HOLIDAY HIGHLIGHTS

FARNE ISLANDS

6 - 13 July 2019

Guide: Julian Sykes

Guests: David & Carol Gover, Andrea Schwedler & Ferdinand van Leyen, Susan Aldam, Sheila Jones, Lesley Gadsden

Day 1 Julian meets up with Lesley, Sue and Sheila at Newcastle train station having already sorted out the minibus for the week and minutes later we are heading out of the city and north along the infamous A1, and an hour later we are arriving at our lovely coastline hotel at . The check-in is soon sorted out and we head to our rooms arranging to meet ahead of the evening meal at 7pm. This time is spent to ourselves with a couple of us going for a walk along the coast seeing our first Eider plus Herring and Black-headed Gulls.

Later this evening we first greet Ferdinand and Andrea to the group, followed by David and Carol and we are finally all together. It is very busy in the restaurant and during the course of the meal, Julian goes through the week ahead, which sounds exciting and fingers crossed the weather will stay favourable for us. Once we have all finished and say our “goodnight’s” we retire to our rooms for hopefully, a good night’s sleep.

Day 2 It’s breakfast at 8am on this fine morning although slightly overcast and cool, but still excellent conditions for being out and about. Whilst eating, Julian is scanning the sea, saying there are lots of Gannets moving north, and a lone Shag sits on the Seahouses harbour wall. We have been asked to be ready for 08:45 and duly oblige our guide as we leave the car park 15 minutes before the hour – superb. The road to the A1 is winding but thankfully quiet on this Sunday morning and before long we are heading south along the A1. After several miles we turn off and after an impromptu stop (where we see our first Whitethroat) we make good progress all the way to the parking area of Cresswell Pond. We climb out of the vehicle and get our gear together before walking slowly to the hide, which overlooks the main lake.

On the way we are seeing and hearing the usual Reed Buntings, Meadow Pipits, corvids and Woodpigeons, with Sheila spotting a Great Tit and Julian hearing the distinctive song of Sedge Warbler, just before we enter the hide. Once inside, it’s all action as a couple of the ‘local birders’ point out what’s around. Our bird list gets a real kick start as we initially see several Avocets, Sandwich and Common , Herring, Lesser Black-backed and Black-headed Gulls, Mallard, Grey Heron, Swifts, Swallows, Sand and House Martins. Amongst the gull flock there are a couple of gorgeous summer plumage Little Gulls and an equally gorgeous Mediterranean Gull. Lesley spots a Shelduck nearby and there are also Dunlin and Redshank running around. David and Carol are looking out the other way and find the adult Spoonbill asleep across the water along with quite a few Curlew and Lapwing. Whilst checking out the ‘spoonie’ we also see a superb ‘black’ summer plumage Spotted Redshank, which is enjoyed by all of us through the telescope. Things are now starting to calm down a little as we slowly ‘catch up’ with these great new species, when Julian says “there’s a Golden Plover here”, which is right in front of the hide – even the locals are surprised by this. We now stay a while longer enjoying these species, especially the Spoonbill, which has not only woken up and started to feed, it’s also flown much nearer in front of the hide – what a start! Julian cannot believe it when he looks at his watch and it’s almost 11:30, so he decides it’s time to move on.

We walk slowly back to the minibus and climb inside after adding Linnet, Goldfinch and Starling to our growing list. Julian has promised a comfort stop and heads into the nearby village of Cresswell, where there are some useful public conveniences. We have also parked by the sea and during this time look out over the exposed sea-weedy rocks. Here we find lots of Oystercatchers along with another couple of gull species – Common and Great Black-backed. Offshore there are more terns flying back and forth plus we see our first Eiders of the day. Once we are all ready, we again head off, returning the same way, passing the pond and on to Druridge Pools. We make a brief stop to look for Little Owl near here but without any success, fingers crossed for later.

On we now go stopping next to the track to one of the smaller hides around this wetland. The weather has brightened considerably and we start to see our first butterflies with Painted Lady, Red Admiral and Ringlet on the wing. Eventually we reach this small hide, which has a few people watching from already – this could get interesting! The attraction is a rare duck, a drake Baikal Teal (in eclipse plumage) which is playing hide and seek as it keeps swimming out of sight. As the hide is full and the duck is initially being difficult, it takes a wee while for us all to see, with Sue, Andrea and Ferdinand being one of our first. However, as people leave, our position within the viewing space improves and eventually we all get a good look at the far north eastern wildfowl. It is not just about this bird as there are also several Black-tailed Godwits in varying plumages plus Moorhen, Coot, Gadwall and Eurasian Teal to keep us occupied. Sue even spots a Roe Deer, which is brilliant as they can be a tough species to find on this holiday.

Time is moving on and Julian wants to have lunch in another more comfortable hide so we wander back to the minor road and down to the next track.

