Whether you're primarily interested in birds, butterflies, wild flowers, reptiles, amphibians or mammals, there's something for everybody in early summer.

If you're like me and are interested in all species of wildlife, you certainly won't be disappointed. We've seen and/or heard some really special animals, including corncrake, quail, mole cricket, golden eagle, lesser spotted eagle, honey buzzard, hobby, golden oriole, red-backed shrikes, black storks, black redstarts, purple emperor & lesser purple emperor butterflies, more fritillaries than I've ever seen before, beavers, sand lizards, wolf tracks & signs and wildflower meadows everywhere.

If you like photographing butterflies and other insects, you'll be in heaven. If you're a botanist, you'll be more than happy.

With lots of butterflies, dragonflies and damselflies, sand lizards, warm sunny weather and beautiful scenery, one week just isn't enough.
Why don't you join me on this trip?

If you click on the images below you'll see some of our photographs and videos (thanks to Annie Haycock who came in 2016 for her videos of the lesser spotted woodpecker, butterflies on wolf faeces and beavers).

(2000 Zloty is approximately £400, depending on the current exchange rate - this covers your accommodation, etc.)

An added bonus is the abundant fungi to be found in the forest, which can include chanterelles 6 inches across and covering an area of 25m2, ceps as large as dinner plates, chicken of the woods and lots of orange milk-caps. There are russulas of all colours, some edible and some not, panther caps, death caps, horn of plenty, hedgehogs and all manner of strange brackets and fingers as well as a multitude of puffballs and inkcaps.

On our autumn trip we learn from my Polish friends which mushrooms they use, how they prepare and preserve them and how they cook them. This is always a fascinating and tasty adventure, deep in the Magura National Park.

We'll also be looking for signs of the local wolves and if we're lucky we may get images/videos of them on our trail cameras and hear their howls echoing around the forested hills. We may even get to see them!

Click on the images below to see some of what we've found in previous autumn visits.

(2000 Zloty is approximately £400, depending on the current exchange rate - this covers your accommodation, etc.)

The first time I visited Poland was in February 2013 and it was magical. Every tiny twig had its own layer of snow and the sunlight glistened on the frozen landscape under a flawless blue sky.

Tracking wolves was amazing and we could even tell which sex some of them were by the position of their urine marks in relation to their paw prints.

We even found what could have been a lynx track as well as possible wildcat tracks and the ubiquitous wild boar had turned over large areas of ground, creating large craters in the snow.

While I obviously can't promise we'll have perfect, or indeed any, snow it's worth taking a gamble on the weather for the prospect of tracking wolves and other wildlife, including bears which were confirmed in the valley where we stay, in January 2017.

If you click on the thumbnails below you'll see some of our photographs.

Check out David's account of his trip in 2017

(2000 Zloty is approximately £400, depending on the current exchange rate - this covers your accommodation, etc.)

The wildlife in Poland is simply amazing, especially if you're used to the impoverished 'biodiversity' to be found in the UK and many other 'developed' countries.

My own favourite place for wildlife in the UK is the Caledonian Pine Forest in Scotland, which has some amazing habitats, scenery and wildlife, but the simple fact is that there are many species missing.

Along with the beaver, which is slowly being re-established in the UK, there are the lynx, bear and wolf which are unlikely to be reintroduced to the UK anytime soon. These four species are fairly common in southern Poland and/or neighbouring Slovakia, along with other species rare or absent in the UK such as corncrake, quail, lesser spotted eagle, black woodpecker, lesser spotted woodpecker, red-backed shrike, black stork, white stork, black redstart, golden eagle, golden oriole, sand lizard, purple emperor & lesser purple emperor butterflies, mole crickets and more amphibians than you can shake a stick at.

It's actually more affordable for me to go to southern Poland than to go to the Highlands of Scotland and I know that I may get sightings of wolf (I've seen two so far, one in the middle of the day at 5m away), wild boar (best sighting so far - a huge male 6m away in the snow) or lynx. There are also wildcats, pine martens, red squirrels and we now have confirmation of bears in the forest where we stay.

During our February 2017 trip, we were out tracking wolves in the snowy landscape and heard the pack howling in the forest just up the hill from where we were tracking them. Amazing!

Check out the videos below and you'll get more of an idea about what's there. I hope you'll join me on one of these trips soon.

(2000 Zloty is approximately £400, depending on the current exchange rate - this covers your accommodation, etc.)

(2000 Zloty is approximately £400, depending on the current exchange rate - this covers your accommodation, etc.)

(2000 Zloty is approximately £400, depending on the current exchange rate - this covers your accommodation, etc.)

When you've booked your place, by paying your deposit, I'll confirm that it's OK to book your flight and give you the information you need.

We fly from Manchester but it may be possible for you to fly from elsewhere (such as London Stansted or East Midlands) and we'd then meet you in Rzeszow.

On arrival you'll need to pay the balance of 2000 Zloty to our hosts - you can choose to get Polish currency at home or use the ATM at the airport, as I do.

The airport transfer (included in the price) takes about 90 minutes and when we arrive in Polany you'll have a chance to settle in. By the time we get there you'll know everybody as you'll have been chatting in the vehicle.

When everybody is settled in it'll probably be time for lunch, so this will be your first experience of Polish food unless you've been to Poland before.

There will be ample food at each meal, but please let me know if you have any special requirements. We usually take sandwiches with us for lunch as we'll be out all day.

The Polish currency is the Zloty, not the Euro, but you probably won't need to spend much unless you want to sample some Polish vodka or suchlike. The Bisongrass vodka is very nice, but let me know if you want to stop off for this on the way down, as there will be few (if any) opportunities to get to a town or big supermarket during your stay.

If you need to know anything else, or just want to chat about the trips, give me a call on 0333 9000 927.

I look forward to taking you to this beautiful and relatively unknown area of Poland.

Warm Regards,

Martin.

(2000 Zloty is approximately £400, depending on the current exchange rate - this covers your accommodation, etc.)

Protected Species Surveys ~ Habitat Creation & Management ~ Ecological Enhancement

Wildlife & Countryside Services, Pentre Lane, Rhuddlan, LL18 6LA

0333 9000 927