The Darenth Valley, which runs from Dartford to Sevenoaks, was formed by the River Darent, a chalk stream, and today contains a mixture of old gravel pits, scrubland, alder woodland, hay fields, pasture and some old watercress beds. I began birdwatching here with my father when I was about 5 years old and I still visit when I return home. The bird species have changed over the years, with some additions and some that have vanished.

The Darenth Valley runs from Dartford to Sevenoaks, with a footpath which runs between the two. To reach this short stretch of the valley one must take the A225 from Dartford and head towards Farningham.

There are many places to access the Darenth Valley footpath but the most convenient place for visitors is to park at the village hall in Sutton-at-Hone, next to the library, and walk towards Sutton-at-Hone watercress beds.

I usually walk from Shirehall Road in Hawley and for visitors it is easy to find somewhere to park here, or in Mill Road, then cross the A225 and follow the footpath to create a 3.5 mile circuit.

A wide range of farmland and woodland birds occur along the Darenth Valley along with some common waterbirds. Many of these species breed, but winter is the best time when many interesting regular visitors can be found.

1. Heading along the footpath from Sutton-at-Hone library Green Woodpecker, Mistle Thrush, House Sparrow and Goldfinch and Ring-necked Parakeet are present all year. In winter, however, the watercress beds are an excellent place to find birds, particularly if other water has frozen. Water Rail, Grey Wagtail and Green Sandpiper can always be found in winter and in really cold snaps Snipe and Woodcock can be numerous and Jack Snipe occasionally turns up. Little Egret is another visitor in recent years and the alder trees can be excellent for Siskin, Redpoll and sometimes Mealy Redpoll - Redwing and Fieldfare seem to like this spot too.

This is one of the most attractive spots along this stretch of the valley and worth spending time in looking for birds.

All along the valley foxes are common both at night and during the day. Rabbits are abundant and there are Badger setts in a number of hedgerows, and Pipistrelle Bats can be seen on summer evenings. In the past I have seen Mink and Water Vole but I'm not sure if either are still present, although Common Shrew is so common that it can often be seen after detecting it by its call. Moles are also common, but seldom seen.

A good selection of plants can be found due to the variety of habitats here with attractive species such as Cuckoo Flower and Yellow Iris being particularly common. Most of the more common butterfly species are present and the grassy areas are a good place to find both Essex and Small Skipper and Comma is quite abundant.

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