As we walk along we can hear the distinctive songs of Blackcap, Chiffchaff, Willow and Sedge Warbler amongst other woodland species. This track is also very productive as Sheila and Lesley see our only Comma Butterfly along with Common Blue, Meadow Brown, 6-spot Burnet, Cinnabar Moth and Common Blue Damselfly. We make this larger hide just ahead of 1pm with our picnic lunches but first we want to check the pool in front of us. We soon find a female Shoveler asleep in the middle but a bigger surprise is Julian spotting a female Goldeneye, something he’d never seen previously on this trip. There are other birds with lots of young, Pied Wagtails, Shelduck, Greylag and Canada Geese but it’s is now time to have our lunch. Whilst we are enjoying our sandwiches, crisps and fruit we continue searching the immediate area with Andrea finding another close Grey Heron and our guide a Common Snipe. When we have all finished we gather our things and head back towards the road stopping to look at another small shallow scrape on the way. This is again excellent as it yields a couple of lovely Wood Sandpipers amongst the commoner species here, but there’s more activity along the wire fence adjacent to our position. There are lots of things coming and going, landing on the barbed wire, feeding in the nearby nettles, such as Stonechats, Willow Warbler, Chiffchaff, Goldfinch and Blue Tits. It is hard to drag ourselves away but Julian has promised another toilet stop and that needs no persuasion. We soon get back to the vehicle and set off again north leaving another fabulous wildlife site.

A comfort stop is requested again so Julian calls in at Druridge Country Park, where we make full use of the facilities before heading back a short way to East Chevington reserve. We park at the end of the track and walk out towards the seeing a lot of Common Spotted Orchids, various butterflies and commoner birds. At the beautiful white sandy beach we look out to sea where there are several Gannets passing but Julian spots a flock of birds in the swell. Through the telescope he finds they are Common Scoter but not just a few, there are lots here as they alight the sea. There must be easily a three figure count of these seaduck, which clearly are starting to move back and winter along this coastline. We enjoy these birds for a while before walking back to the minibus seeing a couple of lovely male Linnets and Stonechat on the way. We opt to walk the short distance up the hill to the next track as our guide drives the vehicle, parking ahead of our arrival. We come together now looking down over another lagoon, which is surrounded by phragmites and within minutes David says “what’s this?” as a female Marsh Harrier comes into view – superb. We enjoy this rare county breeder as it flies back and forth, lands on a dead tree, before moving away and out of sight. We are really pleased with this being the main target species of this visit. Now we walk slowly down the narrow track and stand in front of the hide in these very pleasant conditions. The reed-fringed lagoon is teeming with birdlife such as Great Crested and Little Grebes, Arctic, Common, and Sandwich Terns, Cormorants, gulls and wildfowl. It is all very relaxed as we continue to look out over the water but Julian has one more site for us to visit so we soon walk slowly back.

We leave Chevington and drive again north to Amble where we park at the harbour and go for a walk down towards the seawall. There are terns fishing, which are mainly Sandwich but also a few Arctics, with Cormorants and the commoner gulls loafing on an abandoned jetty, but not much else. Lesley has walked to the end of the pier and is convinced she’s seen our first Roseate of the week, which is wholly conceivable as we are only a mile away from , where there’s over 120 pairs breeding! It is now late afternoon and we are fairly tired from our long journeys the previous day and everything we have done today, so Julian decides to take us back to the hotel. We leave Amble and head along the River Coquet towards Warkworth seeing a couple of Little Egrets and lots of Grey Herons along the waters edge, being a great finish to our birding day. Back in Seahouses we are given enough time to freshen up and sort ourselves out before reconvening in the restaurant for the evening meal and conduct our first daily checklist, which reveals we have seen 80+ bird species – a fantastic effort.

Day 3 Today is Andrea’s birthday and we all wish her well at breakfast, with Julian surprising her with a signed card. We are ready to leave just before 9am on this overcast morning but the forecast is good, which is brilliant as we have our ‘ pelagic’ this afternoon. Julian drives south from Seahouses and along the coastal route towards Embleton, where we continue beyond along the minor road to Dunstan Steads, parking at the end of the lane. This is adjacent to the Dunstanburgh Golf Course and once we are ready, we walk on the coastal path alongside the fairways. We had hoped to hear a Quail, which had been reported but it’s not calling, but we do get fabulous views of our first Yellowhammers, plus Reed Bunting, Meadow Pipit and Skylark. We continue to walk north past the golf club house and out to the beach, which looks over Embleton Bay. It is absolutely beautiful here with the backdrop of the ruined Dunstanburgh Castle at the southern end. The sun is now breaking through and it’s becoming a glorious morning as we look into the bay, seeing lots of terns, gulls, auks, Gannet and Shags, on or over the water. Julian finds a Little Tern and tries to describe its position, which isn’t easy for such an active bird but eventually we all see one of the few fishing here. Sheila and Lesley mention they have seen a few Pyramidal Orchids on the saltmarsh so we all go to have a look. Amongst the grasses there are actually lots of these beautiful scarce flowers, which are a joy to see and photograph. After a while we carry on north along the track, which continues to follow the edge of the fairways and rises up to get an even better view of the bay. Here we see a couple more Little Terns, which are easier to spot before Julian says “I think I can see dolphins?” – he trains the scope on the area and smiles broadly. Out in the bay are a few Bottlenose Dolphins splashing about and moving slowly south and we get some great views through our guides telescope. This is turning into one heck of a morning! We actually need to keep going and walk on seeing a Whitethroat, Willow Warbler and Chiffchaff, plus hearing a Blackcap. Soon enough we reach a fabulous new hide overlooking a small reed-fringed pool and we settle down for a while. There is a Grey Heron fishing just below us, along with the expected Greylag and Canada Geese, Mallard, Shelduck and Mute Swans. However, we search carefully and Sue spots our first pair of Gadwall, with Julian then seeing a female Wigeon, which sadly disappears before we all get to see it. In the fields behind Carol sees a Roe Deer, which is brilliant as these can be tricky to find.

