Introductory Sand Walks
A two-hour circuit on the nearest flats, never more than twenty minutes from firm shore, designed for first-time visitors and families. The guide explains how the estuary works, what lives under the surface, how to read ripples and channels, and why the sand behaves as it does. Groups dig for lugworm and cockles, watch waders at close range and finish with hot drinks. Boots, waterproofs and binoculars are included, the route is suitable for children from six, and the whole walk is timed to end two hours before the tide reaches the flats.
Full Estuary Crossings
The classic route: a guided traverse from one shore to the other across open sand and two wadeable channels, taking four to five hours with stops. It is not technically difficult but it is long, wet to the knee and completely exposed, so places are limited and a short fitness questionnaire is part of the booking. Two guides accompany every crossing, poles mark the channels, and transport back to the starting point is included. Crossings run only on suitable tides and are announced season by season, usually filling within days of publication.
High-Tide Bird Walks
Shorter walks along the marsh edge timed for the hour either side of high water, when waders are pushed off the mud into dense roosts. A naturalist leads, telescopes are set up at two viewing points, and identification is taught from shape, call and flight pattern rather than field-guide plumage alone. Autumn and winter dates see the largest numbers, spring brings display flights and summer plumage. Counts from each walk are submitted to the national wetland survey, and participants receive the totals with their species list afterwards.
Foraging and Shellfish Walks
Seasonal walks focused on what the estuary produces: cockles, mussels, samphire, sea aster, laver and sea beet, gathered under current local rules with a licensed guide who explains quantities, closed areas and water-quality warnings honestly. The walk finishes at a shore kitchen where the day's gathering is cooked and eaten with bread and cider. Participants take home a printed guide to safe collection and preparation. These walks run only when official water testing permits harvesting, and we cancel rather than compromise on that.
Private Guiding and Groups
Walking clubs, natural history societies, photographers, schools and companies can book a guide for a private walk at a tide of their choosing, with route, length and subject agreed in advance. We regularly guide painting groups to the marsh edge, geology students across the channels, and corporate teams on a slow crossing followed by a meal. Minibus parking, changing facilities, packed lunches and indoor space for a talk can all be arranged, and risk assessments are supplied for institutional bookings as standard.
Courses and Survey Days
Weekend courses cover tidal navigation and safety, wader identification, coastal photography in flat light, and estuary ecology from plankton to seals. Volunteers can join monthly wader counts, salt-marsh planting, marker-pole maintenance and litter surveys, with training and equipment provided. Several of our current guides began as volunteers on these days. Course places are limited to eight, run in most months outside midwinter, and include all equipment plus a meal at the shore kitchen at the end of the day.
