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Badger Hide | Exclusive Hire

Enjoy intimate views and excellent photography opportunities of badgers, from the comfort of RSPB Haweswater's custom built hide.

As the sun sets over Haweswater, our woodland residents emerge for their nightly foraging escapades.

Our comfortable, custom built hide at Naddle Farm offers the unique opportunity to observe and photograph these secretive mammals in the Lake District National Park at close range. With lights covering the viewing area, you can continue watching and photographing the badgers well after sunset.

Our Badger Hide offers an excellent experience for wildlife photographers, families and couples keen to have a real, wild night out! You will have the hide exclusively to yourself for the whole evening.

Seating is provided, and the hide is entirely enclosed making for a comfortable (midge free!) badger watching experience. As the hide is situated less than a 10 second walk from the car park too, it is suitable for those unable to walk long distances*.

You will be greeted upon arrival by a member of the Haweswater team who will give you a brief introduction to badgers and show you the location of our toilet facilities. You will then be guided to the Badger Hide, and from there will have the freedom to leave the hide whenever you like after spending the night with our brocks.

This hide is NOT located at a badger sett, instead it is located along the foraging route of the badgers.

PLEASE NOTE that the times stated are not indicative of badger activity. Within the week of your selected date, you will be contacted by a member of the RSPB Haweswater team to tell you when the most appropriate arrival time would be according to recent badger activity.

*Please bear in mind that there are several concrete steps to access the hide.

(Photo credit: Denise Creely, taken from the RSPB Haweswater Badger Hide)

FAQs

How can I contact the RSPB Haweswater with any questions?

Please contact Visitor Development Officer Heather Devey at the RSPB Haweswater office on 01931 713376 or at heather.devey@rspb.org.uk if you have any queries.

Is the Badger Hide suitable for wildlife photography?

Yes. The hide has been built to be ground level, offering you the greatest opportunity to photograph Badgers at eye-level. The windows are maintained to afford you a clear view out to watch and photograph Badgers this way without obscurement. There is also a camera port which you are welcome to open. We recommend that you bring a tripod with you.

Can I book the Hide on a date not listed?

If you have a particular date in mind to book the Hide exclusively which is not listed on the booking system, please get in touch with us directly to discover whether this can be arranged.

Can I bring food and drink for myself into the hide?

Yes you are welcome to bring a flask and snacks (without rustling packets!) to enjoy with you whilst in the hide, we just ask that you please take your rubbish home with you.


What is your refund policy?

Refunds can be requested up to 7 days prior to the date of your hide booking. In the unlikely event we need to close the hide due to unforeseen circumstances, you will be offered to either reschedule your booking, or receive a refund.

What are my transport/parking options for getting to and from the event?

Unfortunately public transport to RSPB Haweswater is unavailable.

There is parking available at Naddle Farm for those driving. Simply drive up the Naddle Farm lane until you reach the farmhouse (the RSPB Haweswater offices), where a member of the Haweswater team will be waiting for you.

Our address is RSPB Haweswater, Naddle Farm, Burn Banks, Bampton, Penrith, Cumbria, CA10 2RP. Find us on What3Words here: https://w3w.co/spearhead.encloses.tractor

Are toilets available on site?

There is a toilet which you are welcome to use before and after entering the hide. This is external to the hide and will be cleaned to a COVID-secure standard prior to your arrival.

Good to know

Frequently Asked Questions

1) Who do I contact with any questions?
🦡
Please contact our team on 01931 713376 or haweswater@rspb.org.uk if you have any queries, and we will be happy to help.

2) What is the difference between a booking of £130 and £104?
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£130 is the full non-member price. As a thank you for regularly donating to our nature conservation work, RSPB members receive a 20% discount on all RSPB events, so have a lower price of £104. The prices are for exclusive use so up to 6 people can attend.

3) Why can I only book the hide on Thursdays and some Saturdays?
🦡 At the moment, we only have the hide available on these days due to staffing. We hope to recruit more badger hide volunteers soon, so we can offer more dates in 2023. If you have a particular date in mind to book the hide exclusively, which is not listed on the booking system, please get in touch with us directly to discover whether this can be arranged. If you live locally and would be interested in being a badger hide volunteer, we'd love to hear from you!

3) Why is the hide only available to book April-October?
🦡 Badgers don’t hibernate, but they can go into a period of winter rest (known as ‘torpor’) during very cold or snowy periods. At these times, they rely on a layer of fat under their skin that they build up in autumn to help them through the winter when food sources are scarce. They also spend more of their time underground. However, they don’t truly hibernate through the winter and will leave their sett to find whatever food they can. Badger activity is far less at this time of year which is why we only take bookings April-October here at Haweswater.

