Lucky hour at Carlton Marshes

On Monday 2nd August, I decided to call in at Carlton Marshes after work and tea, to see if my luck would change and would I finally see a Purple Heron after 6 years of dips. Parking at 6.30pm, I walked through the centre, to check the dyke at the back where I'd heard of recent reports of a showy Water Vole. Another species, I'd missed out on in recent years, only hearing the plop as I walked past the dykes but not seeing 'Ratty him/herself! A couple looking from the boardwalk one end of the lookout along the left side, posed me a question asking what they were looking at? My suspicions were confirmed when I walked over and I observed a fine Water Vole feeding just beneath us. It then swam right and then sat again showing well for some ten minutes before it swam out of sight, a great start! I bumped into @Wildlifetog and he said he had seen the Purple Heron from the Tower hide. I walked over to the Tower Hide, a Great Diving Beetle was crossing the path here. two people in the hide said the bird was west nearer the Look out hide. I decided to go there as it was closer to the bird and the light would be better there. On the journey up a Brown Hawker seen in flight along the path. At the Look Out hide, I saw both Andrew E and Steve P and there were 5 Shovelor (in eclipse plumage) to the west of the hide a Grey Heron flew over and put up the fantastic immature Purple Heron at 7.20pm, it flew south and then wheeled around and then flew in anorth- westerly direction and out of sight. walking back a the large larvae of a Silver diving Beetle crossed the path.