cost £3 inc. crab kit, bait & equipment.Please contact The Fine Foundation Marine Centre on 01929 481044. Meet at the Fine Foundation Marine Centre (SY 909787) unless otherwise stated. BH20 5PF.
SAT 9/ SPONGE WORKSHOP,
SUN 10 PORTLAND. For further information
& booking contact Charlotte Bolton ([email protected]). Seasearch Event.
SUN 10 ROCKPOOL RAMBLE, 1.30 – 3 pm. Celebrate Marine Week, join us at the best rockpooling site in Dorset. Short walk involved. Weather dependent. Adults £3, children £1.50. Meet at WW2 Pillbox, Kimmeridge Bay (map ref. SY 907792). Please contact The Fine Foundation Marine Centre on 01929 481044. BH20 5PF.
SUN 10 SEASHORE DETECTIVES, 11.30am – 1pm. A walk along the Fleet to look at the underwater life exposed at low tide. See anemones, sea squirts, crabs & much more. Meet at the Chesil Beach Centre. £2 per person.Fine Foundation Chesil Beach Centre, Portland Road, Weymouth, DT4 9XE. [SY 668 755]. Tel: 01305 206191.
SUN 10 BIRD RINGING DEMONSTRATION AT LYTCHETT BAY,
7.30 – 9.30am. A rare chance to see wild birds up really close. See the birds being ringed by the experts of the Stour Ringing Group on the shores of Lytchett Bay, one of the new nature reserves in The Great Heath Living Landscape project. Meet at Lytchett Heath, Sandy Lane, Upton (just west of Moorland Way junction). Follow the path for about 250m from the metal gate (with emergency access sign) to the large raised manhole cover (map ref. SY 974927). Suggested donation £3. For more information tel. 01202 692033 or email: [email protected] .This is a Great Heath Living Landscape project event.
TUES 12 WEST DORSET VOLUNTEER WORK PARTY: Please contact DWT Warden Steve Masters on 07557 561624.
TUES 12 SEASEARCH-FRIENDLY EVENING DIVE ON ‘PEVERIL MYTH’, 6pm.
For further information & booking contact Mike Markey/Poole Diving (07732 271017; [email protected]. ) Seasearch Event.
TUES 12 KAYAK SAFARI, Fine Foundation Marine Centre, Kimmeridge. Experience wildlife like never before with our clear-bottomed kayaks & goggle viewers in Kimmeridge Bay. 3 x 2-hr sessions. £25 per person per session. 12+ yr-olds only. BOOKING ESSENTIAL (max. of 6 per session).Please contact The Fine Foundation Marine Centre on 01929 481044. Meet at the Fine Foundation Marine Centre (SY 909787) unless otherwise stated. BH20 5PF.
TUES 12 FRESHWATER LIFE, 10am – 12pm, £3 per child. Come & join us as we discover the bustling freshwater life in the River Hooke, from the tiniest shrimps to the larger Bull head fish, you never know what you may find on a morning’s dip! Wellies are essential for this activity. Book your place on: 01300 321409 or visit our website for more information: www.kingcombe.org KKC Event.The Kingcombe Centre, Lower Kingcombe, Toller Porcorum, DT2 0EQ.
THUR 14 URBAN WILDLIFE VOLUNTEERS
From April until September meet on the second Thursday of the month at the Urban Wildlife Centre, Beacon Hill. For this week meet at 9am for a moth trap opening & 10am for recording/monitoring tasks. For details of each task contact Andy Fale on 07970 552673 or the Urban Wildlife Centre on 01202 692033.This is a Great Heath Living Landscape project event.
THUR 14 FOREST SCHOOL SUMMER PROGRAMME, 10am – 12pm, £5 per child. Drop in to any Thursday session over the summer holiday for £5. Our forest school is set in our beautiful Kingcombe Meadows nature reserve, where children can expect to be building dens, learning how to identify wildlife, making natural crafts, looking at different habitats, learning knots, tool use, & much more! Meet at 10am at the Kingcombe Centre, Lower Kingcombe, Toller Porcorum, DT2 0EQ. Book your place on: 01300 321409 or visit our website for more information: www.kingcombe.org/forest_school
THUR 14 KAYAK SAFARI, Fine Foundation Marine Centre, Kimmeridge. Experience wildlife like never before with our clear-bottomed kayaks & goggle viewers in Kimmeridge Bay. 3 x 2-hr sessions. £25 per person per session. 12+ yr-olds only. BOOKING ESSENTIAL (max. of 6 per session).Please contact The Fine Foundation Marine Centre on 01929 481044. Meet at the Fine Foundation Marine Centre (SY 909787) unless otherwise stated. BH20 5PF.
THUR 14 SEASHORE DETECTIVES, 2.30 – 4pm. Explore the amazing underwater world of the Fleet Lagoon – spy anemones, sea squirts , crabs, seaweeds, & much more. Search for signs of creatures from the deep along the seashore. Meet at Chesil Beach Centre. £2 per person.The Chesil Beach Centre. Fine Foundation Chesil Beach Centre, Portland Road, Weymouth, DT4 9XE. [SY 668 755]. Tel: 01305 206191.