4) What facilities are there at the hide?
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We have a new toilet block located in the car park when you arrive and it has two steps up to it. There are no facilities to make a hot drink, but you are welcome to bring drinks and snacks (in non-rustling packets so as not to scare off the badgers) to enjoy during your night with the Haweswater badgers, please take your rubbish home with you. A camera or phone is useful if you want to take pictures or videos. We have a blanket in case you get cooler after sunset.

5) When will the badgers come out?
🦡
We can’t say exactly when the badgers will appear as it varies each evening, depending on factors like daylight and weather. However, we are confident they will appear at some point during the evening. They tend to arrive from the righthand side of the hide next to the side window, or from the back through the fence.

During the badger hide open season, we vary the arrival time for bookings, to allow for sunset at different times and to coincide with badger activity. 

6) How many badgers will there be?
🦡
We usually get 1-3 badgers coming to the hide each evening.

7) Can I take photos?
🦡 You are very welcome to take photos. The badgers can come within a metre of the hide at times, so bring camera equipment that works at close range as well as a bit further away.

The hide has been built to be ground level, offering you the greatest opportunity to photograph badgers at eye-level. The windows are maintained to afford you a clear view out to watch and photograph badgers this way without obstruction. There is also a camera port which we recommend opening as soon as you arrive to avoid opening it when the badgers turn up and startling them away. We recommend that you bring a tripod with you.

Please don’t take flash photos. We have automatic lights on a timer so they come on whilst it is still light, to avoid startling the badgers. These will light up the area in front of the hide after dark so you can continue to view and photograph the badgers.

The badgers are generally comfortable with camera-shutter sounds, however we recommend waiting, letting them settle and start foraging, before taking photos. Always remember the Nature Photographers Code that the welfare of the subject is more important than the photograph.

The badgers will flip over the rocks and logs in front of the hide which makes excellent opportunities for photographing them.

8) Can I feed the badgers?
🦡
Please do not feed the badgers, human food isn’t good for them and we don’t want them to associate feeding with humans. We put out RSPB peanuts in front of the hide – enough so that they stay in view for you longer, but not so much that they become the main food source, as we want the badgers to forage naturally. The peanuts are placed under the rocks and logs in front of the hide, to prevent rats getting to them, but you may see the odd rat having a sniff and a look. The badgers are very strong so will flip over the rocks and logs which makes excellent viewing. RSPB peanuts are high in fat and protein, have been grown on environmentally-friendly farms and have been rigorously quality checked for aflatoxins which are a harmful fungus found in some agricultural crops such as maize and ground nuts.

9) Can the badgers see/hear me?
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The badgers can see and hear you in the hide. They are generally comfortable with your presence but be mindful of keeping quiet whilst they are out, so as not to startle them away.

10) How long can I stay in the hide?
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Hide bookings are until 11.30pm. You can leave earlier if you wish. If the badgers are still out at 11.30 and you want to continue watching them, you are welcome to stay a bit longer. Please ensure you close all doors and turn off the barn lights (switch by the external door of the barn) as you leave. There is an automatic light on the side of the barn and also on the toilet block to light your way if it’s dark.s the Badger Hide suitable for wildlife photography?

11) What is your refund policy?

🦡 Refunds can be requested up to 7 days prior to the date of your hide booking. In the unlikely event we need to close the hide due to unforeseen circumstances, you will be offered to either reschedule your booking, or receive a full refund.

12) What are my transport/parking options for getting to and from the hide?

Unfortunately public transport to Haweswater is unavailable.

Our Badger Hide is located at our RSPB office base for Haweswater, at Naddle Farm, nestled in the beautiful Naddle Forest, where we have parking available. Our address is Naddle Farm, Bampton, Penrith, Cumbria, CA10 2RP. Please note though that our postcode covers more than just our farm, so please be sure to check out our location before visiting: GoogleMaps  What3Words  

Further information will be provided a few days before your visit.

Hide accessibility

🦡 Car parking is right next to the hide, less than a minutes walk.
🦡 There are three concrete steps and a short walk of 5 metres to access the hide
🦡 Our toilets are located in the car park. There is single step access to one toilet and two steps to access the other.
🦡 Automatic lights come on in the car park, outside the toilet block and inside the toilets.

⚠ Allergy advice ⚠

We put out RSPB peanuts in front of the hide for the badgers – enough so that the badgers stay in view for you longer, but not so much that they become their main food source, as we want the badgers to forage naturally. The peanuts are placed under the rocks and logs in front of the hide, to prevent rats getting to them, but you may see the odd rat having a sniff and a look. The badgers are very strong so will flip over the rocks and logs which makes excellent viewing. The peanuts are stored in a metal bin near the entrance to the hide.

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