randombirder

Since the   B elted kingfisher had been pinned down to a specific location, and close scrutiny of its movement had been established, it was time to find a window of opportunity and head northwest.  A reluctant long-distance driver, the only realistic option was to de-camp as close as possible to the location in preparation for a pre-dawn arrival.  Unsurprisingly, Premier Inn came to the rescue again with a bargain room at just £65 that included breakfast and dinner within half an hour of the site. With this plan firmly in place, the part that I couldn't control was whether the bird would return to its current favoured location along the River Darwen close to Roach Bridge.  Finding the parking location was relatively straightforward but despite a pre-sunrise arrival - the car park was full with only a single sensible space available. The weather was pleasantly mild with the rains of the previous day/night having passed through, the skies began to clear.  Fuelled with anticipation,

It had been a whole five weeks absence from the field, for various reasons, was just not able to head away.  This unforeseen hiatus had intensified my appetite for heading out and seeing something new. The returning black scoter to the shores of the northwest had proved reliable in recent days.  It's a long way to travel but Premier Inns are reliable, provide quality and convenience so a stop off en route was the sensible way forward. A couple of hours drive had me on the outskirts of Pontefract before a sharp getaway the following morning. On arrival, the weather was absolutely glorious, the icy roads toward Bamburgh Castle made things interesting as did the patchy dense fog for most of the journey, but thankfully, the coast was clear, the sun was out and the winds light, fully appreciating that I'd picked a good day to be here. A short walk up to the clubhouse to start the scan.  There were plenty of wildfowl on the sea, distant rafts of common scoter were going to make thi