On the 3rd of July there was promise of another hot day so I decided to take a trip to Girdlers Coppice at Fiddleford. Girdlers Coppice is managed by Dorset Wildlife Trust consisting of Oak and Hazel woodland and is situated at the bottom of Piddles wood on the Fiddleford side of the A357. It’s always an adventure getting in there and it wasn’t any different this time. The gate from the Fiddleford Manor carpark was chained and locked so I had to climb over and when I got to the coppice there is no stile and again I had to climb over the fence. The coppice itself is quite overgrown which is understandable for the wildlife but the paths are passable and the good thing is I have never seen anyone else there as yet!

I had a lovely wander and the Butterflies were out in force, there is a good spot where the path widens out, not quite a glade but a lovely sheltered spot and I saw most of them in that area. They were all in good condition as well. I saw 10 species in all, the only one I didn’t get a picture of was a Brimstone, in too much of a hurry!

I lovely wander and just a couple of miles down the road.