Greylake

Address: RSPB Greylake, A361, Bridgwater TA7 9BP

Grid ref: ST399346

Located in the heart of the Somerset Levels and Moors, Greylake is the perfect place to get closer to nature. Thanks to all the water, you can see lapwing, redshank and snipe nesting in the spring and vast flocks of ducks and waders, being hunted by birds of prey in the winter.

Plan your visit

Open at all times.

Free entrance to RSPB members: Yes

Adults: Free, but donations are very welcome.

Children: Free, but donations are very welcome.

Facilities

No visitor centre
Car park
Toilets off-site
Accessible toilets off-site
No Refreshments
Picnic area
Viewing point
Nature trails
Shop off-site

Accessibility

How to get here

By train

Bridgwater is the nearest station, 7 miles from the reserve. There is no public transport to Greylake, so alternative arrangements such as a taxi will need to be made.

By bus

Take the route 29 bus from Taunton or Glastonbury. The nearest bus stop is in Othery at the London Inn or in Greinton at the phone box (both are 2 miles from the reserve). Walking to Greylake from here is not recommended due to fast traffic and lack of a pavement. A request to stop at the reserve could be made.

By road

The reserve is on the A361 (Taunton to Glastonbury) road midway between the villages of Othery and Greinton.

Sat nav POI file: If you have a satellite navigation system that can accept POI files, please see our POI page for a download link and instructions.

Get directions from Google Maps

RSPB reserves on Google Earth

11 degrees, Partly cloudy (day)

Downloads

Helping you find your way around. PDF, 82Kb

Greylake trail guide

Contact Greylake

RSPB Greylake, A361, Bridgwater TA7 9BP
greylake@rspb.org.uk
01458 252805
@RSPBSomerset

What will you see?

Our star species

Marsh harrier

Resident throughout the year hunting over the fields and reed bed.

Peregrine

Resident throughout the year hunting duck and waders during the winter.

Snipe

In the winter they can be seen within a few meters of the hides and during the spring and summer they can be heard doing their drumming display in the evenings.

Reed bunting

Spring is the time to see male reed buntings at their best.

Yellow wagtail

Yellow wagtails arrive on the marshes in April.

Nature spectacles

While in spring bird song fills the air and in summer spot dazzling dragonflies and beautiful butterflies gliding on the wing, it is in winter that Greylake truly comes alive.

Wrap up warm and wile away hours in the hides watching the many different species of ducks and waders, such as golden plover, lapwing and wigeon, fly up in colourful clouds. They may have been spooked by a passing marsh harrier, another bird of prey or perhaps an otter swimming beneath the surface.

Watch elegant egrets and stately herons fishing along the edges all year around. Keep a look out for the shy water rail and listen for its squealing call.

In spring, you can see aerial displays from wading birds like lapwings, redshanks and snipe. You might spot mute swans nesting and smaller birds such as sedge warblers, yellow wagtails and reed buntings can be heard and seen signing from the trails.

Little egrets, grey herons, kestrels and buzzards are nearly always visible throughout the summer period, with occasional sightings of stoats, hares, grass snakes and water voles. It may be possible to catch a glimpse of a majestic crane on the ground or cruising high in the thermals overhead.

In autumn, you can see large flocks of wigeons, teals and lapwings once the reserve floods in the latter part of this period. Kingfishers can be regularly seen and look for waders such as green sandpipers, snipe and greenshanks on the pools.

Over winter, flocks of lapwings and golden plover are sometimes joined by, dunlins, ruffs and black-tailed godwits. Large flocks of wigeon, teal and smaller groups of mallard, shovelers, gadwalls and pintails feed in front of the hides. Peregrines and marsh harriers are seen regularly and merlins and hen harriers occasionally.

About Greylake

Habitat

A mix of habitats including, reedbed, open water, rough grassland, willow scrub and wet grassland attract a wide range of bird, mammal, plant, insect and reptile species. All these habitats are in close proximity to the access routes and hides. The trails meander through the reedbed and scrub and alongside the ditches and open water, whilst the hides and screens give great views over the wet grassland. This all contributes to making it really easy to spot and photograph an amazing range of wildlife throughout the year.

Conservation

All the habitats are managed to keep them in great condition for the wildlife. Cattle graze the fields during the summer and machinery such as tractors and diggers are used to help manage the vegetation through the autumn to create the right conditions for wintering and breeding birds.

Water level management is critical to the success of the reserve and sluices are adjusted to make the site wetter in the winter and spring and dry it out a little in the summer so management can take place. The scrub is also managed in the autumn to keep it in a condition preferred by nesting warblers. As well as managing the habitats for the wildlife we also manage and control vegetation to try and provide the best viewing and exploring conditions for our visitors.

Site information

The RSPB took over the site in 2003 when it was used as arable farmland. Previously this land used to be called Shapwick Alloments, dating to 1800 when the area was 'enclosed' and apportioned to the parish of Shapwick.

There is a 700m circular walk which provides flat access to the hides for wheelchairs and buggies. There are additional grass paths around and through the reedbed and out to a more distant viewpoint.

Latest blog posts

read our blog