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A Wild Walk in Southwold, Suffolk (Day Trip)
Tour Code: GBR191A day exploring the varied habitats around Southwold in Suffolk where the seafront, town marshes and River Blyth offer numerous wildfowl, herons and shorebirds
£50 (land only)
Highlights
Tour Itinerary and Reports
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Summary
Southwold is often listed as one of the top 10 places to visit in the UK. For the birdwatcher, this popular coastal town offers rich pickings with coastal marshes and river estuary, sandy cliffs and the Denes beach.
Our walk starts at the harbour, looking south into Sole Bay and towards Dunwich, then follows the River Blyth inland along the Blackshore past wooden fishermen’s huts and the Harbour Inn to the old railway line. From the raised banks we obtain views across the town marsh to Southwold where geese, ducks and Snipe feed. Heading further west along the bank of the River Blyth, we will check the estuary and fields for wildfowl and waders. We complete our morning’s circuit across the common and golf course.
In the afternoon, we’ll have a quick check of the denes and harbour mouth (viewing along Southwold seafront towards the pier). Scoter and Fulmar, plus Red-throated Divers and Great Crested Grebes and much more are possible, then we will make the short drive to the Hen Reedbed in Reydon. He we park up and walk along Wolsey Creek, past the reedbed, for a view over the open mudflats of the Blyth Estuary. The car parks are both free. We operate this Day Trip throughout the year, so please click on our 'detailed information' below to discover the seasonal highlights.
- The birdlife of Southwold on the Suffolk coast with local expert Brian Small
- A walk along the River Blyth, seafront and round the town marshes
- Wildfowl and waders
In Spring and early Summer we would expect to find singing Nightingale, Dartford Warbler and Stonechat, plus many warblers – Willow Warbler, Sedge, Reed, Grasshopper in the reedbeds, Blackcap, Garden Warbler, Lesser and Common Whitethroat. Hobbies chase Swifts over the reeds. Marsh Harriers hunt the fields and with luck we might find a rarer spring migrant such as Spoonbill, Purple Heron or Crane. Little, Common and Sandwich Terns breed along the coast. Dragonflies, such as Norfolk Hawker and Small Red-eyed Damsefly, plus numerous butterflies, all add extra interest.
Autumn is an exciting time of year and great for migration and you never know what might turn up. As well as mobile flocks of Bearded Reedlings, Whinchats and Wheatears join parties of finches, buntings and pipits moving south along the coast; waders such as Green and Wood Sandpiper, Greenshank and Spotted Redshank are on the marshes and the Blyth Estuary is a regular stopover for Osprey. Yellow-browed and Pallas’s Warbler are almost annual in late September or October.
Winter highlights include 100s of wildfowl, with a regular flock of Common and Velvet Scoter offshore; a Hen Harrier or a Short-eared Owl may be found hunting the marshes; Snow Bunting appear on the beach and Little Egrets are now regular on the pools. White-fronted Geese are sometimes joined by Pink-footed or Tundra Bean Geese. The Blyth Estuary has a regular wintering flock of over 500 Avocet often buzzed by wintering Peregrine Falcon! We have a chance, depending on the weather, of a surprise or two – perhaps a Waxwing or Great Grey Shrike or even Rough-legged Buzzard. In winter there is sometimes a fine murmuration of Starlings gathering at dusk in the Hen reedbed.
Whatever the season, this short birding break promises a superb mix of wintering or migrating birds, breeding coastal residents, and rarer heath and woodland species. Throughout the year there is always something happening and we will keep the itinerary a little flexible to ensure the best use of the weather and recent sightings. The walk will be over easy ground (but sometimes muddy in winter, so bring wellies just in case). Covering up to 8 miles over the course of the day, we take our time to explore the town marshes and seafront, before heading to the Hen Reedbed and its surroundings at the end of the day, thoroughly enjoying all the species we find.
Dates & Prices
2024
Tour Leader: David Walsh
David has been a keen birdwatcher since his primary school days and still has his notebooks from the early 1970s to prove it! He ran bird clubs at his schools and is very proud of the fact that several of the boys who he inspired as 11-year-olds are now working in full-time conservation; he continues to encourage young birdwatchers whenever possible. David retired from full-time teaching in 2015 but continues to do part-time maths tutoring. In his spare time he enjoys singing in various local choirs.
