Breydon Water (Great Yarmouth)

Yesterday we were lucky enough to join a group of fellows volunteers on a boat trip along Breydon Water, this is the large area of water just inland from Great Yarmouth, Breydon Water is fed by both the River Yare and the River Waveney, it is also an internationally important site for bird life, at low tides vast mudflats are revealed providing food for many thousands of waders and wildfowl.

Despite the variable weather, and the boat getting temporarily stuck on a mud bank we all had a great day with mulled wine and mince pies, the wildlife was spectacular with huge flocks of Golden Plover and Lapwing, and good numbers of other waders including Curlew, Avocet, Black-tailed Godwit, Dunlin, Redshank and Ringed Plover. Wildfowl was made up mainly from large numbers of Wigeon with some Mallards, Teal and Shelduck, also as some Pink-footed Geese from the nearby Halvergate Marshes. On top of these there were at least 4 gull species, Cormorants, Little Egrets and Little Grebes.

But I think for most people the highlight of the day was watching an otter feeding in the River Waveney, was quite happy to go about it’s fishing oblivious to the boat.

For anybody interested in visiting this area, there are footpaths from Yarmouth along both the north and south side of Breydon Water, although please bear in mind this can be a very cold and exposed site and these are very much ‘one way’ paths with no option for a circular walk, although an ‘infrequent’ train service along the north shore between Norwich and Yarmouth does have request stops at Reedham and Berney Arms.