Stodmarsh kingfishers

With just a week to go until I left for North Wales, I was looking for a location to photograph kingfishers. Although I love my older images, they were all taken using the little Canon Powershot and I really wanted some on my Nikon D800. I had been lucky a few years ago at Wakehurst Place, but the back gate has since been closed. This denies me access to the hide, as it is now a 2.5-mile walk from the main entrance – so 5 miles in total. (The walk through the woods used to take no more than five minutes).

Members of a birding group seemed to have a lot of success at Stodmarsh nature reserve, near Canterbury. It’s a 90-minute drive from home and sadly, my first attempt yielded nothing. The light was poor and any birds remained a long way from the hide. No kingfishers were seen at all that day.

Less than a week later, the weather brightened up and I decided to try again. Making good progress, I reached the final turning much earlier than expected, only to find the lane was closed. I needed to find the other end, but it’s an impossible job with my Sat Nav, as it keeps trying to return to the same spot.

I tried for more than half an hour, but couldn’t find another way in and the diversion signs were useless. Then I remembered I had previously used the car park at the far end of the reserve. It was too far for me to walk, but if I could get that far, the Sat Nav may just get me to the right end. And so, nearly an hour late, I parked up and walked through the reed beds to the hide. A kingfisher appeared within seconds and showed well for the next two and a half hours.