A still, sunny morning tempted 29 members to enjoy ideal conditions for the walk. The car park was awash with song as though the dawn chorus had continued for four hours without a break. Notable among the Robins, Wrens and Song Thrush were two Garden Warblers demonstrating their contralto sound. The light from the viewpoint beside the Visitor Centre was glorious. A dozen Mute Swans were dotted around the brooks; a distant group consisted of three Little Egrets, a Grey Heron and a Great White Egret while a Buzzard and a Red Kite drifted high accompanied by a glider. A Whitethroat provided a harsh soundtrack. A short distance along the track came the fluting sound of the day’s first Nightingale followed immediately by another at the top of the zigzag path. Towards Fattengates Chiffchaffs, Blackcaps and a wheezy Greenfinch could be heard. For once the courtyard itself was quiet, quiet enough for a far-off Cuckoo to be heard. On the approach to West Mead a perched Nightingale was spotted in the open and most enjoyed good telescope views of it. A scan of the horizon near the hide disclosed a very distant White-tailed Eagle being mobbed by various corvids. From the hide itself the main sightings were of an avocet sitting on a nest and a Lapwing chick among numerous adults. Waterfowl were represented by a handful of Mallards, Shovelers and Tufted Duck plus many Canada Geese, one with goslings, while high above two Hobbies intermittently soared about. Bypassing Wimpenny the path allowed just a single glimpse of an Adder and no new birds until near the Little Hanger a Sedge Warbler sang vigorously and eventually performed its song flight. Time at the Hanger viewpoint proved well spent. Whitethroats were in good voice and regularly showing themselves. A handsome male Linnet displayed his pink finery. Four Avocets landed on the North Brooks while a few Swallows hawked over the water. A Lesser Whitethroat rattled away for a few minutes and finally a Hobby flew in and perched for telescope viewing. The return up the zigzag path was notable for calls by two distant Cuckoos and song from a previously silent Nightingale, the sixth of the morning. A delightful walk finished with a tally of 49 species.