Tumby Park

The walk into Tumby Park from Kirkby on Bain takes you through proper Lincolnshire fenland - flat, open, the kind of landscape where you can see weather coming from miles away. It's a nature reserve that doesn't shout about itself, which is rather the point. You're here for birds, mainly. Warblers in spring, winter wildfowl on the water, the occasional flash of something rare that gets the binoculars out. The paths are straightforward enough, though wet underfoot if there's been rain - bring decent boots.

This is walkers' territory, and particularly birdwatchers who know what they're doing. If your kids are under ten and expecting adventure playgrounds, they'll be bored within twenty minutes. But serious nature types will spend hours here, moving quietly between the hides and watching the reeds shift. The best visiting window is spring or autumn when migration brings variety; summer can feel a bit static.

It works well as a morning outing from Willow Holt Caravan and Camping Park just up the road - close enough for a couple of hours' birding before heading back for lunch. Tattershall Lakes is equally near and offers a good counterpoint: if one day's too marshy for everyone's taste, there's proper lakeside stuff to do there instead. Allow two to three hours if you're serious, or an hour's potter if you're just breaking up a drive through the Midlands. The reserve itself is free to access, which is always welcome.