If you are into nature and conservation, you will have heard the name Knepp. Several years ago, I read the inspirational book by Isabella Tree,
Wilding, which documents the journey of a large country estate owned by her husband, Charlie Burrell, from poorly-performing farm, to iconic 'rewilding' hotspot. Free-ranging livestock - Tamworth Pigs and Longhorn Cattle - had been introduced, along with Exmoor Ponies and Red and Fallow Deer. With minimal husbandry, the herbivores were encouraged to live freely, mimicking as much as possible, the activities of their ancestors and assisting with the wilding of the former farmland. The resulting rush of wildlife had astonished the owners and the conservation community, with rare species thriving shoulder to shoulder with an abundance of common wildlife. This, in turn, had attracted lots of people, which the estate is cashing in on, to help generate income for the project.
Since reading the book, the successes of the project have (rightly) received much coverage in the media, and Knepp has become part of standard conservation parlance in Britain. Many estates are following their lead and wanting to become the 'Knepp' of their region, which is a brilliant added bonus to what has taken place.
I was initially keen to visit, but my interest had waned in recent years. I felt sceptical of some of the recent developments particularly the project to 'reintroduce' White Storks, which I wrote about a few years ago - see here. Despite this, my heart still felt that the Knepp project was a really great thing and one day I would visit.
Roll forward a few years and some friends bought Vicky and me a voucher for Knepp as a joint birthday present - splendid! Half-term at the end of May seemed a good time to visit as we would be heading south to the in-laws anyway, so Knepp would be only a couple of hours further on. We would be too early to see the Purple Emperors - one of the features of the site - but would hopefully be bang on for Nightingales and Turtle Doves and the White Storks should be getting on with nesting.
We arrived on a rather windy, but bright May day, relieved that the previous night's rain had blown away. We were ahead of our check-in time and nobody was around to ask, so we just found our way to the large camping meadow and picked a sheltered spot. As we erected the tent, a rather soggy White Stork strutted about in the meadow nearby, picking up insects and other morsels. It looked in keeping with the surroundings, despite my scepticism. I soon noticed that across the way, the stork had its nest in a stately old Oak, which if grilled with my bins could be seen to shelter two small chicks.
We didn't get very far on the first day. The cafe was full - it was Bank Holiday Monday after all, and it was clear Knepp was coining it in selling their longhorn burgers and Tamworth bangers. Fair play.
Tuesday dawned wet and windy after quite a tempestuous night under canvas. The hoped-for Nightingales were clearly keeping their head's down and the dawn chorus was rather underwhelming. Post-breakfast we managed to persuade the kids for a walk round the central section of Knepp. It was quite different to what I'd imagined, with a feeling like a formal deer park that had been abandoned for a year or two, but with intensive grazing still happening. There was little botanical interest with everything grazed down short. Perhaps there would be more interest elsewhere? We passed the River Adur which had clearly been reprofiled, but low water diminished the impact of this work; it looked like an overgrown ditch. Down at the lake, a few common birds were present, with Reed Warblers singing and a Great Egret flew over. We completed our loop back at the campsite having enjoyed the walk but feeling somewhat underwhelmed.
The rain continued after lunch and we could hardly blame the kids for wanting to stay in the tent, so Vicky and me headed off round the southern section. This proved to be far more inspiring, with much more in the way of habitat development, disturbance from the herbivores and some wildlife! The impact of pigs was evident all over, with all grasslands and rides being turned over by their rootling. We came across a couple of hulking sows with gaggles of ginger piglets, demonstrating their business bu trashing a woodland ride. It seemed they were digging up the roots and bulbs of perennials along with bugs and other bits in the soil. The impact on the tight sward was incredible and all done with their snouts - amazing! All this destruction and disturbance clearly favours annuals and biennial species that produce lots of seed, and Ragwort abounded in the more open areas, which is no bad thing from an invertebrate point of view!
Fallow Deer
Tamworth PigsA little further on, a large clearing hosted a herd of Exmoor Ponies, looking primitive and wild on the edge of the woodland. They kept their distance, whilst a couple of pairs of White Storks eyed them from their oaken vantage points. Scrub had begun to creep out from some of the woodland edges, softening the lines and blurring or even rubbing out the agricultural past.
Nearby, mounds of brambles and Sallow breaks flowed through a former field embraced with hugely thick hedges creating something I'd not seen before. Oaks and other trees grew from the centre of these thorny palisades, safe from the browsers. Lesser Whitethroats and Nightingales were singing, despite the gloomy conditions, clearly loving the tangled structure. It felt good for Turtle Doves too, but the lack of warm sunshine had sent them shivering into the sheltered depths and we didn't hear a purring peep from them.
We returned to the campsite much happier, feeling like we'd experienced some of the dynamism and exciting ecology that has made Knepp so special. After a hearty home-made pizza cooked (badly, by me) in the campsite pizza oven, we turned in. In the early hours, I awoke to the sound of a Nightingale singing from the nearby hedge. The rain had stopped and the wind had eased, and this filled my heart with joy, as it was exactly what I'd imagined for my camping experience at Knepp. Class.
Wednesday dawned bright and warm, with butterflies skipping about the meadow as we packed our gear ready for our long hike north. It was clear to me that Knepp is a wondrous place. Rewilding or regenerative farming? I don't think it matters. Lowland England is too constrained and tamed to ever be properly wild (at least in my lifetime) and our laws restrict how hand's off we can be with livestock. But this is a big step in the right direction and Knepp has inspired many other estates to do their bit. Here in Yorkshire, Harewood, Denton, Broughton and Castle Howard have all committed to wilding parts of their landholding, to varying degrees and that is real progress for nature. For this influence, everybody interested in nature should applaud Knepp for having the courage to give this a go. So, let's stop whining about White Storks and whether they are introduced or reintroduced (me included!) and let's celebrate what Knepp has achieved both for wildlife and people itself and the massive step change in nature's recovery it has inspired across England. Our ecological understanding has benefited from this experience and I, for one, will be much more open-minded when considering what species actually need, as it may not be what we assume.
Two last thoughts: The campsite had the poshest campsite toilets I had ever experienced. Incredible.
Sadly, no kids under 12 are allowed in the campsite. From one perspective I can see why this might be the case, but in reality. the kind of parents who would camp here are not the sort who would be allowing their nippers to run riot. Maybe Knepp should rethink this. I would have been so stoked to have come here as a young birder and naturalist - but I wouldn't have been allowed!
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In summary, if you are intrigued, interested or ambivalent, go and see for yourself. It is a wondrous place, with a relaxed atmosphere and full of wildlife. I can't wait to return in five years time to see how it has developed!
