Muncaster owls

After yesterday's exertions, any plans for another walk had long been shelved, but actually the aches and pains from last night quickly vanished by the time we'd finished breakfast. Even so, today was to be a more relaxing day with a visit to Muncaster to see the castle and the owls.

The castle is a popular place for tourists, with tours available around the castle itself, vast well-maintained gardens and plenty of special events going on throughout the year.




At this time of year the walks through the bluebell woods and past the many types of rhododendrons were exceptional, so even though the legs were still sore we enjoyed a leisurely walk around the gardens and clocked up another couple of miles.


One of the main attractions at the castle though is the owls, as the castle houses the headquarters of the World Owl Trust, a conservation group aiming to protect endangered owls from accross the globe.

Although the owls are kept in captivity, many brought here had already been domesticated elsewhere and so couldn't ever be released back to the wild, but their offspring still retain their wild instincts. The trust have an extensive breeding programme and aim to return owls to their natural habitats whenever possible, but in the meantime the owls are well cared for and are kept in large airy enclosures.

The trust holds dozens of different species of owl, from all over the world, as well as some other birds of prey such as buzzards and kestrels. The highlight of the day is the 'Meet the birds' session in the afternoon on the castle lawn. Here the keepers explain the work of the trust and bring out some of the owls to show how they fly and hunt, and although there was a sudden short shower during the display, this was certainly the highlight of the day.

You can't visit the owls without taking lots of pictures, so here's a selection of mine, all these taken through the wire cages: