Martin Mere Wildfowl and Wetland Trust

Mum and I had persuaded Dad to take us to a nearby Wetland and Wildfowl Trust (WWT) site called Martinmere. Mum was convinced that it was somewhere near Blackpool and yet we had really trouble trying to find it on Dad’s SatNav. I had found the post code for it but Dad refused to accept it because it was clearly wrong! As it happened it wasn’t, but we had slightly misplace its location. It was actually closer to Liverpool!

Given that we had a long journey to make tomorrow it was perhaps a mistake to head down to Martinmere. But the decision was made and off we went. It took us a good couple of hours to get there but it was well worth it in the end.

Mum was convinced that it was somewhere near Blackpool ... but we had slightly misplace its location.

Firstly we were able to replace my Mum’s binoculars. Her old pair had simply fallen to pieces yesterday for no apparent reason. As these were her second pair within a year, she was reluctant to buy a new set. But I managed to persuade her that buying them in a specialist shop would be much better and they would be far more robust. The salesman was excellent, even convincing me that there was nothing wrong with my old pair, if I just focused them properly.

As with all WWT sites it had a collection of captive wildfowl from all over the world as well as truly wild areas. We spent a happy day moving from bird hide to bird hide all over the site, ending up in the most spectacular one of all. This huge observation hide has been constructed in the shape of a marsh harrier, with wings outstretched. It’s a fantastic piece of sculpture as well as an extremely luxurious hide. Sadly it was the only marsh harrier we saw that day.