New Bittern Hide

I drove in the fog to John Lewis and Waitrose in Welwyn Garden City for the first time in a while. It was very civilised, there was no queuing involved, which surprised me.

This afternoon Ollie dog and I were given a conducted tour of the new Lee Valley Park Wildlife Discovery Centre and Bittern Hide. We had it to ourselves. Ollie had to stay with the person showing us round while I climbed the tower. Dogs aren't allowed in this area as the steps and platforms are made from metal mesh. If a dog was to do a wee or a whoopsie here it could end up on the heads of those below. 

It's a very stylish building but I think that there's less actual hide space than in the old Bittern Hide. The artificial kingfisher bank is very close. I wonder if the halcyons will take to it? I hope the bittern returns when the reed beds that have been damaged during construction grow back.