First of the Month on the 4th!

Friday Nov 4

We woke to a dark and damp morning which delayed our departure until 6.50. The weather worsened as we drove west, it was definitely a 'why are we doing this' morning. The rain becoming very heavy at times, enough to make us eat our breakfast sitting in the car at Abbey! Abbey was as bad as on Monday, apart from a family of Grey Partridges crossing the lane in front of us and a small flock of wildly careering Redwing diving into the hedgerows out of view, until one perched in the open for us to admire.

All the expected waders at Snettisham, I had one opportunity to use my scope out of the window without getting drenched. A large flock of finches swooping around the bushes held Chaffinches, greenfinches and Linnets but nothing more exciting.

Definitely a day for breakfast at Tesco in Hunstanton! Mine cost under £3 and Pam's just over £4 - she had an extra egg, hash brown and mushrooms. Incredibly good value and very nice too.

As we we were leaving Holme NOA, a female Hen Harrier showed briefly on three occasions above the dunes. Lovely, well spotted Pam.

At 11.45, it stopped raining and the sun came out for nearly three hours, wonderful. Scanning the west end of Holkham marsh from the layby, Pam asked me to check a blob in a distant tree - I was scanning the geese for something different. A soggy juvenile Rough-legged Buzzard. Let's hope it stays for the winter.

Last stop was Gunton in the hope of a Great Crested Grebe to make it a list of 70 for the day. No luck.

I'd had a very dozy afternoon, not managing to keep my eyes open very much at all ! It's all catching up with me I suppose.  After supper at Kate and Jim's, I was very late to bed too - and slept on and off until 10 a.m. Saturday morning. Unheard of!

Catch-up Time

Oct 31 and Nov 1

Sue had made an early date to go out as she's off to New Zealand for 5 weeks on Friday. Pam hadn't asked her to arrive until 9.00 and we had to be back home by 4 for her physio appointment at 5 in Norwich.....a short day for a long way!

Our Snettisham driving permit had run out, we needed to call in to the office in Snettisham Village en route for a renewal. First stop was Abbey Farm to see ..basically nothing. There wasn't any water either.

Armed with a new permit, we reached Snettisham reserve at half tide. Highlights were: Pintail, a female Red-breasted Merganser on the first pit and all the expected waders, including a large flock of Golden Plover.

Holme NOA to eat lunch, adding Shoveller, no sign of the Rough-legged Buzzard at Holkham nor the Cattle Egret at Friary Hills. We managed just over 50 species on a pretty dull day weatherwise - but it was good to be out birding again.

Nov 1

Busy cooking for to-morrow's coffee morning here, not too busy for a trip to Winterton in the afternoon.

A call at Cart Gap produced a Great Northern Diver flying east.

At Winterton, two Red-throated Divers on the sea and a flock of at least 8 Snow Bunting on the beach. They flew in and disappeared below the shingle bank, not to be seen again. At least four Shags fishing offshore too, always good to see in Norfolk.

Back in Norfolk

Sunday October 30

We got home late morning on Friday after 36 hours door to door travelling. Shame we didn't have the energy to go birding....all the good birds - e.g. Daurian Shrike - cleared out on Friday night.

We did the Winterton run at Saturday tea-time on a lovely, mild sunny day and saw very little. A Marsh Harrier and a few Pinks at Horsey and a couple of Red-throated Divers on the sea at Winterton. About 20 Pied Wagtails in plough en route.

Sunday afternoon brought a trip to Cley Spy, one of my Swarovski bins' eyecaps was loose. Simple, they just replaced them both for free.

Our first Autumn Brent in the Eye Field and a few Lapwings. I didn't get out of the car.......One Mistle Thrush on roadside wires near home and virtually nothing in the garden. Our feeders will not have been replenished as regularly in our absence and, the large fig tree in the border,used greatly as cover, has been heavily trimmed back.

A day's birding with Sue to-morrow should add a few to the sparse October list. I'd prefer a trip to Hilfield Res for the Eastern Crowned Warbler!

