The eleven members who gathered on this hot and sunny morning were a good mix of new birders and old wader hands. We set off past the Land Yeo where a Moorhen fussed over her two chicks and on to the edge of the Pill where the tide, barely halfway up, still exposed a wide expanse of creeks and salt marsh. We spent some time scanning through Herring and Black-headed Gulls, picking out an Oystercatcher, a couple of Curlews, a Common Sandpiper and a few Lesser Black-backed Gulls. A couple of members spotted a Kingfisher shooting away up a creek. On round to the sluice where the creeks were full of Mallard and the Blind Yeo produced two more Moorhens. On the shoreline again, we settled onto a block of concrete to scan the long offshore line of Blackstone Rocks, shrinking rapidly as the tide rose but still holding a Grey Heron, two Little Egrets, plenty of Oystercatchers and Curlews and half a dozen Turnstones. A flock of small waders dropped onto the shore, giving us great views of Dunlin and Ringed Plover, and took off again just as a Sparrowhawk shot past low over the grass. Strolling on south, we practised our ID skills on bird silhouettes along the fence line in the harsh sunlight. Most proved to be Linnets but we were delighted to find a foraging Whinchat. Sharp-eared John twice heard a Yellow Wagtail calling in flight but we were unable to locate it. Dowlais Pool was completely dry and the litoral was fairly birdless until we reached the two farm gates overlooking the River Kenn with the tide now full. We spent the rest of our time scanning the roost which produced 32 mostly adult Shelducks, another 65 Mallard, 28 Oystercatchers, three Whimbrel, amongst 43 Curlew, 115 Redshanks, a Ringed Plover (and John claims a Little Ringed Plover that promptly slipped out of sight). A Peregrine dived through, scattering the waders before climbing off high over the sea. As the tide started to fall, people began to drift back to Clevedon, but the last three diehards found 13 Ringed Plovers roosting quietly on the first bit of exposed mud, a Pied Wagtail back at the Pill, and 20 Swallows on telegraph wires in Clevedon. My particular thanks to John Lewis for list-keeping (total: 34 species) and to all who carried telescopes all the way down to the roost and shared them for a good look at the waders. (Thanks to Jane for leading.) Jane Cumming