Old memories

This little nature park called 'The Palingbeek' close to home is rather special. Back in the day, my grandparents used to take us here to go for a walk. It was a place where we could play and explore. I think that this memory has always stuck with me and might enable me to appreciate this place even more.

Another nice aspect of visiting a place all throughout the year, is the way you can see it changing. You see the same places change from the icy winter-months to the green spring, to the hot summer and the colourful autumn.

Life everywhere

The woods are full of life. You can see it everywhere. The birds are chirping, the squirrels are running around, the roe deers are grazing and the insects are buzzing.

It's a real pleasure to be able to see a variaty of birds and other animals when you keep quiet.

At the same time, it always makes me a bit sad. The space for wild animals has become so small that the little woods we have are full of them. Especially on nice days when there are many people around a lot of animals are really restless.

The birds

We have seen some beautiful bird species over the last year. We don't really care about how uncommon a specie is. Even very common birds can have some wonderful songs, behaviour or feathers.

One of the most spectacular encounter was a female black woodpecker that was hammering away on a tree. It was a very rare sighting and we were very lucky to see it. The woodpecker also didn't seem to mind us being there.

There are always a lot of woodpeckers around. The great spotted woodpecker and the european green woodpecker are the most common ones and can be seen in large numbers.

Also one time we saw the rather rare cattle egret. The bioviversity in this small area is really amazing.

This is just a small selection of the many birds we have photographed. Than there are also the many great birds that we have seen but didn't have the time to photograph before they flew away.

The Roe deer

Besides the many gorgeous birds, there are also many squirrles and roe deer. The roe deer can be very shy, but that seems to depend on the season. In the summer they are very relaxed and you can get very close to them. In the winter they are very shy and run away as soon as they see you. The squirrels sit high in the treetops and often wait patiently for you to move on...

The squirrels!

Squirrels can often be seen around the park. They tend to be excellent at hiding. They do this in a very easy way. When they hear you coming, they go to the other side of the tree, out of sight.

One particular morning we were lucky enough to see a couple of them feeding at a hazelnut tree. They were very relaxed and didn't seem to mind us being there.

Find a hidden gem and enjoy it

In conclusion, this is only one of the many beautiful places around. I hope that you will find your own hidden gem and that you will be able to appreciate it as much as I do. The beauty is all around us: during our commute, during a walk or in our backyard. Just take a look around, you'll see it.