Northern Experience Wildlife Tours

Tag: Gannet

Bird Watching Magazine Reader Holiday Day 3: 09/07/2011

On Saturday morning our destination was Druridge Bay and southeast Northumberland and another poor weather forecast ( a bit of a running theme during the holiday…) suggested that we may well get wet. An addition to the mammal list for the trip raced across the road ahead of us; a Stoat – an endearing predator and one of NEWT’s favourite animals.

We arrived in Amble for our sailing around Coquet Island with Dave Gray’s Puffin Cruises; as Dave manoeuvred the excellent Steadfast into the harbour, the rain arrived from the northeast. The sailing around the island produced excellent views of Roseate Terns, as well as Common, Arctic and Sandwich Terns, Gannets, Puffins, Razorbills and Guillemots. As we sailed in a wide arc from the island to begin the journey back to the harbour an Arctic Skua was harassing terns away to the north. Four more Arctic Skuas were followed by a real seawatching prize as a Pomarine Skua lumbered menacingly by before settling on the sea. Our final Arctic Skua flew over the harbour just before we docked and I suggested that the Country Barn Coffee Shop at Widdrington would be the best destination once we were back on dry land.

Refreshed, dried and ready to go we visited the NWT reserve of East Chevington. The tern roost allowed close comparison of Common and Arctic Terns, but the bird described by one participant as ‘bird of the holiday’ was a superb male Marsh Harrier. A juvenile harrier appeared briefly over the reedbed as well, but the male perched for several minutes on a fence post. Just after we reached Druridge Pools, the heavens opened, lightning flashed, thunder rolled and 2 Wood Sandpipers bobbed along the edge of the main pool. A trip to Cresswell, and the most northerly breeding Avocets in England, followed and we all enjoyed views of a very obliging Brown Hare, Little Gulls and both Little and Great Crested Grebes. Another excellent evening meal and entertaining conversation (including David’s comment about Captain Birdseye in a cape..a reference to my appearance during the Coquet Island trip), concluded our final night in Seahouses.

As I put my coffee cup and glass of orange juice on the table at breakfast on Sunday morning I looked out over the harbour and the words “it’s a glorious morning” were quickly followed by “and there’s a Spoonbill!”. Everyone rushed to the window to watch, as Northumberland delivered a fantastic finale to the holiday; poor weather forecasts, some stunning downpours, big seas, beautiful weather, iconic landscapes, excellent birdwatching…all in four days!

13/07/2011
Bird Watching Magazine Reader Holiday Day 1: 07/07/2011

I met with Geoff and Jenny, Roy and Lorraine & David and Linda on the Wednesday evening in the bar of the Bamburgh Castle Inn and, after introductions and drinks, we went upstairs to the conservatory for dinner. A steady stream of Gannets was heading north and I outlined the plan for the coming days; modified in light of the weather forecast!

An 06:30 start on Thursday morning appealed to three of the group, so we set off to walk around Seahouses Harbour and along to the golf course. Lorraine had dreamt the night before that we found a Bluethroat. Not just any Bluethroat though; a Fork-tailed Bluethroat (something that doesn’t exist…although we spent the rest of the holiday looking for one!). The heavy swell and breaking waves gave the sea an imposing look, and the strong, cold southeasterly wind and dark clouds all around added to the atmosphere. With high tide approaching, wading birds were concentrated onto just a few exposed rocks; among the Oystercatchers, Redshanks and Curlews were a single Ringed Plover and 5 summer-plumaged Knot, their peachy-orange underparts showing why, in some parts of the world, they’re known as Red Knot. A Whimbrel flew by and Linnets, Pied Wagtails, Rock Pipits and a reeling Grasshopper Warbler were all added to the day list and we headed back to the inn, and breakfast. No less than 6 Rock Pipits were outside the window during breakfast and an all too brief probable Hummingbird Hawkmoth whizzed by.