SUN 17 NORTH DORSET VOLUNTEERS, Working on a DWT nature reserve near you. Please contact DWT Warden Steve Oliver on 07824 874273.
MON 18 THE GREAT HEATH DISCOVERY DAY, 10am – 1pm, The Heatherlands Centre, Barns Road, Ferndown BH22 8XH. Discover & learn about The Great Heath with this family event beside Parley Common, one of the new nature reserves in The Great Heath Living Landscape. Activities, wildlife, guided walks & more with Dorset Wildlife Trust, Amphibian and Reptile Conservation & partners. Parking, toilets & refreshments available. Suggested donation of £3 per family. For more information tel. 01202 692033 or email: [email protected] .This is a Great Heath Living Landscape project event.
TUES 19 WEST DORSET VOLUNTEER WORK PARTY: Please contact DWT Warden Steve Masters on 07557 561624.
TUES 19 MEADOW MAGIC, 10am – 12pm, £3 per child. Explore the sights & sounds that are conjured up on a hot day in our special meadows – late emerging butterflies look like colourful jewels dotted among the grasses, chirring grasshoppers & crickets are almost deafening, & if you look up you may see an impressive buzzard air show above you, it really is a feast for the senses. Book your place in this sight & sound scape on: 01300 321409 or visit our website for more information: www.kingcombe.org KKC Event.The Kingcombe Centre, Lower Kingcombe, Toller Porcorum, DT2 0EQ.
TUES 19 KAYAK SAFARI, Fine Foundation Marine Centre, Kimmeridge. Experience wildlife like never before with our clear-bottomed kayaks & goggle viewers in Kimmeridge Bay. 3 x 2-hr sessions. £25 per person per session. 12+ yr-olds only. BOOKING ESSENTIAL (max. of 6 per session).Please contact The Fine Foundation Marine Centre on 01929 481044. Meet at the Fine Foundation Marine Centre (SY 909787) unless otherwise stated. BH20 5PF.
WED 20 WEYMOUTH CARNIVAL, 10am – 4pm. Join us at the carnival where we will be celebrating our local wildlife. Look out for the giant lobster!
THUR 21 FOREST SCHOOL SUMMER PROGRAMME, 10am – 12pm, £5 per child. Drop in to any Thursday session over the summer holiday for £5. Our forest school is set in our beautiful Kingcombe Meadows nature reserve, where children can expect to be building dens, learning how to identify wildlife, making natural crafts, looking at different habitats, learning knots, tool use, & much more! Meet at 10am at the Kingcombe Centre, Lower Kingcombe, Toller Porcorum, DT2 0EQ. Book your place on: 01300 321409 or visit our website for more information: www.kingcombe.org/forest_school
THUR 21 A WALK AROUND SOPLEY COMMON LOOKING FOR HEATHLAND WILDLIFE Meet at 7pm in layby at entrance to Ramsdown car park (map ref. SZ 129971). For more information ring 01202 692033 or email: [email protected] .Bournemouth & Christchurch Group.This is a Great Heath Living Landscape project event.
THUR 21 KAYAK SAFARI, Fine Foundation Marine Centre, Kimmeridge. Experience wildlife like never before with our clear-bottomed kayaks & goggle viewers in Kimmeridge Bay. 3 x 2-hr sessions. £25 per person per session. 12+ yr-olds only. BOOKING ESSENTIAL (max. of 6 per session).
Please contact The Fine Foundation Marine Centre on 01929 481044. Meet at the Fine Foundation Marine Centre (SY 909787) unless otherwise stated. BH20 5PF.
THUR 21 PASTURES NEW VOLUNTEER TASK, 10am. Join the regular volunteering group in West Dorset. Tasks can range from hedge laying to Himalayan balsam pulling in locations all over West Dorset. Contact Nick Gray on 07824 438974 or at [email protected] for details.
FRI 22 SEASHORE SCAVENGERS, 11 am – 12.30pm. Meet at the Chesil Beach Centre for a scavenger hunt along Chesil Beach, looking for washed up signs of marine wildlife & other treasures. Meet at the Chesil Beach Centre.
£2 per person.The Chesil Beach Centre.Fine Foundation Chesil Beach Centre, Portland Road, Weymouth, DT4 9XE. [SY 668 755]. Tel: 01305 206191.
SUN 24 A MORNING BUTTERFLY WALK ON BALLARD DOWN, led by Jon Bellamy (01929 450182). Meet at 11am in the Ulwell lay-by on the Swanage to Studland road (map ref. SZ 021809). Joint Event with Butterfly Conservation. Isle of Purbeck Group.
MON 25 A GUIDE TO EVERYTHING CHESIL, 2 – 3.30pm. Join your guide to discover the secrets of Chesil Bank & the Fleet Lagoon. This whistle-stop tour covers everything from the formation of the beach to the rich wildlife & military history. Meet at the Chesil Beach Centre. Adults £3, children £2.The Chesil Beach Centre. Fine Foundation Chesil Beach Centre, Portland Road, Weymouth, DT4 9XE. [SY 668 755]. Tel: 01305 206191.
