You don't have to visit one of our reserves to take part in our free Big Wild Sleepout, but if you do, we can't wait to welcome you!
This annual event is your one chance of the year to spend the night on our reserves, camping in an amazing nocturnal landscape.
Encompassing some of the best sites for wildlife in the South East, you can be sure that whichever reserve you choose; you will have a truly unique experience, so gather together your family and friends and book your place today!
We’ll be introducing you to a new reserve in each of our blogs over the next few weeks, but to see the full list of events now visit our website.
RSPB Pulborough Brooks - Friday 28th OR Saturday 29th July (choice of two overnight events)
Set within one of only two Dark Skies Reserves in England (and only 11 in the world) a nighttime event at RSPB Pulborough Brooks in West Sussex is always an incredible experience. With skies so dark that on clear nights you can see the Milky Way with the naked eye, who wouldn’t want to spend a night under the stars here?
Cloud cover aside, there is plenty to do on the ground at this Big Wild Sleepout. A real mix of habitats, from woodland to heathland, wetland to farmland, there are a fascinating range of bugs, bats, mammals and birds to be discovered. Explore life under water with pond dipping, before bat detecting with state of the art kit after dark. Moth and mammal traps will be set before bed, hoping that the dawn brings even more discoveries, and with over 500 moths recorded on the reserve even the most knowledgeable naturalist is likely to find something new!
If reptiles are your scene then this is definitely the sleep out for you, as a morning walk can easily result in adders, grass snakes, slow worms and lizards, all before breakfast is served!
One customer described her 2016 experience on TripAdvisor:
“I joined one of the "Big Wild Sleepout" events here and it was an enchanting, informative and fun time. All of the volunteers were very enthusiastic, approachable and knowledgeable and the event - an evening's activities, overnight camping, breakfast and some morning activities - was excellently organised. I'll be returning soon to enjoy the rest of the reserve, and I've recommended it to my friends.”
Want to find out more? Check out our Pulborough blog to find out exactly what we discovered in 2015.
“As the light began to fade we set up the moth trap and some mammal footprint tunnels before heading out on a bat hunt. Having marveled at a tiny pipistrelle's ability to catch and eat around 3000 midges in a night we headed out with our bat detectors and found both common and soprano pipistrelle bats flitting around the hedgerows and particularly the large oak trees at the bottom of the zig-zags. We returned for hot chocolate before taking a final peak at the moth trap - as well as attracting moths, we were also attracting the bats who were taking the opportunity to feast. Daisy, aged 9, told us “It was EPIC!!! I adored the bat walk.”
Places for these extra special events are very limited so please do book early to avoid disappointment.