The main question was whether our all-day birdwatching trip to the Farne Islands with Glad Tidings would go ahead; the weather forecast wasn’t promising, and the sea looked foreboding. I was optimistic though – by our planned departure time the tide would be ebbing and should take off some of the swell. Sure enough, we boarded Glad Tidings III just after 10am and headed towards the islands. Gannets soared majestically above the swell, Puffins raced by on whirring wings and our passage wader list grew with the addition of Grey Plover and Purple Sandpiper. Grey Seals bobbed around, watching as we passed by on our way to Staple Island. Enjoyment of the breeding auks, Shags, Kittwakes and Oystercatchers was enhanced by the wild feeling of the islands, as waves smashed into the cliffs and fountained high above the birds. Transferring to Inner Farne at 1pm, we were the first group onto the island for the day. The Arctic Terns gave us their usual warm welcome and we spent the afternoon enjoying the fascinating bird behaviour that can be witnessed at close range. The group were keen to fix the separation criteria for Common and Arctic Terns firmly in mind, so we spent some time looking carefully at lots of birds and considering individual variation. We spent a lot of time watching Puffins as well; not an identification problem, but endearing and fascinating! With mobs of Black-headed Gulls waiting to rob the adult Puffins as they return with beaks filled with Sand eels, the Puffins have quickly developed strategies to deal with this; circling back out over the sea until the gulls have moved away from your burrow is an obvious one, but the one that is most fascinating involves a Puffin running into another bird’s burrow, waiting until the gulls have moved and then running to another burrow – sometimes visiting as many as 5 or 6 sanctuaries before reaching their own chick. In an increasingly heavy swell, the journey back to the mainland was quite an experience.

11/07/2011
Winter birdwatching around the Farnes

After postponing our Seal and Seaduck Special last Saturday (sea conditions were ideal, but it would have been really irresponsible to encourage anyone to drive on Northumberland’s roads at the time) we arrived at Seahouses Harbour yesterday morning ready for our final boat trip of the year.

Everyone was well wrapped-up and we were soon boarding Glad Tidings VI. As we sailed out of the harbour a veritable battery of long lenses was produced in readiness for the anticipated wildlife. With a skipper and crewman with excellent eyesight and wildlife-spotting skills, 2 NEWT guides, and clients with sharp eyes as well, the boat was soon being manouvered to offer the best possible opportunities to view or photograph the wildlife. After 13 years of organising offshore wildlife trips we know the importance of the skipper to the success (or otherwise…) of the trip and, with Craig and William, we were in excellent hands.

The first half of the trip concentrated on the Farne Islands themselves. A lot of the Grey Seals had well-grown pups, quite a few of the adults were moulting and there were a couple of cow seals still heavily pregnant.

Grey Seal
Grey Seal and the Longstone Lighthouse
Grey Seals

Grey Seals

Shags were sitting around on the islands, Little Auks were bobbing about like corks in the increasing swell, and we had a brief view of a Black Guillemot as it flew from Gun Rock towards Inner Farne. Heading north we enjoyed the sunny (but cold) weather and scoured the sea just south of Holy Island. Plenty of Eider were sitting around, along with a pair of Scaup and several Red-breasted Mergansers but a Slavonian Grebe near Guile Point proved elusive. Red-throated and Great Northern Divers were seen but in much smaller numbers than we would normally expect. The journey back down the coast featured one of our favourite birds; Long-tailed Ducks were sitting around in groups of 10-15 and offering some excellent photo opportunities.

Long-tailed Ducks
30 or 40 Common Scoters proved a bit more skittish and didn’t come near the boat. 2 Gannets were a bit of a surprise before we returned to the harbour.

Although the wildlife was very obliging perhaps the best thing about the day was the truly beautiful lighting conditions, a real bonus for wildlife photography and something that all of the photographers on board commented on. We can’t control the light, or the weather, but we keep taking clients to the right places at the right time…

12/12/2010
A flying birdwatching trip to Holland

On Wednesday afternoon we set off from Royal Quays, out into the North Sea, onboard the MV King of Scandinavia as guests of DFDS. The weather forecast was for it to be wet, although we did manage a couple of hours birdwatching from the observation lounge before the driving rain obliterated the view. Gannets were diving into the increasingly heavy swell, a stunning Pomarine Skua arced across the bow of the ship and a single Puffin was tagging along with six Little Auks.