TUES 26 ISLE OF PURBECK MID-WEEK VOLUNTEERS, 10am – 3pm: Habitat management on a DWT nature reserve near you. Please contact warden James Hitchen 07436 157328 for further details or to book your place.
TUES 26 WEST DORSET VOLUNTEER WORK PARTY: Please contact DWT Warden Steve Masters on 07557 561624.
TUES 26 RUSH WEAVING, 10am – 12pm, £3 per child. Get crafty & make as many items as you can, using the rushes from the reserve, boats to float on the pond, birds to swoosh through the air, the possibilities are endless! Book your place on: 01300 321409 or visit our website for more information: www.kingcombe.org KKC Event.The Kingcombe Centre, Lower Kingcombe, Toller Porcorum, DT2 0EQ.
TUES 26 KAYAK SAFARI, Fine Foundation Marine Centre, Kimmeridge. Experience wildlife like never before with our clear-bottomed kayaks & goggle viewers in Kimmeridge Bay. 3 x 2-hr sessions. £25 per person per session. 12+ yr-olds only. BOOKING ESSENTIAL (max. of 6 per session). Please contact The Fine Foundation Marine Centre on 01929 481044. Meet at the Fine Foundation Marine Centre (SY 909787) unless otherwise stated. BH20 5PF.
WED 27 BUTTERFLIES OF FONTMELL DOWN, a morning walk exploring the butterflies & other wildlife of Fontmell Down nature reserve, led by DWT reserve warden, Steve Oliver. DWT members £1.50, non-members £3, kids free. Meet 10am at the National Trust car park on Spread Eagle hill opposite Compton Abbas airfield (Blandford to Shaftesbury top road). Booking essential: contact Steve on 07824 874273.
WED 27 SEASHORE DETECTIVES, 1.30 – 3pm. Explore the amazing underwater world of the Fleet Lagoon – spy anemones, sea squirts , crabs, seaweeds, & much more. Search for signs of creatures from the deep along the seashore. Meet at Chesil Beach Centre. £2 per person.The Chesil Beach Centre. Fine Foundation Chesil Beach Centre, Portland Road, Weymouth, DT4 9XE. [SY 668 755]. Tel: 01305 206191.
WED 27 ROCKPOOL RAMBLE, 2 – 3.30pm. Join us at the best rockpooling site in Dorset. Short walk involved. Weather dependent. Adults £3, children £1.50. Meet at WW2 Pillbox, Kimmeridge Bay (map ref. SY 907792).Please contact The Fine Foundation Marine Centre on 01929 481044. BH20 5PF.
THUR 28 AN AFTERNOON WALK AT HARTLAND MOOR, a national reserve and a key site for several special heathland species of insects & flowers. Join us to see which ones we can find! Meet at 2.30pm on the Ridge to Corfe Castle road (SY 964853). Tel. 01929 551708 for more information. Isle of Purbeck Group.
THUR 28 FOREST SCHOOL SUMMER PROGRAMME, 10am – 12pm, £5 per child. Drop in to any Thursday session over the summer holiday for £5. Our forest school is set in our beautiful Kingcombe Meadows nature reserve, where children can expect to be building dens, learning how to identify wildlife, making natural crafts, looking at different habitats, learning knots, tool use, & much more! Meet at 10am at the Kingcombe Centre, Lower Kingcombe, Toller Porcorum, DT2 0EQ. Book your place on: 01300 321409 or visit our website for more information: www.kingcombe.org/forest_school
THUR 28 KAYAK SAFARI, Fine Foundation Marine Centre, Kimmeridge. Experience wildlife like never before with our clear-bottomed kayaks & goggle viewers in Kimmeridge Bay. 3 x 2-hr sessions. £25 per person per session. 12+ yr-olds only. BOOKING ESSENTIAL (max. of 6 per session).Please contact The Fine Foundation Marine Centre on 01929 481044. Meet at the Fine Foundation Marine Centre (SY 909787) unless otherwise stated. BH20 5PF.
FRI 29 SEASHORE DETECTIVES, 2.30 – 4pm. Explore the amazing underwater world of the Fleet Lagoon – spy anemones, sea squirts , crabs, seaweeds, & much more. Search for signs of creatures from the deep along the seashore. Meet at Chesil Beach Centre. £2 per person.The Chesil Beach Centre. Fine Foundation Chesil Beach Centre, Portland Road, Weymouth, DT4 9XE. [SY 668 755]. Tel: 01305 206191.
SUN 31 PORTLAND SURVEY DIVES. Contact Charlotte Bolton for details: [email protected] Seasearch Event.
SUN 31 URBAN WEEKENDERS, 9 – 10am moth trap, 10am – 12 noon wildlife survey on Upton Heath. Meet at the Urban Wildlife Centre (BH21 3RX) to help discover the wildlife of the heath. Families welcome, but children must be accompanied by an adult. Please check website, contact Sally Wright on 01202 692033 or email [email protected] for more information.This is a Great Heath Living Landscape project event.
