It was wonderful to see what people got up to on social media the weekend of 7-9 August in their gardens and on reserves.
Some explorers went feral at the Big Wild Sleepout event at RSPB Loch Leven
Around 24,000 families signed-up for our Explorer Pack to get some inspiration for the big weekend, and many reserves across the UK put on fantastic events.
Here are just a few blogs written by some of our dedicated staff:
Matthew Capper, Site Manager at Dearne Valley in South Yorkshire, shares an evening that confirmed his suspicion that he has best job in the world:
"I'm so excited I'm shaking"
Helen Gottschalk, Visitor Experience Manager at Newport Wetlands in South Wales, gives us some of the wildlife highlights from their Big Wild Sleepout event:
Wow! What a night
Down in Pulborough Brooks, West Sussex, Visitor Experience Manager Anna Allum and some intrepid visitors captured some great images of wildlife onsite:
A night in nature's home
Julian Hughes, Site Manager at Conwy in North Wales, shares some great moments from their Sleepout, as well as a spot of poetry:
Big Wild Sleepout at Conwy
The prize for the most unusual Sleepout this year goes to the 100 people who spent the night on Flat Holm, a little island in the middle of the Severn Estuary:
Sleeping under the stars on Flat Holm Island
Kate Struthers, Visitor Experience Manager, regales us with tales of charcoal beards and bees nest's uncovered by badgers at Fairburn Ings in West Yorkshire:
Big Wild Sleepout at Fairburn Ings
In Greater London, Visitor Experience Officer Howard Vaughan shows that even this close to the UK's biggest city there is nocturnal wildlife aplenty:
Sleep? I don't remember that part
Our colleagues in Northern Ireland put on some smashing events, with locations varying from the Space Centre to spending the night at Ulster Transport Museum:
Big Wild Sleepout Northern Ireland style
There were lots more activities going on across the country, but hopefully this has given you a flavour of what the Sleepout is all about - and maybe some inspiration for one of your own.
There's no reason you can't embark on your own sleepout anytime, experiencing the changing seasons in this unique way; just make sure you wrap up warm if the weather's getting cold!
For me, that really is the best thing about nature, you can never have the exact same experience twice, it's always different, always changing.
Happy exploring!