Arriving in IJmuiden the next morning, it was still raining 🙁 We were collected from the ferry terminal by Lin, a local guide who we had been introduced to by the ORCA wildlife officers from the ferry. As we headed north Egyptian Geese were around the grass verges near the port, Cormorants were perched atop most of the lampposts, Common Buzzards were on roadside fences and we saw one lingering Spoonbill. Our destination was the reserve of Zwanenwater, where Lin is a volunteer. As we walked through the reserve the high pitched ‘seep’ of Redwings was a constant backdrop, Song Thrushes were flushing from every patch of cover, every bush seemed to hold several Robins and a Common Redstart flicked up from the path in front of us. We were then taken on a tour of the off-limits areas of the reserve by Fred, another of the volunteers.

Stonechats were seen along the track and there was an impressive spread of Grass of Parnassus.

Stonechat, Zwanenwater, Noord-Holland 30/09/2010
Grass of Parnassus, Zwanenwater, Noord-Holland 30/09/2010
Despite the rain we managed an impressive haul of raptors; Common Buzzard, Marsh Harrier, Hen Harrier, Kestrel, Sparrowhawk and Osprey were all seen well but, most impressive of all, the real highlight for both of us was the views we had of Northern Goshawk. The birds quartering the dunes in search of rabbits and small birds came as a bit of a surprise, but not as much as the two birds that were perched on dead trees overhanging the lake. Fred explained that they sit there and watch the ducks, before swooping down and taking them off the water. We didn’t see that, but we did manage some distant images of one of the birds.

Northern Goshawk, Zwanenwater, Noord-Holland 30/09/2010
All too soon we were on the ferry again and heading back to Northumberland, making plans to return to Holland in the spring.

02/10/2010
Northumberland; Birdwatching on the high sea

Yesterday was our final full-day pelagic for the year. With a couple of late cancellations, ten of us boarded the SarahJFK and headed out to sea. Before we reached the end of the Tyne piers there was already a bit of swell…

Once we were out and heading offshore it was exhilarating, with an often icy westerly breeze and long rolling waves from the north. Small groups of Pale-bellied Brent Geese passed by during the day and a small group of Greylag Geese and Pink-footed Geese as well – a sure sign that the autumn is here. There was an almost complete absence of Fulmars, leading to speculation about what these enigmatic seabirds are doing when we can’t find them, and only one Manx Shearwater. Arctic Skuas were a bit thin on the ground, but we did find a good pelagic prize – a sub-adult Pomarine Skua that passed by with two Great Skuas. Excellent views of the latter species, and some stunning Sooty Shearwaters were the highlight of the day, and there were lots of Kittiwakes and Gannets, although that accolade could have gone to the 2 White-beaked Dolphins that were seen briefly on 3 occasions late in the afternoon.

Great Skua or 'Bonxie'

Sooty Shearwater

Sooty Shearwater – the epitome of grace
The swell proved a bit too much for some participants so, in between scanning for birds and cetaceans, I spent some time providing sympathy and advice for the worst of the stricken 🙂 Don’t let that put you off signing up for any of next-year’s pelagics though; it’s actually quite unusual for anyone to be really seasick on one of our pelagics, but the big swell (probably originating a few days ago from the near the north west coast of Norway) combined with a strengthening westerly breeze was a freak combination of conditions that managed to hinder the enjoyment of all the birds around the boat for a couple of the girls. I was once asked, by someone who was a self-professed non-sailor, why I would spend so much time on a small boat in the North Sea…I think that now I would just send them a link to the images in this post and the videos in my Farne Deeps trip report

We’ve got one more pelagic this year, around the Farne Islands, Holy Island and the Skate Road on Saturday December 4th, so give us a call on 01670 827465 for further details or to book.

19/09/2010
White is the new Black

We had back-to back birdwatching trips earlier this week, covering two of our favourite areas.

