Hanningfield Reservoir Walk

It was a pleasant Saturday 17th January morning when we met up to head for Hanningfield Reservoir. Some met at Eagle Lane for the benefit of those without cars and some headed straight there. En route we saw a herd of deer near Brentwood and a little further on 3 Little Egrets enjoying the water in a flooded field.

A total of 16 of us then arrived at the Café on the Water for refreshments. At about 11.45 we headed out for the walk which took us through the woods to the south side of the reservoir. We passed the Essex Wildlife Trust Visitor centre and near there a few wood carvings of the Wind in the Willows characters, then popping into a couple of hides ended up back at the café for lunch. It was fairly busy so there was a bit of a wait for some of the food, but it was worth it. It probably gets even busier in summer when water sports are happening.

Unfortunately the reservoir level was very low so the wildlife wasn’t particularly near the hides, but we were told there were Widgeon visible with binoculars. 

We walked a total of about 2.5 miles.

Richard,   20th January 2026

Photo by Trev.