In 2008 he used a sabbatical to spend three months in Southeast Asia, which included a successful quest to find the endangered White-eared Night Heron in Vietnam. At home in Suffolk, he puts his love of bird songs and calls to good use, running surveys to monitor breeding birds in the spring and searching out migrant passerines in the autumn. He also co-ordinates the submission of Suffolk’s records to the national Rare Breeding Birds Panel, knowing the birding sites in the county very well indeed having lived in Suffolk since 1992.
David has guided over 90 overseas tours since his first to La Brenne in 1986. In the last 10 years he has focused on Europe, North Africa, Asia and South America and has enjoyed developing his interest in butterflies and dragonflies as well as birds. David’s boundless energy and enthusiasm, coupled with a determination to ensure that everyone in the group sees the birds, has understandably made him popular with clients! He is delighted to be joining the Naturetrek team in 2023.
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We are delighted to offer a series of Naturetrek Day Trips which visit a wonderful selection of reserves and habitats across the UK, each guided by one of our expert naturalist tour leaders, many of whom are leading our Day Trips on their own ‘local patch’! Meeting at around 9am, and exploring largely on foot until around 5pm (though note that specific Day Trip timings do vary slightly by location and season), these trips are designed to spend a full day out in the fresh air, in search of a wide range of special British wildlife.
Whether you would like to explore a new area in the company of a local, expert naturalist tour leader, try a guided wildlife day out for the very first time, or perhaps you simply wish to spend the day learning more about your own local wildlife, you will find yourself most welcome on one of our Naturetrek Day Trips. We also offer days out specifically aimed at beginner birders and amateur wildlife photographers, and some trips even extend after sunset to allow us to take you on a guided tour of the night skies above. Whatever the trip focus – be it birds, botany, fungi, photography, butterflies, dragonflies, geology or a mix of just about everything – your leader will take you to the very best places to search for wildlife, and will share their knowledge generously along the way.
Our Day Trips have been fully risk assessed, and all activities are carried out in line with UK government and industry Covid-19 guidance. Most Day Trips from 17th May 2021 onwards will have a maximum number of 7 people, with a handful, such as cruises with a slightly higher number. We have also been certified as 'Good to Go'; the domestic tourism industry standard mark for Covid-19 protocols. Your safety is paramount, and we will be complying fully with UK government guidance throughout all of our Day Trips.
How to Book
The price for all our standard Naturetrek Day Trips is £50 per person and payment is by debit card only. You can book online, or you are very welcome to book over the phone by calling us on 01962 733051. Some Day Trips operate seasonally, and we are continuing to add additional departure dates for our fully booked Day Trips, so if you would like to be added to our wait list for any of these trips please just email info@naturetrek.co.uk or register your interest via the tour page.
Joining Instructions for Day Trips
If you, or someone that you have been in close contact with, has displayed symptoms of Covid-19 in the 14 days prior to the Day Trip, or if you receive an alert from NHS Track and Trace, you MUST NOT JOIN the Day Trip. Please let us know in the Naturetrek office as soon as possible and we will be happy to refund you in full.
- Upon booking we will email you with a designated meeting point and confirmed timings, along with contact details for your tour leader.
- During some Day Trips we will each use our own vehicle to move the short distances in between sites (group transport is not provided).
- Please do not bring your dog, or other pets, as they may disturb the wildlife!
- Please bring your own lunch.
- Please bring plenty of water, snacks, hand sanitiser, tissues, your own face covering (this will not be compulsory whilst we are out in the fresh air and wide open spaces throughout during the day but may be required to enter toilets, visitor centres, etc.) along with anything else that you might need for the day. You will need to be able to carry everything yourself. Suitable footwear (walking shoes or walking boots) will be essential, along with sensible layers and waterproofs plus sun hat and sun cream or woolly hat and gloves etc., depending on the weather forecast.
- Wherever possible, we will try to arrange comfort breaks during the day. On some of our more remote Day Trips this isn’t always possible, and on those occasions you will need to be prepared for the odd ‘bush stop’! If this is likely, we will alert you in the joining instructions beforehand. Please be stringent with hygiene when using public facilities.
- We ask you to respect minimum social distancing AT ALL TIMES (currently 2m where possible between households at the time of writing, but could be updated at any time). To help ensure this, we ask group members and tour leaders not to share optics, field guides or any other equipment.