On Tuesday afternoon I collected Keith and Jen from home in Monkseaton and we headed northwards up the Northumberland coast. Our destination was the Holy Island of Lindisfarne, one of the birding hot-spots of the entire country. The strong winds were the only downside to the afternoon, but the birdwatching was good. After checking out a large group of Grey Seals we covered the area around the harbour and the Rocket Field. Bar-tailed Godwits, Common Redshank and lots of Ringed Plover were along the shoreline and a delightful charm of Goldfinches were around the Heugh. A distant group of Lapwings, Starlings and Golden Plover took to the air and the cause of their alarm was glimpsed briefly, although too briefly and too distant to make a positive ID. Holy Island birdwatching stalwart Ian Kerr put us on to a Little Stint and, as we headed back through the village, groups of Golden Plover passed overhead. Re-tracing our route back down the coast and checking the Budle Bay on the rising tide, we were just discussing the indications of the presence of predators when a huge number of birds lifted from the mud. As well as the gulls and waders, Jackdaws, Rooks and Woodpigeons joined the throng as they came out of adjacent fields and trees. This time the culprit was seen and identified; a Peregrine, that most majestic of raptors and one of the highlights of any birdwatching day on the Northumberland coast in the autumn and winter. A quick seawatch produced Sandwich Terns feeding, and Gannets soaring effortlessly on the breeze.

Wednesday was a full day out around Druridge Bay and Southeast Northumberland. I collected Jayne and Andrew from Seahouses, and then Hilary and John from Alnmouth, before beginning our tour of some of the best birdwatching spots in our local area. While we were watching Lapwings, Redshanks, Greenshanks, Ruff, Herons and Cormorants on the River Wansbeck I could hear a rough ‘sreee’ call from high overhead. The strong breeze meant that it wasn’t straightforward to locate the bird, but eventually I picked it out. It was an unfamiliar call, but a familiar species; a juvenile Common Cuckoo. The walk back along the river produced a nice flock of Long-tailed Tits. After lunch we stopped off at Cresswell Pond. Hilary and John mentioned that they’d visited Cresswell once before – when they noticed a large group of birders and stopped, managing to see a Buff-breasted Sandpiper.

Buff-breasted Sandpiper and Ruff, Cresswell Pond, Northumberland 12/09/2008
With luck like that, we joked about what this visit could produce...

When we arrived at the hide, Jaybee mentioned that he’d had a juvenile Sandwich Tern. I scanned the pond but couldn’t see the tern anywhere and we settled to enjoying the quite remarkable views of Common Snipe that were available. After checking through the assembled ducks, gulls and waders I scanned across the pond again and spotted a tern dip-feeding near the causeway. The bird’s behaviour, combined with it’s very dark back, white rump and silver-grey wings caused me to get rather excited. White-winged Black Tern is a very special bird, and a personal highlight as it’s the third Chlidonias tern that I’ve found in Northumberland. Whiskered Tern is very rare and Black Tern is always a nice bird to see but White-winged Black Tern is such a beautiful species. Jaybee kindly sent me some images to use 🙂

White-winged Black Tern, Cresswell Pond, Northumberland 15/09/2010

White-winged Black Tern, Cresswell Pond, Northumberland 15/09/2010

White-winged Black Tern, Cresswell Pond, Northumberland 15/09/2010
As other birders began to arrive to enjoy the fruit of our good fortune we continued up the coast. Eiders and a Goosander, as well as some very obliging Grey Herons, were seen as we stopped by the River Coquet. A superb couple of day’s birdwatching, a beautiful rarity and clients who were excellent company.

17/09/2010
Birdwatching by boat off the Northumberland coast

Now, you shouldn’t need to read too many of my blog posts to realise that seabirds and cetaceans occupy a special place in my heart, and that I’m in my element once I’m on a boat off the Northumberland coast.