After a while we move on again and walk only a short distance stopping at Low Newton scrape where we set up the scope and start searching through the waders here. There are some gorgeous summer plumage Black-tailed Godwits, Redshank and Dunlin, but new to the list is a Ruff and Greenshank, which is superb. Sheila really wants to find a Yellow Wagtail but it’s Julian who initially sees a young bird amongst the vegetation on the far side, which we find hard to see through the telescope as it’s partially hidden. Sheila though now says “there’s an adult” as she points out this stunning bright yellow male not too far away from the juvenile. In fact there is a family here as we also add a second youngster and a female, which is brilliant. It is now late morning and Julian is conscious that we are nearing the time we want lunch at the hotel. So we walk through the village of Low Newton and he leaves us to run back along the coast for the minibus! While our guide is away we enjoy the sunshine whilst having a very welcome coffee sat outside at the local hostelry. Julian arrives at the edge of the village right on time, which is a great effort on his part, and once ready, we head back to our hotel in Seahouses. Here we get our picnic lunches and sit outside in the sunshine overlooking the mighty North Sea. We have plenty of time to finish our lunch and get ourselves ready before we need to reconvene in the car park.

Just before 2pm we walk slowly round to the Seahouses harbour and check in for our four hour pelagic on a fantastic 10m RHIB, skippered by another Yorkshireman – Alan. It is a very low and after negotiating our way through the civil works to the end of the pier we literally have to jump down into the boat, with help from Julian and Alan. This is thankfully achieved by all of us, although we think Carol is having second thoughts being faced with this – still she bravely perseveres. After the safety briefing and donning our floatation belts the boat heads out into open water and Alan puts the throttle down. It is a wonderful experience bouncing along the water, although our back, backsides and teeth might not think so – Andrea and Ferdinand are loving it. The plan is to head south towards Coquet Island and see how far we get before going out further to sea and coming back. As we speed along the water, Julian points out Puffins, Guillemots, , Shag, Gannets, Fulmars, , Herring and Greater Black-backed Gulls. We stop for photos opposite Dunstanburgh Castle and it’s unusual to see it from this angle, but we get some neat images. On we speed, on this lovely afternoon, but still quite chilly as there is a cold light wind. Eventually we reach Coquet and the numbers of terns, auks and gulls has risen exponentially with them all round the boat now. We see our first Grey Seals before Julian shouts “Roseate Terns” pointing out a couple of birds splashing about in the sea. We can tell they are different from the much commoner Arctics, being much paler, black-billed and very streamlined. We manage to get some good views as we are bobbing around on the water but Alan thinks we need to leave as time is moving on.

Now he points the RHIB out to sea and again speeds off leaving land behind us until we are about 6 miles out! We turn back north but it’s not long before Sheila shouts “dolphins”, Alan has seen them too and already suspects ‘White-beaks’ but isn’t 100%. Then the sickle-shaped dorsal fins appear again much closer as they are coming to the boat, literally going right under us and appearing next to the vessel – Sue is absolutely thrilled. Julian is also elated as they show the diagnostic patterning of White-beaked Dolphin – this is his first in four years of trying and we are seeing them ‘up close and personal’. Ferdinand is trying desperately to get a photo but it’s not easy on this moving boat. They dive again and look to go back under us but don’t reappear, which is slightly disappointing but very much their habit that they like to check people out but rarely hang around. Alan decides we need to continue and further north we go but it’s starting to get quite cold as cloud rolls in and there is some spray from the sea with David getting the brunt of this.

We are always scanning and Julian now points urgently, shouting “Manx Shearwaters” as two of these very pelagic seabirds fly past, thankfully close enough for all to see. Alan is very pleased as these are the first he’s seen this season. We can now see Seahouses in the distance and we head towards the shore, and a particular bay just south of . Here there is a breeding tern colony on the beach, which is roped off from people and dog walkers in this very popular area. It is great to watch the activity of these birds coming with food for their young and going out to find some, which cannot be easy. It is now almost 6pm and we quickly make the final stage back to Seahouses harbour, where we say “thank you and goodbye” to Alan, who’s done another wonderful job this year, creating another very memorable tour out into the North Sea. We walk slowly back to the hotel where again we have plenty of time to warm up, dry out and freshen up ahead of the evening meal.

