Estuaries

Our top 5 estuaries

  • View of the Dart Estuary downstream from Greenway garden, Devon © NTPL

    The Dart Estuary, Devon

    The Dart estuary sits in a steep sided river valley and provides a valuable home for a wealth of wildlife from insects and birds to seals and dolphins. It’s also a great place for canoeing at high tide.

  • blakeney point from the air © Mike Page

    Blakeney Harbour, Norfolk

    You get a great view of the harbour from Blakeney Freshes and if you love birds, then this is the place to come. You’ll see thousands of Brent geese in winter, and in summer listen out for terns and the noisy redshank.

  • Looking at shells on the beach at Brownsea Island, Poole harbour, Dorset © NTPL/Ian Shaw

    Poole Harbour, Dorset

    This large, natural harbour is not strictly speaking an estuary but a ria - a landform, often known as a ‘drowned river valley’ - formed at the end of the last Ice Age. Brownsea Island, the largest of the islands in the harbour, is the perfect spot to sit back and enjoy its beauty and tranquillity.

  • Northey Island at low tide with clouds overhead

    Blackwater Estuary, Essex

    The Blackwater estuary is a great spot for water sports, with Northey Island offering a calmer experience within its isolated and tranquil surroundings... wind and wave permitting!

  • Sheep and drowned drumlins at Strangford Lough in the pink light of the dusk © NTPL/Joe Cornish

    Strangford Lough, N. Ireland

    The UK’s largest sea inlet and a haven for marine life, butterflies and wild flowers. It is also one of the best places to spot birds in the country, boasting the majority of the world’s population of pale-bellied Brent geese between October and March.