Carlton Marshes
Carlton Marshes, together with Oulton Marshes, is a lowland reserve in the Broads National Park. It consists of meadows, wet grassland, reedbeds, marsh and woodland.
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Located at: Carlton Marshes, Burnt Hill Lane, Carlton Coalville, Lowestoft, Suffolk, NR33 8HU
OS Map reference: (TM508920)
Know before you go...
Entry fee
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Free. Charges apply for school visits to the education centre.
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Access
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Wheelchairs and pushchairs can use a firm path around part of the marsh including easy access gates. Parts of this reserve are accessible by mobility scooter. The education centre is open for events and education groups and is accessible to all and has a disabled toilet.
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Carlton Marshes has good public transport links with buses stopping near the end of Burnt Hill Lane on the A146 and Oulton Broad South and North stations being a 20 or 30 minute walk respectively.
The reserve can also be accessed from The Ivy House Country Hotel and The Waveney River Centre - both offer overnight accommodation and support the work of Suffolk Wildlife Trust.
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Dogs
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On a lead please (cattle graze areas)
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Facilities
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Toilets
Picnic area
Disabled toilet
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When to visit
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Opening times - Daily dawn to dusk
Best time to visit - All year round
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About the reserve
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An astounding 22 species of dragonfly have been spotted here. Carlton Marshes lie in the Waveney Valley at the southern tip of the Norfolk Broads and is part of the Suffolk Broads. It comprises a jigsaw of grazing marsh, fens, peat pools, short fen meadow, tall litter fen, dykes, pools and scrub. Mostly man-made, these habitats have developed over hundreds of years of traditional management and now host specialised wildlife.
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This reserve is the Broads in miniature. Flower studded marshes drained by a system of dykes and grazed by cattle in summer, creates a paradise for marsh land birds and birds of prey including Hobby and Marsh Harrier. In early summer there is a fabulous display of Southern Marsh Orchid, Marsh Marigold and Ragged-Robin, together with the scarcer Bogbean, Bog Pimpernel and Marsh Cinquefoil. Water vole may also be seen in and around the dykes along with rare plants including Water Soldier and Frogbit. These habitats are ideal for the rare Fen Raft Spider which was successfully reintroduced to the reserve in 2012. Carlton & Oulton Marshes are also one of the best places in the UK for a range of freshwater snails which reflects the good water quality in the dykes.
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Both Sprat’s and Round Water are the result of peat digging carried out long ago. The open water in both these pools is heaving with life including insectivorous Bladderwort. This unusual plant lives off unsuspecting water fleas which it traps and digests in bladder-like sacs under water.
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The reserve is also one of the best sites in East Anglia to see Grasshopper Warblers. The reed and sedge beds along the river wall make ideal nesting cover for Reed and Sedge warblers, Bearded Tit, Cetti’s Warbler and Marsh Harrier. The grazing marshes are also ideal for wintering wildfowl and breeding waders with Lapwing and Redshank displaying through the spring and large numbers of Wigeon, Teal and Snipe in winter.
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Species
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Habitat
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Contact us
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Suffolk Wildlife Trust
01473 890089
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Environmental designation
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National Park
Natura 2000
Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI)