Day 4 We wake to the surprise of no rain but it is overcast, muggy and threatening and after our usual breakfast at 8am we gather our things together. Today we have a long drive south and leave at leave on time, hoping for a straight forward journey. The traffic is surprisingly good and before long we are south of Newcastle heading into and finally Teeside. After an hour and 45 minutes we are driving into the RSPB Saltholme reserve car park and still it isn’t raining – what a result. We make ready and head to the lovely visitor centre, where one of the excellent staff lets us enter the reserve without any payment, although we first make full use of the facilities. While this is going on Julian sets up his telescope overlooking the bird feeders and main lake where we find four new species to the list – Common Pochard, Stock Dove, Tree Sparrow and Greenfinch. This is brilliant and when we are all ready we set towards the Saltholme Pools hide, seeing a group of 10 Little Egrets, Skylark, Meadow Pipit and hearing a couple of Sedge Warblers.

At this large hide we are greeted by one of the volunteer wardens who points out what’s around, which includes another new bird with a family of Little Ringed Plovers. However there is much more here as we enjoy good looks through the telescope at plenty of Avocets, Black-tailed Godwits, Curlew, Oystercatcher and Lapwing. There is also plenty of wildfowl as we now see some sleeping Wigeon, plus Teal, Gadwall, Shelduck and the ubiquitous Greylag and Canada Geese. We are watching these when the volunteer now says he’s seen a Common Sandpiper and after a brief wait this small wader comes walking out. It is now midday and Julian thinks we should move on and we wander slowly back to the visitor centre again to quickly use the facilities.

After this we head out the other side and soon our guide hears a Reed Warbler singing near the track, which he quickly locates but it’s difficult to see. Eventually this bird flies into a close Willow and disappears but at least we’ve all had a brief view. Further on after checking out the Mad Hatters Tea Party we end up at the excellent Wildlife Watchpoint. Here we set up either side of the hide with Ferdinand and Andrea checking out the bird feeders and the rest of us watching for Water Voles. Our two German friends are enjoying up close and personal views of Greenfinches, Goldfinches, Reed Bunting, Great and Blue Tits. We at the other side are failing to see any voles but Sue spots another Reed Warbler, which we all see better than the previous one and there’s a family of Moorhens just below the hide window. It is now time for lunch so we walk slowly back to the visitor centre and now it’s starting to drizzle but not too bad. The café staff very kindly allow us to have our picnics sat in their covered balcony so Julian duly repays the compliment by purchasing a hot drink for all of us, which is most welcome and delicious. There is not much to see from this watchpoint but we are actually more interested in a Sooty Tern, which has landed on rocks just south of Seahouses – we cannot believe it! However we still stick to plan A.

After our lunch we spend a little more time in the centre before we finish up at the Phil Stead hide, where we see much the same species but do well by finding another new bird – Green Sandpiper. As it’s fairly quiet and we still have a busy afternoon we don’t linger at this hide and return to the minibus.

We leave Saltholme and drive out towards Seaton Carew, stopping at the car park for Greatham Creek, which has been greatly improved from previous years. We start by looking from the first watchpoint where we see more of the same including Carol finding a very confiding Curlew and Common Redshank, there is also a Skylark feeding in the ground. After this, we walk slowly to the creek seeing a few butterflies – Large Skipper, Small and Large Whites. The tide is out, which has exposed a lot of mud and as we near the river we see our first seals, which this place is most famous for. Both Common and the larger ‘slug-like’ Grey Seals are hauled out with many more of the latter but there are several Commons in the water. These are showing extremely well, and photographers manage to get some pretty good images of them. Once we are all ready we start back to the minibus as it’s now mid-afternoon and Julian wants to visit a couple of new places before heading back to Seahouses.

Julian asks for a map reading volunteer and Sheila bravely steps forward, being strategically placed behind our driver for maximum input. It is now raining quite heavily as we drive north but we cannot believe our luck with the weather today so far. We soon get to Gateshead and there we get much better looks at the iconic Angel of the North than our southward journey, which pleases Lesley. Just after this Sheila’s work kicks in as she seamlessly guides Julian through the back roads towards Rowlands Gill. We soon hit the River Derwent valley, where we start to look skyward for our target – Red Kite. We reach the edge of the town and Sue exclaims “what’s these large birds here?” Julian glances up and says “Red Kites” turning off at the next junction – Sherburn Park. What a result this is, as we jump out of the bus and watch fascinated as these fabulous raptors, circle low above the houses, even diving down into their gardens – just superb.