- Finally, please do share your photos and favourite wildlife sightings with us … we love seeing them! Tweet @naturetrektours, Instagram @naturetrek_wildlife_holidays or find us on facebook.com/naturetrekwildlifeholidays
Tailormade Day Trips
Should the dates we offer not suit you, or should you wish to have a private, tailored Day Trip, we will be delighted to arrange this for you. Please just call Georgie Head on 01962 733051, or fill out our quick enquiry form and we will get back to you. For inspiration for a Tailormade UK break, please see our Tailormade UK holidays.
Reviews:
'The Naturetrek £50 days out have been a lifesaver this year. What better way than to spend a day in the open with four other like minded people in the company of a brilliant guide who can tell you all about the geology, flors and fauna of the area. I’ve been on three of these days with more booked for the future. The days are full, meeting at 9.00am and not finishing until 5.00pm, maybe slightly earlier in the darker winter months, with about 45 minutes for our picnic lunch but never have I ever looked at my watch and wished the time would pass more quickly. Quite the opposite in fact, the time passed so quickly I was amazed when we found ourselves back at the car park. Value for money? Yes, definitely. Thank you Naturetrek.'
VB – The Naze and Walton Backwaters (Essex)
‘The Upper Teesdale Day Trip was brilliant and Andy Bunten was an exceptional guide. So very knowledgeable and an expert spotter, but equally important he had great communication skills so that no-one felt remotely patronised or afraid to ask the most basic of questions. The organisation of the day was impeccably planned too. This was my first Naturetrek outing but I have friends who regularly use you and have spoken of your trips in glowing terms. So I will certainly look at your website and I will hope to travel with you at some point in the future.’
KS – Teesdale
‘We had a lovely day on Monday; Matt was terrific - particularly with us being beginners at bird watching! The other attendees were very interesting and one in particular was extremely knowledgeable. So we learned a lot - just got to remember it now! We are looking at the other day trips available to see if we can do another one.’
Ashdown Forest
‘I wanted to write to thank you for organising your new Day Trips. It’s an excellent idea and something to give hope to many people, who are keen to get out and about, and to experience the beauty of nature closer to home. Our trip to the Ashdown Forest on Friday was excellent. The weather was kind to us, a lovely sunny, English summer day, but it was our guide, Matt Eade, who made it special. Quite how Matt managed to arrange Goshawk, two Honey-buzzards, Hobby, Treecreeper, and a whole host of other species was remarkable.
Spotted Flycatcher is the personal favourite of my husband Simon – and Matt knew where to find two of them. Simon was over the moon!
It was a top day. Matt was informative, very knowledgeable, engaging, encouraging, always happy to help, provide insights and share his knowledge and experiences. He paced the walk just right, thoughtful about short breaks where needed. I worked for 8 years as a Tour Director around Europe and I know how exceptionally hard it can be to keep everyone happy!’
Ashdown Forest
‘The trip exceeded our already high expectations. Andy Bunten was kind, humorous, thoughtful and his knowledge of the wildlife truly exceptional. It was a real pleasure and privilege to be in his company.’
KE – Teesdale
‘So nice to be on a Naturetrek trip again and had a thoroughly enjoyable day with Russ and our other companions. Everyone just got on even though we had not met before. Looking forward to our next day trip!’
LD – Smardale
‘We had a great day, thank you. Matthew Capper was an excellent guide, giving us a wealth of information about the ecology, conservation and social history of the area as well as the wildlife, and having an amazing ability to detect birdlife out of nowhere. The Lammergeier before we'd even left the meeting point was of course spectacular, but it was Matthew's commitment to searching for the birds and Mountain Hares which impressed me even more. We also appreciated his patience and good humour, and his determination to make sure that all 5 of us got to see everything. These day trips are a brilliant idea. We are really looking forward to our next Naturetrek Day in a couple of weeks.’
AB – Peak District
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Prefer to Travel in a Private Group?
For any interested natural history club or society, we can arrange for a private departure of this tour.
Enquire
Why Naturetrek?
At Naturetrek we craft expertly-guided group and tailor-made wildlife holidays and cruises to all seven continents. On one of our holidays, you can be assured that our passionate team will enable you to experience and enjoy the best of the world's wildlife and natural spectacles in as comfortable and rewarding a manner as possible, caring as best we can for the environment in the process. We are proud to provide:
- The widest choice of wildlife holidays worldwide
- Tours managed and led by naturalists, for naturalists
- Outstanding value and exceptional customer service
Furthermore, as a Naturetrek client, our office team are always to on hand to help you – so if you have any queries about your holiday, whether before or after you have booked, we will be delighted to answer them on the phone. Please just give our team a call!
