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  • Sustainable tourism

    What is sustainable tourism?  That’s a question we’ve pondered a lot since forming NEWT.

    Discussions before, during and after the first Northumberland Sustainable Tourism Conference yesterday, jointly organised by the Northumberland Coast AONB, the Northumberland National Park and the North Northumberland Tourism Association, revealed that there isn’t really a concensus.  For some businesses it means following the mantra of ‘reduce, re-use, recycle’, for others it means sourcing everything locally (where possible…).  We’re in favour of those approaches, and our GOLD award from GTBS shows that we put them into practice.  For other business, including NEWT, sustainable tourism means more than this though, so perhaps a definition of sustainable might help?  There are many, but they can be summed up as ‘able to endure’.  Whatever one generation does shouldn’t compromise the ability of future generations to do the same.  The micro level of sustainability spread across lots of businesses minimises environmental impact, but will that be enough to sustain Northumberland’s tourism industry for generations to come?  It probably won’t, but it will be a very stable base for sustainability.  Some joined-up thinking is needed and there has probably never been a better time for control of the destiny of tourism in our beautiful county to be taken by the tourism businesses who actually understand the industry, the market and, perhaps most important of all, what Northumberland is all about.

  • Citizen science

    Saturday saw an early start and a long drive  south to Far Ings Nature Reserve in the shadow of the Humber Bridge.  The reason for our journey was that Martin was one of the MARINElife researchers delivering a training course for potential volunteer researchers.  MARINElife have survey teams on several passenger and freight ferry routes around the UK, gathering data on whales, dolphins, porpoises, seabirds and other marine wildlife, and those survey teams are made up of volunteers.  Consistency and credibility of the data gathered is ensured by land-based training sessions, followed by ‘on the job’ training alongside experienced research team leaders.

    If you would like to get involved, and add to the valuable sum of knowledge that we have about our offshore wildlife, then you can contact MARINElife through their website or e-mail martin.kitching@marine-life.org.uk and we can point you in the right direction.  We’re always keen to add new surveyors to our North East Cetacean Project research team, and you’ll get your hands-on training off the beautiful Northumberland coast.

  • Expect the unexpected

    Whenever we have a trip with clients who have been given gift vouchers, I always wonder what they expect.  Some will have chosen gift vouchers when asked what they would like, some will have been given them by our existing clients, and for some it must be a complete mystery tour.  When we get an enquiry we always try to determine exactly what our clients want, but at the start of a trip I’ll always enquire “is there anything you’re particularly keen to see while you’re in Northumberland?”  Then, the pressure is on to try and deliver that experience…

    I collected Patrick and Bronwyn from Amble yesterday morning for a day of birdwatching around Druridge Bay and southeast Northumberland.  As we set off it was a beautiful morning; sunny, calm and dry and I soon determined that one bird they would love to see was Bittern – they’ve visited sites where Bitterns breed and Bitterns overwinter but not, so far, anywhere where the aforementioned birds were obliging enough to come into view for them.  An hour into the trip and it was already windy, bitterly cold and spotting with rain but the birding was good.  2 Bewick’s Swans in a roadside field were very obliging, nibbling on the vegetation as we studied them, 12 Goosanders sailed majestically across a lake, Patrick’s sharp eyes picked out an immaculate male Sparrowhawk on a fence post and the air was filled with skeins of geese (Canada, Greylag, Pink-footed, White-fronted and Bean), a Skylark battled into the wind and Wigeon, Teal, Tufted Duck, Gadwall, Pochard, Mallard and Great-crested Grebe were picked out from the flock on the water.