First Pinks

Thursday September 14
As we walked out to the car at 4.10 a.m. before driving to Heathrow for 6 weeks with the family in Australia, a skein of Pinkfeet flew, calling, overhead. Lovely.
I am writing a separate Blog for our trip as it's a family experience - with lots of birding of course.
http://moggill2011.blogspot.com/

Sea Watching

Tuesday September 13
Very strong wind still but from the wrong direction for a good Norfolk sea watch - NW is best. Couldn't resist a last look before flying out to Brisbane on Thursday.
We were awake early, had a look at Walcott and decided that Winterton was probably the best bet. Not having much time to spare, we didn't stay long but added two Red-throated Divers, several Guillemots and a Razorbill on the sea, close in. Further out, there was a steady trickle of Gannets and several Terns. No Skuas.........

Not Much - one Goodie

Friday September 9
It was drizzling heavily at Roughton and the whole area looked well set for more. No Titchwell to-day, we turned back and drove to Buckenham Marshes. A pager message saying that Titch would be disturbed by ' unavoidable seasonal work' after mid-day was some vindication of the decision.
Buckenham was devoid of birds, all the pools were dry, that is, the Fisherman's car park and the Old Mill. A 100+ flock of Greylag, a smaller flock of Canadas and another of the feral Barnacles were the only birds on the marsh apart from an adult Peregrine Falcon sitting on one of the gates. That alone was worth the visit. I had fantastic scope views as it surveyed the scenery, occasionally cleaning its yellow feet.
Two Marsh Harriers sailing over Horsey Broad....We met Robin A who'd been sea watching from Horsey Gap seeing Bonxie and Arctic Skuas, Red-throated Diver, Guillemots, Whinchat and Wheatears. We saw nothing.... Pam walked the dunes to have a look at the sea whilst I scanned the car park.
Little Bittern reported at Titchwell this afternoon but no further reporting of the Cattle Egret and Buff-breasted Sandpiper we were hoping to see.

September 1

Thursday

I was distinctly reluctant to get up this morning, the weather didn't help either - low grey overcast and cold. We eventully made it out by 8.15.

A paucity of birds too, we barely made it into double figures by Abbey farm - and missed Tree Sparrow to boot. Abbey was empty of both water and birds, Two smallish pools in the main area in front of the hide, no geese and no ducks. Amazing. We didn't linger long......

7.6 Spring Tide forecast for Snettisham to-day and we got there half an hour beforehand, at 8.30. The pools were full of birds of little variety, mostly Oystercatchers. The highlight was a Greenshank and a poorly looking Avocet. A couple of dozen Dunlin, Ringed Plover and a few Sanderling on the tideline and a single Little Stint which scattered before Pam could see it. My patience was short too, we didn't stay long here either although it was as lovely as ever.

The blackberries by the entrance gate helped lift the gloom..........

Scanning the apparently empty and calm sea at Hunstanton, I found two Great Crested Grebes, a few Sandwich Terns and a single Arctic Skua. The only other birds were six Black-headed Gulls.

At last, the sun appeared as we drove out to Holme NOA. Pam walked to the Obs to hand in our raffle tickets and money. I completed the Telegraph Code Words puzzle whilst she was away.........finding out that Jed had split with Sophie, the reason for his resignation. Old news to most I guess. Luckily Pam had also heard the Whimbrel and Chiffchaff.

Six Avocets and a Spoonbill on the Broadwater, the first of three different sightings of Spoonies to-day. A lone Spotted Redshank roosting on one leg to the right of the pool.

A very wet road at Thornham, the tide had been well over. A handsome Grey Plover stalked about on the mound and two Spoonbills, one asleep, the other flying. A 'first' for us at Thornham. The first Golden Plover flock of the Autumn distantly over the marsh.

We called in at Titchwell to buy next year's diary and, having read the record book, decided to walk out at Cley instead.

Sea watching off Coastguards first. What a penance. The sun had disappeared and it was very cold, I was sat with my fleece zipped up to my nose. After 20 minutes we'd added 3 Gannets and a few Common Terns. Back to the haven of the car.

Parking in the main Centre car park, we walked to Pat's Pool which had seven well scattered birders in situ. Curlew Sandpiper, Ruff, Lapwing (!), Gadwall, Shoveller, Mute Swan and Little Ringed Plover to add to the day list. Four more Spoonbills asleep at the back of the pool.

Surprisingly (as always!!) the species list was 77, many more than the impression we'd gained.

I decided not to take any more crap photos to-day, didn't take any at all in fact.