Guide in a Hide 26 April 2025

A warm Guide in a Hide day!
Coats were off at last and it was such a pleasure to welcome visitors to a proper Spring day on the Reserve.
155 people came along, including two youngsters who loved spotting the birds through our telescopes.

With a decent tide bringing in the sea and refreshing the marsh, we could show visitors migrating birds such as Bar-tailed Godwits, Knot and Grey Plover in their fabulous breeding plumage. We heard the beautiful 7-note call of Whimbrel all day, and were delighted to see a Cuckoo and newly arrived Swifts.

Add the fabulous sound of all three Terns and Skylark, flat beach really was a wonderful place to spend a Saturday. Thanks to everyone who came along.

Next one is Sunday 25th May – see you there!

Guide in a Hide 29 March 2025

Weather, birds and visitors!

Glorious sunshine, a partial solar eclipse, a biting wind and an amazing 222 visitors for our Guide in a Hide day today!

It was great to meet you all and show you a total of 34 species of birds including a Rye Harbour Nature Reserve special, the Sandwich Terns – over 80 of them!

A couple of our guides cleverly kept out of the wind and it was great to meet the Marylebone birders too – hope you enjoyed your day.

Guide in a Train 20 February 2025

A second superb day with members of our Guide in a Hide team helping on the the Kent & East Sussex Heritage Railway steam train. 

Although the morning started very misty with poor visibility, we were able to enjoy the beautiful views for the train as it chugged along.

The train was filled to capacity, with many grandparents looking after their grandchildren for the day. 

24 different birds were seen. It was amazing to hear passengers announcing their own sightings out loud to the rest of the carriage!

Highlights of the day were a Red Kite, seen by the train’s historian, a Marsh Harrier, several Buzzards, a Kestrel and a Green Woodpecker.

Again, our thanks to https://kesr.org.uk/ for inviting us to join in with their venture. It was a pleasure to help. 

Guide in a Train 18 February 2025

This February half term has once again seen Guide in a Hide volunteers from Rye Harbour Nature Reserve become ‘Guides in a Train’ on the Kent and East Sussex Railway. These old steam trains running between Tenterden and Bodiam  are  a fantastic part of our heritage and a wonderful way to see the amazing Kent and East Sussex countryside. 

For these ‘Birdwatching specials’, children had been given birding activity sheets and many enjoyed using the sheets and spotting birds out of the train window. We had brought several pairs of binoculars with us and the children loved using these.

We saw an amazing 24 different species of birds including a lovely Red Kite –  spotted by one of the young birders on the train, also Marsh Harrier, Buzzard, Kestrel, Great, Little and Cattle Egrets plus many Lapwing and a variety of gulls and other species.

Many of the children (and adults!) were very enthusiastic and pleased with how many birds can be seen through a train window. The help from the guides really seemed to be appreciated and the journeys were enjoyed by all. 

Thank you to Kent and East Sussex Railway for putting on this event and being party to inspiring both current and potential young birders. Maybe we will be seeing some of you at Guide in a Hide at RHNR!

Guide in a Hide 15 February 2025

Another wonderful Guide in a Hide event today with 172 people coming along and enjoying loads of birds and a wonderful high tide.

The birds whirled around all day. Sometimes it was difficult to see why, sometimes it was excitingly obvious; a Peregrine falcon caused mayhem, a Merlin caused panic and a Marsh Harrier caused a bit less of both!

The guides really enjoyed seeing the enthusiasm and excitement of our visitors. One lady was delighted to see a Merlin for the first time.

Thanks to everyone who came along. It was a joy to meet you and show you the birds!

Guide in a Hide 02 November 2024

On a pleasant but slightly chilly day, we engaged with at least 165 Adults and 32 youngsters.

The highlights at the Gooders hide were three Spoonbill, two Avocet, and the large flocks of Golden Plover and Oystercatchers, plus a superb male Marsh Harrier going over, causing pandemonium amongst everything on flat beach – disturbance for the birds, but quite a sight for those watching.

Many of the visitors were unfamiliar with the birds on the Reserve and very appreciative of the help provided by the Guides. Youngsters very quickly get the hang of looking through binoculars and telescopes and finding new birds to see.

There were also some challenging questions, including a child of four or five years old asking whether the one-legged Avocet would find as much food as the two-legged Avocet!

The Guides appreciate the opportunity to inspire the visitors, especially the younger ones, to gain a better understanding of the natural world.

Guide in a Hide 05 October 2024

A big thank you to all of those who helped with delivering a great GIAH experience for many visitors to the reserve. The weather was kind and there were many people out and about enjoying the pleasant October sunshine.

The team based in the Gooders hide engaged with 130 Adults and 52 young people. Those based near the Discovery Centre engaged with 43 Adults.

At the Gooders hide we had over 30 species of bird, including Bar-tailed Godwit and a distant Greenshank. Swallows were constantly passing through and a large bouncing flock of Linnet caught the attention of visitors on several occasions. These birds would then often land on the saltmarsh areas along with Meadow Pipits and a few fluttery Skylarks in order to feed on the plant seed available. Redshanks, with their brightly coloured legs and habit of ‘paddling’ straight in front of the hide were enjoyed by many. Another popular sight, particularly through the telescopes, was close-up views of a feeding Curlew. Visitors were often stunned by the length of the bill.

Outside the Discovery Centre, 29 species provided lots of interest, including a Kingfisher and Hobby which were appreciated by those present at the time. Curlew and Black-tailed Godwit were on the Saltmarsh and easily viewable through the available telescopes.

Duck numbers are building up nicely, with whistling Wigeon drawing attention to themselves, whilst amongst them were a few Pintail, Teal and Gadwall plus the more common Mallard.

Guide in a Hide 07 September 2024

Volunteer guides were on Rye Harbour Nature Reserve yesterday, sharing their knowledge, enthusiasm, binoculars and telescopes!

At least 133 people stopped by to chat, excited that we had had at least three sightings of our star bird, the Osprey. Many people walked away looking up at the sky, out to sea and all around to try and spot it. It was terrific!

In all, we saw 39 species of birds. Apart from the Osprey, the feeding frenzy of Sandwich Terns and Gannets in the river mouth towards the end of the day were highlights.

Thanks to everyone who came along, we enjoyed meeting you!