    A brief visit to Newbiggin to track down a Mediterranean Gull (or four) was followed by lunch overlooking the North Sea. Heading up through the bay, Red-breasted Mergansers were displaying and a Short-eared Owl (the first of three for the afternoon) perched on a roadside fence-post.  Reedbeds were illuminated by that beautiful winter afternoon light (I wax lyrical about it frequently, but it really is a breathtaking backdrop to the wildlife and part of the experience).  As the afternoon light began to fade, Venus appeared overhead, a herd of Whooper Swans trumpeted their arrival for the evening roost and a Grey Heron shot out of one reedbed, flew across in front of us, landed just out of sight and flushed a Bittern that flew almost the reverse of the route taken by the heron, along the near edge of the pool directly in front of us and dropped into a reedbed and out of sight!  Wildlife may be unpredictable, but those days when it seems to perform to order leave me, and our clients, with a big grin 🙂  After that what more was there to do than spend the evening relaxing back at home with a glass of good red wine. Cheers 🙂

  • Owl prowl

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    This has been an excellent winter for Short-eared Owls in Northumberland; from watching one making it’s way landward on a trip in late October, a lone bird at an inland roost site on our Winter Wonderland holiday in late November and a peak of 7 different birds in one afternoon when we were bird-racing in early January – they’ve been an almost constant feature of our birdwatching for the last 3 months.

    The one drawback though, is that surgery on my knee in early December (and the deteriorating condition of my knee before then) has prevented me from really getting out and about with my camera.  Then, after a 4.5 mile walk along the beach from Cresswell to Druridge and back on Saturday (to test out the resilience and stamina of my knee), we decided to head out with the camera yesterday afternoon and see what we could find.

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    Sarah’s sharp eyes spotted the bird of the afternoon before I did and, after months of frustration, I focused on a Short-eared Owl perched on a fence post in the beautiful light that seems to characterise winter afternoons in Northumberland.

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  • Raptors, raptors everywhere

    Standing on the Heugh on Holy Island with Jill and Steve, we’re all scanning towards Guile Point.  Cormorants, Shags, Red-breasted Mergansers and Eider are all bobbing about on the water, Pale-bellied and Dark-bellied Brent Geese, Bar-tailed Godwits, Grey Plover, Curlew and Oystercatchers are flying by, Common and Grey Seals are splashing in the surf as the tide falls…and I’m focused on the sea with one species in mind.  Then 2 distant white dots, gradually narrowing the gap toward us, and I know I’ve achieved that primary target.  Soon, I’ve got 2 very happy clients watching an immaculate drake Long-tailed Duck.  Outrageously attractive, he waved that eponymous tail in the air before taking off and vanishing out of sight around the headland.

    At the other end of the day we watched a flock of 20 Slavonian Grebes and a similar number of Common Scoter, another 6 Long-tailed Ducks, an elusive Black-throated Diver and 3 equally elusive Red-throated Divers and 2 Harbour Porpoises as the light faded to the point where even the impressive assembly of optical equipment wasn’t offering an advantage any more.

    Sandwiched in between though, was a veritable feast of raptors;  we’d already had a couple of Common Buzzards (and I’d had 2 on the drive to Hauxley before collecting Jill and Steve), 2 Sparrowhawks and several Kestrels by lunchtime, but the best was yet to come.  First a Merlin perched on a post in front of us for 10 minutes, then we found 2 Peregrines sitting on boulders at low tide.  Soon a wave of panic spread through the assembled waders, and the Barnacle, Greylag, Pink-footed and White-fronted Geese, as the 2 Peregrines swooped back and forth.  Then, our second Merlin of the day began harrassing one of the Peregrines. As chaos raged across the mudflats, one of the Peregrines made a kill; an unfortunate Redshank.  It took it’s prize to a rock and began plucking it…and 2 more Peregrines arrived!  All 3 tussled over the spoils of the hunt, before 2 of them conceded and sat a little distance away.  A dry, cold wintry day and spectacular drama played out by some excellent wildlife.  The Northumberland coast in the winter – there’s nothing better 🙂

  • Here for the weather?