Thrilled with our success we leave Rowlands Gill and head towards Newcastle Airport, which is not that far away but traffic now is pretty congested. We eventually reach the airport, but with the help of Sheila, continue through to a little known area called Prestwick Carr. The weather has turned pretty miserable now, but undeterred we don our wet weather gear and set off along the old disused railway line until we reach a viewing platform. We now watch the lone feeder hanging from a hawthorn hedge, waiting for our next target bird to hopefully turn up. There are Great and Blue Tits, a young Robin and Dunnock initially, then we see it in the adjacent hedge and watch as it makes its way to the feeder. It now flies in, and in full view is an adult Willow Tit, which is fantastic as they are now a very scarce bird in the UK. Sadly it doesn’t linger too long, but we still get a good and clear view before it disappears, so off we now go back to the van. We still have a good drive back to Seahouses but this soon passes as we head along the A1 north then out to the coast with Lesley spotting a Yellowhammer on an overhead wire. We reach our base at 6:30pm and after a good freshen up we meet in the restaurant, where we enjoy another good meal.

Day 5 Today is Lesley’s birthday and hopefully going to be one of the highlights of the week – a full day on The visiting tremendous seabird cliffs and two of their bigger islands, but it’s teeming with rain. After breakfast we get ourselves ready and at 9am we walk around the corner to the harbour, the rain has now stopped and it’s fingers crossed for our sailing. Sadly at the ticket office it’s not great news as the National Trust staff have closed Staple and they are making a decision on Inner Farne. It is going to be at least ten minutes before we know so Julian decides to head back to the bus and drive a short distance north of Seahouses to Monks House Pool where we look out over this small lagoon for a while seeing the expected Mallard, Tufted Duck (with chicks), Shelduck, Grey Heron, Redshank, Oystercatcher and Lapwing. There are lots of hirundines and Common Swifts over the freshwater but a surprise is seeing a couple of juvenile Yellow Wagtails in the arable fields beyond. The time passes and we drive back to the hotel where Julian phones the Farne Islands boat company and thankfully comes back with good news – we have permission to land this afternoon on Inner Farne. However we still have an hour and half before we need to be back at the quay so Julian suggests we revisit Low Newton scrape as it’s fairly close and quite productive.

It takes about 10 minutes to get to the Low Newton car park and the journey has been good as Sheila spots a Brown Hare in one of the fields we pass, which is superb. We walk down to the village and check the bay but it’s pretty quiet so we walk on round to the shallow pool. There is again lots going on as we find all the great waders we saw on the previous visit, such as Ruff, Greenshank, Dunlin, Curlew, Snipe and some gorgeous Black-tailed Godwits, all of which look lovely in the morning sunshine – we cannot believe two hours early it was pouring down with rain! Julian spots the handsome male Yellow Wagtail along with another juvenile at the back of the scrape and eventually we all get to see it feeding along the water’s edge. Soon enough it is time to leave and after a necessary comfort stop we walk back to the car park and then drive back to our hotel with a few minutes spare.

At 11am we again walk down to the harbour and Julian goes to sort out the boat tickets followed by the NT fees for landing on Inner Farne. At our expected departure we walk out onto the quay, boarding the tripper boat and setting off towards the islands – we are all in very good spirits as the sea is calm and the weather is now very good too, with bright, warm sunshine. The crossing starts well with a fairly close fly-by Gannet, followed by our first Puffins with both Guillemot and sat on the water. We continue towards the islands and see 100’s of auks, with them swimming around in the channel, and as we get closer to the sea cliffs, the densities of these seabirds get exponentially bigger, and we now make a small cruise up towards the rocks and low cliffs that rise out of the North Sea around this archipelago. The sight, sound and smell is an arrest to the senses. The numbers of nesting Puffins, Guillemots, Razorbills, Kittiwakes and Shags is astonishing with every ledge and crevice being taken by one of these seabirds.

We continue to cruise around the small islands seeing more of its spectacle, plus numbers of Grey Seals, with some ‘hauled out’. There are also Herring and Lesser Black-backed Gulls looking for an easy meal as they prey on the auks, eggs and young – harsh but it is the natural world. Seabird rookeries are an incredible experience and one we tend to take for granted in the UK being one of the world's great avian spectacles and we are getting it by the bucket load. However, it’s not all about seabirds as we also get brief views of a Rock Pipit, a Turnstone and most surprisingly three Golden Plover on one of the large, exposed rocks covered in seaweed. Around 1pm our skipper heads south down this island chain until we reach one of the southernmost, Inner Farne, and this is ternland!

We are immediately enthralled by the constant noise and barrage from the predominant Arctic Terns, which are all around us even as we walk onto the small quay - this is just unbelievable. We need to wait for a wee while until the island reserve staff can officially let us in, so we scan the adjacent beach where Julian first finds a tiny juvenile Ringed Plover, followed by one of its parents, which is superb – but once we are allowed, it’s up the track towards the church. Inner Farne has a network of boardwalks around the island to protect the breeding birds but the tern chicks just don't care. These cuties of all shapes and sizes sit around waiting for their parents to bring food and blend in well with the wooden slats – consequently there is the occasional fatality from clumsy humans. Larger Sandwich Terns are also breeding on Inner Farne along with , Black-headed Gull, Puffin, Guillemot and Razorbill. This is also home to St ’s chapel – home to the story of these islands legendary heroine, , and well worth a visit. We wander round individually or in couples having our own personal experiences with our ‘feathered friends’. Puffins with beaks full of sprats, birds feeding their young, being dive-bombed by the aggressive Arctic Terns (or worse!).

