Today I've been to Doxey Marshes in Staffordshire. I've been meaning to go for some time and finally managed to get here today.A short walk along the river from the train station will get you there. At first it didn't look that big but there are plenty of paths to walk and quite a few areas of water with a hide overlooking the main lake. The highlight of the day was a Marsh Harrier! I watched it for ages as it slowly flew over the reed beds. Another highlight was a Kestrel that took off from a tree and flew directly past me. It could have only been a few feet away.
Other birds included, Lapwing Greylag Goose, Shoveller, Cormorant, Grey Heron, Buzzard and flocks of Goldfinch. There were a lot of Coots and too many Canada Geese and I was surprised at the lack of wading birds but on the whole not a bad place to go to watch birds.
After leaving the marshes I had a walk around Stafford Town Centre and had a lovely meal of Mushroom and Spinach pie and chips (from Sainsbury's of all places!).
All in all, not a bad day. The weather forecast hadn't bode well but with the exception of the odd shower it was fine. With some prolonged sunny spells. I will definitely head back there at some point.