    Just as I arrived at Harkess Rocks to collect Andy and Helen for an afternoon of birdwatching around the Holy Island of Lindisfarne and the North Northumberland coast, the first drops of sleety rain began splattering on the windscreen.  We haven’t really had any sort of winter yet, apart from an hour of snow on December 16th, but yesterday afternoon did feel positively chilly.  Undaunted by the easterly wind and icy showers we enjoyed the wader and wildfowl spectacle that is the Northumberland coast in the winter.  Curlews  singing as they flew by must have a joie de vivre that lets them vent that emotional haunting call wherever they may be.  Other wading birds entertained as they probed, prodded and buried their bills face-deep in the mud; Grey Plovers, Bar-tailed Godwits, Redshanks and Oystercatchers were all making the most of the exposed mud at low tide.  A big flock of Yellowhammers, Chaffinches, Greenfinches, Goldfinches, Tree Sparrows, House Sparrows and Reed Buntings held our attention for a good while and wildfowl were well represented with Shelduck, Eider, Mallard, Teal, Wigeon, Goosander and Pintail.  As we watched a very obliging Dark-bellied Brent Goose, it was a sobering thought that our wintering birds are generally here because conditions in the areas where they breed are too harsh at this time of the year.  Mammals were braving the cold too; 7 Roe Deer, a Brown Hare and 5 Common Seals made a not too shabby mammal list for the afternoon.

    I often reflect on my decision to return to Northumberland from Arizona, and as we watched that lone Brent Goose, with the biting wind driving waves of showery rain, were my thoughts of the warmth and sunshine of Tucson?  No, what I was thinking was that this is the weather I came home for…and the reason that good outdoor clothing is a necessity 😉

  • The star of the show

    When we’re out with clients, or even out on our own, there are days when nothing stands out and, simply, everything is memorable 🙂  Sometimes though there will be one thing that really sticks in the memory.

    I collected Vin and Nicky from Whitley Bay yesterday morning and we set out on an exploration of the Druridge Bay/Southeast Northumberland area in idyllic weather conditions.  Grey Wagtail, Long-tailed Tits, Mallards, Kestrels and a Buzzard all entertained before we came across the remarkable goose flocks that we’re enjoying this winter.  Pink-footed, Bean and White-fronted Geese were bobbing about on lakes, flying in skeins towards other geese feeding in nearby fields and…scattering in panic.  That scattering always focuses everyone’s attention; we know that there’s something happening that the birds are unhappy about, and that something is often the arrival of a predator.  Sure enough, as the Common and Black-headed Gulls took to the air and made a mad dash for the centre of the lake, a Peregrine scythed through the flock.  For 20 minutes it climbed, stooped and harried the gulls, who had presumably realised that it wouldn’t dive into the water so became less willing to take flight as it repeatedly buzzed them.  Eventually, and preumably tired after all the exertion without a kill, it settled in a nearby field with a goose flock.  We all had the same thought whilst we were watching it; when we were young and first interested in birdwatching this was an almost mythical species.  Once incredibly rare, due to a combination of persecution, egg-collection and the effects of organochlorine pesticides, it takes my breath away that I have the opportunity so often to watch Peregrines in the wild, and share the experience with our clients.  It probably deserves the title of this blog post…but the flock of 50 displaying Goldeneye in the hour before dusk were something special too 🙂

  • Big Garden Birdwatch 2012

    If you take part in the RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch this weekend, e-mail us enquiries@newtltd.co.uk a list of what you saw and we’ll give a prize to whoever sends us the biggest list.

    As a business, and as individuals, we submit our wildlife sightings to various organisations and get involved in several surveys; every month we send in our bird records to our local bird club, we take part in the Wetland Bird Survey (WeBS) and walk from Cresswell to East Chevington once a month counting grebes, cormorants, shags, herons, wading birds and wildfowl, we survey East Chevington each winter as part of the Icelandic-breeding Goose census and, of course, there’s the Northeast Cetacean Project database which we manage.