It is getting towards our leaving time and Julian gets to the jetty ahead of the rest and decides to check the nearby Arctic Terns in the hope of finding a much, much rarer Roseate. This wasn't to be, but he does get some compensation from finding a Rabbit, which he points out to the rest of us as we arrive. The sun is still beating down as we wait patiently for our ‘Glad Tidings’ boat to moor at the quay.

Eventually our boat lands but slightly behind schedule and we board, heading straight for the mainland – we are all pretty tired after such a long, hot day, mostly out around The Farnes. This is always touted as being the highlight of our week as the tour week is based around this excursion, and despite the early disappointment it still delivered a great thrill to us all, which is why it is most people’s ‘place of the trip’. We enter Seahouses harbour and alight the boat in a completely different place as the tide now is fully out. We negotiate the pathway through the extensive works going on and head back to the hotel with a couple of hours to ourselves ahead of our evening meal, which is lovely as we now have a chance to look round this very touristy coastal town.

Day 6 This is our inland day to Kielder Forest and Dam with a few additions promised by our guide and with a cloudy, rainy start to the day, we set off a little before 9am. The landscape starts to change once we leave with rolling hills and moorland of the Cheviots, plus views all the way to . The roads continue to be winding and narrow as we head south and west eventually reaching the minor road to Elsdon having seen the expected inland species. As we cross the stream Sheila spots a Dipper in the water and we immediately stop, watch it for a moment, before it disappears upstream. We again set off out over open moorland with large conifer plantations and stop at the very distinctive Winter’s Gibbet. This is a fully formed hangman’s gibbet and quite morbidly fascinating, being in full view of the surrounding area. We go for a closer look seeing a couple of Stonechats and a few Meadow Pipits along the short track – it is a very eerie start to the day but a great detour.

We now return to Elsdon with showers rolling across the moors, making it difficult to view from the minibus, but undeterred, we drive on to Otterburn looking to stop for fuel. Here we are greeted with the news that this petrol station has closed down and the nearest is back at Alnwick – thankfully we are not desperate. Julian knows there is fuel at Bellingham and makes the decision to go there first before heading to Kielder. This works well as we stop in this very picturesque small town, and while our guide is ‘filling up’ we check the Hareshaw Burn for Grey Wagtail. We don’t find this, but Sue spots her first Robin of the tour and there are plenty of other tits and finches to be seen. Once ready we now follow the River North Tyne up to the start of Kielder Water reservoir, one of the largest in . It is surrounded by coniferous forest and can be a haven for wildlife. The road follows the reservoir and Julian eventually turns off into Leaplish Waterside Park, parking to overlook this huge body of water.

We get out of the bus, and while Julian is setting up the scope, we all go to use the facilities, getting back to the news that there is an active Ospreys nest. We look through the telescope and see the small but clear image of the huge nest, and with patience the movement of a couple of grown chicks. It’s not the best view in the world but certainly good enough. We stay here a while with Julian pointing out Siskin flying over, followed by a Lesser Redpoll, which lands in an adjacent Sitka Spruce. We also see this through the telescope, but sadly departs before we all get a view. Our attention is back on the Osprey nest when Julian asks to use the telescope as he has seen something soaring across the other side. He looks at it and sees this buzzard-type, flying on very flat wings, showing a long tail, bulging secondaries and says very excitedly “Honey Buzzard!” There is a mild panic as we try to see it through the binoculars and most of us do, but it is still distant and thermalling up higher. We try to ‘scope share’ which isn’t easy but some of us get to see it better, with Lesley now seeing a diagnostic wing-clap as it starts across the reservoir. Julian also sees this happen along with another telltale feature - transluscent patches at the outer wing. Our guide cannot believe this as it disappears out of sight and puts the news out to colleagues who live in the county.

Once the excitement has died down we walk slowly out to the woodland squirrel hide hearing a couple of Goldcrests along the track. We reach the hide and settle down, immediately getting into the action of birds coming to the feeders. There are lots of Chaffinches with fewer Siskins, Coal, Great and Blue Tits, there is also a couple of Stock Dove on the ground feeding in the fallen food. We are enjoying this scene when Julian spots a Bank Vole, followed quickly by Sheila seeing a Nuthatch come to the peanuts. A Red Squirrel now appears and there are actually two chasing each other up and down the trees. Initially we get views of them away from the feeders but they too eventually come in and show us their rich red coats as they sit enjoying their peanuts. Lesley has been watching out for the Bank Vole and sees a Wood Mouse, which too quickly gets chased off before the rest of us see it. It is now time for lunch but we are loath to leave here and return to the minibus for our picnic, so Julian and David kindly volunteer to go and fetch them. These two kind people are not long before they have returned and we enjoy our lunches while watching the activity in front of us. Julian is conscious of the time and once we have all finished, we leave and walk back to the car park and climb into the vehicle. We don’t have far to go before we reach Kielder village where Julian parks up near the river bridge. We walk out and stand in the bridge searching the exposed rocks in this fast flowing water but no sign of our ‘hoped for’ Dipper. We can hear Long-tailed Tits but cannot get them to show and there’s lots of Common Swifts flying around hawking insects. Sheila shouts “Dipper” and we all rush to where she is standing, seeing this fabulous waterbird, hopping in and out of the water looking for aquatic insects – superb. We are all extremely pleased with this and dub Sheila the ‘Dipper Queen’ this being her second find today!