Saturday was our annual ‘Whale and Dolphin Cruise’ on Glad Tidings V, out of Seahouses. With 36 participants, including the other NEWT guides (Sarah and Andy), all safely on board we set off down the coast. We were soon enjoying views of two Arctic Skuas and then panic on the deck as our eagle-eyed skipper spotted two Sooty Shearwaters off to one side and everyone rushed to see them. These ocean wanderers are one of the great sights of pelagic seabirding in the North Sea at this time of the year. For one participant though the real excitement was the bird sitting beside the shearwaters; a Puffin 🙂 It’s a few weeks too late to see them at their breeding colonies, but I’d told Sam that we had a good chance of coming across one. Throughout the day we found a few more, as well as plenty of Fulmars, Kittiwakes, Guillemots and a few Razorbills. Perhaps the best entertainment of the day was provided by several feeding groups of Gannets, throwing fountains of water into the air as they hit the sea. There was clearly a lot of fish for them to eat, and it was real mystery to myself, Sarah, Andy and John that there were no cetaceans feeding in the same areas. Oh well, if they weren’t so mysterious it wouldn’t be such an adrenaline rush when we do find them I suppose. A lone Manx Shearwater avoided the boat, as they tend to do, and we headed northwards to the Farne Islands, hoping to see the White-tailed Eagle that has been there for the last week. We were in radio contact with other boats so we knew it had just killed a Shag and was eating it. As we neared the islands our one cetacean for the day appeared, a Harbour Porpoise just to one side of the wake of the boat. Just as we arrived, the eagle crept into a cleft between a grassy bank and some rocks so only one or two people managed to get a glimpse of it’s head as it dropped out of sight. Grey Seals were playing, splashing and racing around and we headed back into the harbour, after a marathon effort by our skipper and everyone on board. We’ve already set the date for the 2011 Whale and Dolphin Cruise – Saturday September 10th so put it in your diaries and give us a call on 01670 827465 to book your place.

Blue skies, calm sea, what more could you wish for?

13/09/2010
Life begins at 40

Friday was our long-awaited pelagic to the Farne Deeps. We’d originally planned the trip for August 12th, but the weather put paid to that 🙁 Rescheduling to September 3rd meant that four of the original participants had to withdraw because of other commitments, but we were able to fill those places and have a reserve list. Birdwatching from a boat in the North Sea, with the possibility of cetaceans as well, is always an enjoyable way to spend a day.

When I arrived at Royal Quays just after 7.30 I was surprised to see that nine of the other eleven participants were already there; obviously eager to join Northern Experience on our ‘voyage into the unknown’.

As we left the Tyne we soon began to began to find Guillemots, Razorbills and Puffins on the sea; all 3 species featuring regularly throughout the day. Gannets, Fulmars and Kittiwakes were all seen in good numbers (Kittiwakes in particular) and we continued to head north northeast, getting further offshore from the Northumberland coast.

I was watching the depth plotter carefully as we approached the edge of the deep water and, as I stepped out of the wheelhouse, thinking that things could get very interesting quite soon, almost collapsed as Allan shouted “Dolphin!”. Within a minute we’d got two stunning White-beaked Dolphins bow-riding. They stayed with us for 40 minutes, and during that time there were at least another three a little distance from the boat. I managed to get ‘a bit’ of video footage 🙂

As if all the excitement of having the dolphins around the boat wasn’t enough, Geoff Morgan spotted a Grey Phalarope (Red Phalarope for any readers in the US). After Geoff’s initial call it was 4 mins before the bird was relocated; sitting on the sea in front of the boat as we continued along with the dolphins. The phalarope, as well as an excellent bird to see in early September, was a milestone as it’s the 40th ‘seabird’ (defined as those covered by Peter Harrison’s excellent ‘Seabirds: an identification guide’) to be found on pelagic trips off Northumberland since the first NTBC organised trip in 1987.

As well as the birds mentioned previously we also found;

Manx Shearwater 4

Sooty Shearwater 4

Arctic Skua 4

Great Skua 9

Typically, the Manx Shearwaters and Arctic Skuas stayed well away from the boat but the Sooty Shearwaters and Great Skuas were much more obliging 🙂

By the end of the day, nearly everyone on board had enjoyed lifers; the White-beaked Dolphins were a much sought-after species for Joanne and the result of a lot of effort 🙂 With the battalion of long lenses on the boat, there’ll be plenty of good quality images for the White-beaked Dolphin identification catalogue that forms part of the Northeast Cetacean Project. We’ll be running at least two trips out to the Farne Deeps next year (date and cost tbc) so get in touch soon to register your interest. With only 12 places available they’ll fill quickly.

