I think the answers in the title
Jeff never been to any of the following but check out http://lnr.cambridge.gov.uk/reserves/
quite right, sorry.
Hi Jeff
If you have a whole day to spare you could try my local patch, which is the riverside walk from Cambridge to Ely. Just find the River Cam at Midsummer Common (central Cambridge) and then follow it North along the Fen Rivers Way. It's about 16miles across varied habitat: farmland, marshes, flooded meadows, hedgerows and some small woods. Your dates are a couple of weeks early for the arrival of Summer migrants, but there's still plenty of wildfowl and waders, usually including Avocet.
I know I may be flamed for saying this on a birding forum, but if you are
are only Cambridge for 2 days, you will barely have time to scratch the
surface of non-birding things to see, which of course will involve "the backs"
and a walk along the Cam, but also the wonderful architecture and museums etc..
Carlos: this has been suggested to me a couple of times before and sounds interesting, and a nice walk - how far does on have to go from Cambridge to start seeing interesting birds? I'd love to do the whole route but rarely have a whole day free here.
Hi Tom.
From Waterbeach station you head to the river and start walking up the Western ("left") bank to Bottisham Lock (there is a wintering Goosander here at the moment and often Grey Wagtails). At this point the river can be crossed so you have to choose which bank you want to walk up. I usually go up the Eastern ("right") bank for more varied habitat and better positioning of the sun. The only advantage of the Western bank is that it will give you slightly closer views of Upware washes.
A bit further North from Upware is a small woods followed by a long lane with good hedgerows leading up to a road crossing a couple of hundred metres East of the river. This road is the only other place where the river can be crossed, so you can either double back to Waterbeach along the other bank, or carry on up the Eastern bank a few metres to Kingfisher's Bridge which has hides and plenty of good birds (I had a Great Skua here last year). Beyond Kingfisher's Bridge the path goes along a high bank through flat fenland all the way to Ely (you can see the cathedral in the distance). There aren't many new birds along this stretch but Barn Owl are practically guaranteed if it's late afternoon.
The entire walk (Camridge-Ely) takes me about seven hours and usually produces between sixty and seventy species. With limited time you can do the stretch from Waterbeach to Upware and back in about one and a half hours each way. This stretch usually has the best birds: in summer you should get Yellow Wagtail, Cuckoo, Turtle Dove, Corn Bunting, Grey Partidge, Avocet, Shelduck, lots of warblers, etc.
Hi Tom,
glad to see you made it along the Cam. I was also there on Sunday - between Waterbeach and Upware, with a quick walk around Wicken Fen. I started at 9.15am and got back to Waterbeach for the 3.05pm train.
Good to hear the Goosander is still there. I looked out for it but couldn't find it. I also missed the Avocet but saw the Little Egret, Pintail, ten Shelducks and a couple of Oystercatchers as well as Redshanks and Snipe at Upware Washes. Avocet numbers should start building up now; there were about 12-14 here last Spring. It's usually pretty good for passage waders, with regular Black-tailed Godwit, Greenshank, Dunlin, Green, Common (and, once, Wood) Sandpipers and Little Ringed Plover.
Wicken Fen was also productive for such a short visit: I came across the Great Grey Shrike, which I didn't realise was still there, and got views of a Cetti's Warbler, a wintering Chiffchaff, a Marsh Harrier and another drake Pintail.
Hi Tom,
glad to see you made it along the Cam. I was also there on Sunday - between Waterbeach and Upware, with a quick walk around Wicken Fen. I started at 9.15am and got back to Waterbeach for the 3.05pm train.
Good to hear the Goosander is still there. I looked out for it but couldn't find it. I also missed the Avocet but saw the Little Egret, Pintail, ten Shelducks and a couple of Oystercatchers as well as Redshanks and Snipe at Upware Washes. Avocet numbers should start building up now; there were about 12-14 here last Spring. It's usually pretty good for passage waders, with regular Black-tailed Godwit, Greenshank, Dunlin, Green, Common (and, once, Wood) Sandpipers and Little Ringed Plover.
Wicken Fen was also productive for such a short visit: I came across the Great Grey Shrike, which I didn't realise was still there, and got views of a Cetti's Warbler, a wintering Chiffchaff, a Marsh Harrier and another drake Pintail.