Time is moving on and we have to leave Kielder, taking the excellent Forest Drive through the heart of the forest. This metalled track connects the main road to Jedburgh and back to Otterburn with every turn producing another lovely scene. We don’t see too much, but looks at a family of Stonechat, a singing Blackcap, Common Buzzard and Kestrel break up the journey. Back on the main road we drive back down to Otterburn, passing the site of an historic 14th century battle before reaching Elsdon and another comfort stop. The weather has greatly improved as we strike north towards Wooler stopping for a Grey Wagtail in the middle of the road – how lucky are we? The scenery as we drive along the base of the Cheviots is stunning, before at Wooler, we head east to the coast and back to our hotel. This has been another great day and again very different to the previous four.

Day 7 Today is all about our boat tour of Coquet Island at 11:30 so with a couple of hours to spare we drive south to Boulmer. Our guide has been sent a message that a Curlew Sandpiper has been found there. It doesn’t take long to get there and we get ready for a walk along the beach. It starts well as we find a couple of Red-breasted Mergansers in the sea along with a few Turnstone, including one cracking one still in summer plumage. Julian scans south along the beach seeing a couple of Curlew but then a Whimbrel drops in, which looks good through the telescope. We wander on, seeing lots of Oystercatchers, Redshank, Curlew and a few Ringed Plover. We reach the far beach and there, amongst the Common Redshank, are a couple of Bar-tailed Godwits – another new bird for the list. Julian now says “I’ve got the Curlew Sand” and trains the telescope on this gorgeous, brick red small wader. It is a pleasure to watch this wonderful bird as it feeds amongst the Dunlin, which are (in winter plumage) superficially similar but much commoner. We walk a little further, but not far, watching these waders but Julian is conscious of the time and suggests we return to the minibus. We have plenty of time, and back at the car park we opt to use the facilities here instead of Amble. This works well as while he is waiting, Julian finds a Brown Hare in an adjacent sheep field.

Back in the bus we now drive south along the coastal route to the small harbour town of Amble and park at the jetty with plenty of time before the sailing. The tide is high and on the old jetty we see Herring, Lesser Black-backed and Black-headed Gulls, , Eider and Cormorants. Eventually the boat arrives with David (Gray) at the helm along with another crew member/friend - Dickie. It is such a bizarre family business that has operated for years and Julian is spot on saying it's like characters out of ‘Last of the Summer Wine!’ We set off and very slowly chug across to this wee island which is dominated by a at the south end. The seabirds start to appear close to the boat, with lots of Puffins and Guillemots on the water and the odd Gannet, Fulmar and flying by.

The whole island is surrounded by birds that look like insects buzzing around spilt sugar – just incredible and as we get close we start to really see the tern and auk colony in its glorious entirety. Arctic, Common and Sandwich Terns fly back and forth with Julian managing to pick out a couple of Roseate Terns before getting to the south end. This is where all the UK’s nesting Roseate Terns breed and the RSPB needs to make sure this haven is fully protected, hence there is no landing on this island owned by the Duke of . David is both a skilled boatman and knows where the birds breed and soon we are within metres of several of these beautiful birds. It is another fabulous experience of sight, sound and smell, something a camera cannot always convey, but a memory can – and we are getting bucket loads! The trip is just an hour and all too quickly we are heading back to Amble quay with us seeing a few Red-breasted Mergansers on the way back. Eventually we reach our mooring and alight giving our thanks to the boatmen.

Once ready we head back to Seahouses where we stop off at the hotel for our picnic lunch leaving around 2pm for Stags Rocks, just outside . It is a lovely situation looking down the beach to the beautiful famous castle in the near distance. We settle down in the sunshine looking out towards the Farne Islands seeing lots of the usual auks, terns, etc flying back and forth. There is nothing new but we are just enjoying this relaxed place, when Julian says “dolphins” and points out over the rocks. Sure enough there is a loose pod of Bottlenose Dolphins moving south on the hunt for fish. They reach an area stacked with gulls on the surface and start to leap around, some clearing the surface completely, which is fabulous. We watch transfixed as these incredible cetaceans entertain us for several minutes before moving off further south. This also is our cue to move on.

