Simpson's Saltings Nature Reserve

Simpson's Saltings Suffolk Wildlife Trust

By Steve Aylward

Simpson's Saltings Suffolk Wildlife Trust

By Steve Aylward

Simpson's Salting Suffolk Wildlife Trust

By Steve Aylward

Simpson's Saltings Suffolk Wildlife Trust

By Steve Aylward

Simpson's Saltings Nature Reserve

Simpson's Saltings is one of the country's most important coastal sites for its wealth of uncommon coastal and saltmarsh plants.

Location

Behind Hollesley Bay Colony
Woodbridge
Suffolk
IP12 3JW

OS Map Reference

TM383453
A static map of Simpson's Saltings Nature Reserve

Know before you go

Size
25 hectares
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Entry fee

Free
P

Parking information

Use RSPB car park at HMP Hollesley Bay.

Walking trails

Public footpath follows the river wall. Uneven in places and can be very muddy.

Access

Not suitable for wheelchairs.

No drone flying without express permission.
(Permission will only be granted in exceptional circumstances)

If you'd like to visit this reserve as a group, please contact us in advance.

Find out why we ask you to keep your dog on a short lead at most of our reserves and why this is important for wildlife conservation. Why we ask dogs are kept on a lead

Dogs

On a lead

When to visit

Opening times

Open at all times

Best time to visit

May to August

About the reserve

A wonderfully lonely and isolated spot with an aura of timelessness. For some, the immediate appeal of Simpson’s Saltings is its openness and wide views of the Ore estuary. It is also one of the county’s most important coastal sites for its wealth of uncommon coastal and saltmarsh plants. (For this reason the Saltings can only be viewed from the sea wall.)

These plants grow amongst a mosaic of habitats including compacted sand, shingle, saltmarsh, inter-tidal mud and estuary creeks. Sea campion, thrift and bird’s-foot trefoil flourish here alongside many rarer plants such as sea kale, sea pea and sea heath. Rare and fragile lichens too, have developed in the absence of trampling feet.

Inter-tidal mud provides rich pickings for wading birds, and oystercatchers can frequently be seen probing for juicy morsels, prizing shellfish open with their chisel-like beaks.  Areas of sand and shingle make ideal nesting sites for ringed plover and oystercatcher, while little and common tern are a regular sight in summer months on the estuary as they dive for small fish in the shallows at the reserve edge.  During the autumn and winter migrations, wheatear and flocks of meadow pipit can be seen, and you may be lucky enough to see an overwintering short-eared owl hunting low over the saltings.

Contact us

Suffolk Wildlife Trust
Contact number: 01473 890089

Environmental designation

Natura 2000
Ramsar
Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI)
SPA

Location map