Bill Neil

With a break in the recent (but much needed) rain, we headed out to the Goyt valley.  We are planning to go here later in the month but with a lot of the hides still closed at reserves this seemed like a good option for a bit of exercise. When we go with the birding group we always seem to think we are too early or too late for our target birds; making two visits might help us get a handle on what we are doing wrong – or right.

We parked up at the usual at park at the end of the reservoir and soon got talking to a young chap who had parked at the car park further up the reservoir and he said he had already seen Tree Pipit and Redstart and Common Sandpiper and Ringed Plover so we felt hopeful of a good morning. As it happens, we did not see anything on the water or the shore other than Cormorant, Canada Geese and Lesser Black-backed Gull. But we did have some luck in the surrounding woodlands.