WITH temperatures dropping and skies getting darker more quickly, it is even more important to get out into nature and make the most of daylight hours.

Here are the top five winter walking locations in Essex as recommended by Essex Wildlife Trust.

Two Tree Island nature reserve, Leigh

Explorers can enjoy a coastal walk at Two Tree Island and look out over the mudflats which serve as an ideal habitat for thousands of waders and wildfowl.

Visitors can take a moment to stop and listen for large shuffling flocks of dark-bellied brent geese that graze on thick beds of eelgrass.

Wander around the western section and you will reach the Lagoon Hide, where hundreds of waders such as curlew, dunlin, avocet, redshank and black-tailed godwit flock to.

Thameside Nature Discovery Park, Stanford-le-Hope

This site was once one of the largest landfills in western Europe and is now unrecognisable as a thriving nature reserve at the mouth of the Thames Estuary.

At Thameside you will find a network of trails overlooking Mucking Mudflats and Stanford Wharf.

At the top of the site, the Nature Discovery Centre has an accessible rooftop, allowing visitors to enjoy panoramic views of the site.

Fingringhoe Wick Nature Discovery Park, Colchester

Essex Wildlife Trust’s first reserve overlooks the Colne Estuary and boasts many wildlife hides around the site offering refuge in the colder months.

Thousands of waders and wildfowl migrate to the estuary every winter, including the scarce avocet.

Several walking trails lead through the different habitats that this site has to offer, where you can explore woodland, scrub, heathland and ponds. 

Abberton Reservioir Nature Discovery Park, Colchester

Wander the circular trail round the reserve to the two bird hides and enjoy the chorus of migrating birds.

Afterwards, head to the Nature Discovery Centre where visitors can enjoy a hot chocolate while taking in the views across the reservoir.

Children can also take part in the Brambly Hedge Trail and find Wilfred and his fellow mice hidden around the reserve including Primrose, Lord Woodmouse and Lady Woodmouse from the classic stories.

Blue House Farm nature reserve, Chelmsford

Visitors will be greeted by the sights and sounds of dark-bellied brent geese having completed their 2,500-mile journey from Siberia.

Blue House Farm also has a newly-created 40-hectare wetland for people to witness.

The wetland provides ideal habitat for a variety of wildfowl and wading birds, including lapwing, oystercatchers and redshank.

Explorers can watch out for barn owls and marsh harriers soaring over the fields on the look-out for scurrying rodents.