North of Bamburgh is Budle Bay, which is best on a rising tide but we have to settle for it going out and when we reach the viewing area we see there are still plenty of birds around. There are Shelduck and Curlew everywhere but also a small flock of Common Redshank with Julian finding a Greenshank too but not much else. We do stay for a while to try and pick up something else but sadly not, as we return to the minibus Julian finds our last new bird of the holiday, with a pair of Red-legged Partridges. It is now late afternoon and we have just one more site to visit – the hide at Fenham Flats, which is just a few miles away. We soon get there and the views over to are sublime, but it’s the haunting sound of Grey Seals in the distance, which makes the biggest impression. We make the short walk to the hide seeing and hearing a couple of Yellowhammers, then in the hide we see lots more Curlew and Shelduck. Julian hears a Whimbrel and searches for it, finding not one but two close by and showing well. It is great to see their structure and plumage differences with the much commoner cousin, the Curlew. Around 16:30 we decide to head back to the hotel as a couple of us are keen to watch the tennis semi-final and we also have some packing to do. We get back just before 5pm and arrange to meet up two hours later for the evening meal, our final checklist and discuss the three highlights of our week in NE England. We finish the week with arguably our best meal of the holiday, followed by completing the checklist, which shows we have seen and heard 125 bird species alone – a terrific result and testament to all our efforts.

Day 8 Nothing on today, as after our final breakfast, we are leaving to go our separate ways - we say ‘goodbye’ to David and Carol, who are stopping in Seahouses for a few more days. Just before 9am we leave for Newcastle getting there without incident an hour later, where we say ‘thank you’ to Julian for all his hard work on what has been a terrific and very interesting week.

Species of the Trip Ferdinand Dipper Andrea Avocet Lesley Puffin David Marsh Harrier Carol Spoonbill Sue All the tern species Sheila Puffins Julian Red Kite

Place of the Trip Ferdinand The Farnes Andrea Saltholme RSPB Lesley Inner Farne David Inner Farne Carol Kielder Forest Sue Fenham Flats hide Sheila The Farnes Julian Coastal walk to Low Newton

Magic Moment Ferdinand Seals at Greatham Creek Andrea Seeing the White-beaked Dolphins Lesley Kittiwake chicks on Inner Farne/Puffins coming to their burrows David Red Squirrels at the hide Carol The Puffins on Inner Farne Sue Seeing the White-beaked Dolphins Sheila Seeing the Puffling on Inner Farne Julian Seeing the White-beaked Dolphins

BIRDS Mute Swan Dunlin Canada Goose Curlew Sandpiper Greylag Goose Green Sandpiper Shelduck Common Sandpiper Mallard Wood Sandpiper Gadwall Common Redshank Shoveler Greenshank Wigeon Spotted Redshank Teal Black-tailed Godwit Baikal Teal Bar-tailed Godwit Common Pochard Curlew Tufted Duck Whimbrel Eider Common Snipe Goldeneye Ruff Common Scoter Black-headed Gull Red-breasted Merganser Common Gull Red-legged Partridge Mediterranean Gull Pheasant Herring Gull Little Grebe Great Black-backed Gull Great Crested Grebe Lesser Black-backed Gull Fulmar Kittiwake Manx Shearwater Little Gull Gannet Little Tern Cormorant Sandwich Tern Shag Common Tern Little Egret Grey Heron Spoonbill Puffin Osprey Guillemot Red Kite Razorbill Marsh Harrier Feral Pigeon Common Buzzard Stock Dove Honey Buzzard Woodpigeon Sparrowhawk Collared Dove Kestrel Common Swift Moorhen Skylark Coot Sand Martin Oystercatcher Swallow Avocet House Martin Little Ringed Plover Rock Pipit Ringed Plover Meadow Pipit Golden Plover Pied Wagtail Lapwing Yellow Wagtail Turnstone Grey Wagtail Dipper Bank Vole Dunnock Wood Mouse Robin Roe Deer Stonechat Red Squirrel Song Thrush Mistle Thrush Common Seal Blackbird Bottle-nose Dolphin Blackcap (heard only) White-beaked Dolphin Whitethroat Sedge Warbler REPTILES & AMPHIBIANS Eurasian Reed Warbler Common Toad Willow Warbler Chiffchaff BUTTERFLIES & INSECTS Goldcrest (heard only) Small White Wren Large White Great Tit Small Tortoiseshell Coal Tit Comma Blue Tit Speckled Wood Willow Tit Ringlet Long-tailed Tit (heard only) Meadow Brown Nuthatch Common Blue Eurasian Treecreeper Red Admiral Magpie Painted Lady Jackdaw Large Skipper Rook Common Blue Damsel Carrion Crow 6-spot Burnet Starling Cinnabar Moth and Caterpillars House Sparrow Tree Sparrow NOTABLE PLANTS Chaffinch Common Spotted Orchid Linnet Early Purple Orchid Lesser Redpoll Pyramidal Orchid Goldfinch Poppy Greenfinch Weld Siskin Red Campion Reed Bunting Ragged Robin Yellowhammer Bloody Crane’s-bill Harebell Total Birds: 125 Sea Thrift Ragwort MAMMALS Knapweed Rabbit Brown Hare Total Species: 163 Short-tailed Vole