    The Big Garden Birdwatch is one of our favourites though.  We take a fairly laid-back approach to it (actually that’s not entirely true – there’s a certain element of competition to see who can add the trickier species to the list); bacon sandwiches, mugs of coffee and an hour birdwatching in our southeast Northumberland garden.

    Why not get involved?  The instructions for the survey are simple, you only need 1 hour to complete the birdwatching bit of the survey (and the data entry is very straightforward) and it’s got to be one of the easiest ways to get involved in surveying and make a contribution to a project that has been running for 30 years.

  • A busy start to 2012

    After a quiet Christmas and New Year, Tuesday saw both of us back at work.  As well as updating a lot of the content on our website, Martin started preparing our monthly newsletter…and spent some time being quite domestic, making a pot of chili for our Bird Race planning meeting.

    The Northumberland Winter Bird Race is always an excellent social event.  Around dawn on Saturday several teams will set out with the intention of finding and identifying (by sight or sound) as many bird species as possible within the boundaries of Northumberland, North Tyneside and Newcastle upon Tyne.  Planning involves mainly deciding which are the most productive sites in terms of species, and working out the most efficient route to visit them during the short daylight hours of early January.  At the end of the day all of the teams gather at The Three Horse Shoes and disclose their totals for the day.  It’s a relaxed affair, with every team wishing every other team to do well, no ultra-competitive element involved at all 😉

    Today brought more planning; this time for some contract work we’re doing this year.  Then, a couple of hours ago, a ‘phone call from a PR agency we’ve worked with in the past – “Hi Martin, can you do a press trip on Friday please?”.  Being asked to do a press trip by someone we’ve worked with before is like having a repeat client; confirmation that what we deliver is a consistent quality experience that clients trust us to deliver, and PR agencies trust their reputations to.  At a meeting in December to discuss the uncertain future of tourism promotion in Northumberland, it was suggested that what we should all do is be creative and arrange press trips – PR agencies, accommodation providers, activity providers and visitor attractions all working together to promote Northumberland.  It’s slightly worrying that there was even one person in that room who appeared to be unaware that lots of local tourism businesses are doing that already, ably supported by Northumberland Tourism and the PR agencies who are engaged by some of the larger businesses.  We live and work in a beautiful county, with a tourism industry that has the skills, and the people, to ensure it remains sustainable.

    Today is a special day for us; it’s exactly 4 years since we took out our first clients, so we’d like to say thank you to Go Wansbeck, the regeneration project that came to an end on December 31st and provided us with so much support when we first launched NEWT.  Thanks to Keith, Karen, Martin and all of the team – you gave us the start that got us to where we are today 🙂

  • Hopes for 2012

    In no particular order of priority, here a few things we’d love to see happening in 2012;

    1) An increase in the English breeding population of Hen Harriers.  One of the most contentious wildlife issues we have – but perhaps 2012 will see, at least, the beginning of the abandonment of entrenched attitudes and finally some positive news for the ‘grey males and ringtails’.

    2) The stunning cetaceans that spend time in our offshore waters being able to go about their business without suffereing unnecessary disturbance.  There are some excellent codes of conduct for cetacean watching and NEWT use these to inform and plan our offshore activities, and to advise the skippers and boat owners who we work with.  Martin will continue to raise issues of cetacean disturbance at meetings of the PAW Marine Wildlife Enforcement Working Group, but hopes that won’t be too often.

    3) The continued excellent promotion of Northumberland as a holiday destination.  Our county really is beautiful and you can ‘get away from it all’ without having to try too hard.  Whatever your interests – birdwatching, wildlife, photography, history and culture are just a few examples where the county excels – you’ll find something that will make you come back again and again.

    4) The recognition by the Government that all 127 recommended Marine Conservation Zones (rMCZ’s) need to be designated in order to achieve a coherent ecological network that will protect our seas for everyone and for the future.

    5) Health, wealth and happiness for our family, friends and clients 🙂

    Happy New Year everyone 🙂