After the 10hr marathon of the Farne Deeps, our 8hr pelagic on Saturday was just like a pleasure cruise 🙂 Again we had good numbers of Kittiwake, Gannet and Fulmar, as well as some very obliging Sooty Shearwaters. With some of South Tyneside’s finest on board, I was half-hoping that one of them would point his camera at the sky and randomly photograph a Cape Gannet 🙂 Sadly, it wasn’t to be. Never mind, there’s always next week…and the week after…and next year.

06/09/2010
Fin-tastic

We’re in one of our busier periods at the moment; two trips on Thursday, two on Friday and then we’ll be out again tomorrow.

Thursday’s two mini-safaris featured some of our old favourites; Little Owl is one of the best crowd-pleasers that there is, Dunlin, Greenshank, Common Sandpiper, Grey Heron and summer-plumaged Knot all went down very well and some attractive insects added a touch of glitter – Common Darter, Blue-tailed Damselfly, Small Copper, Red Admiral and Dark Green Fritillary are all easily overlooked (well maybe not Red Admiral), but quite stunning if you take the time to search for them and then look closely. After finishing Thursday’s first trip, and dropping Kevin, Angela and Georgia back at Newbiggin, I went back to the office, dealt with a few e-mails, packed the head torches and bat detectors ready for the evening and then headed back out for the day’s second tour of Druridge Bay and Southeast Northumberland. Then the heavens opened. With windscreen wipers barely able to provide a clear view, traffic was crawling. I was considering the unthinkable – cancelling a trip. The rain eased and I collected Andy and family. The trip list was very similar to the morning and then I thought it might be worthwhile to have a quick look at the sea.

Now, seawatching is an obsessive pastime but it isn’t for everyone; I’m certain that long periods staring at the sea, hoping that something exciting will appear, don’t make for good client experiences. So we don’t do it…very often. The sea had been flat calm during the day and there was only a gentle breeze. Ideal conditions for searching for cetaceans, in fact. The number of e-mails, texts and ‘phone calls I’d had during the week was the clincher. I knew that cetaceans sightings were increasing and viewing conditions were just right…surely the right time to take clients for a seawatch. Gannets were passing by and we all scanned the sea. Quickly I picked up 2 dolphins away to the south. Then another 2, then 3 including 2 calves. Through binoculars I had little doubt that these were White-beaked Dolphins. A quick look through the ‘scope revealed all of the relevant ID features; tall falcate dorsal fin, white flanks arcing up behind the dorsal to form a pale saddle. As everyone managed to see the dolphins, I scanned slowly to estimate how many dolphins there were. At least 25 individual animals were found, and the pod was spread out over at least 6 square miles of the North Sea! Another birder arrived and we managed to get him on to the dolphins as well. It’s almost impossible to describe just how extraordinary such a sighting is. Normally the best opportunities arise when you’re on an organised pelagic trip. We’ve got 4 more of these this year; and with only one place remaining on September 18th, two places on September 4th and four places on August 12th, get in touch now on 01670 827465 to join us and experience the best pelagic wildlife and birdwatching opportunities available on the east coast. August 12th will be a groundbreaking trip; we’re heading out to the Farne Deeps and reports from anglers and researchers suggest that the area could produce sightings of some spectacular wildlife. Minke Whale, White-beaked Dolphin, Common Dolphin and Killer Whale have all been found previously.

After the dolphins we had another of the species that always captivates our clients as a Barn Owl allowed a prolonged period of observation as it hunted along the coastal dunes. As darkness descended and we headed back to our starting point the raindrops began to speckle the windscreen of the Landy again.

The highlights of Friday’s first trip were Red Squirrel and Little Owl (for Kate and Lucy) and a very unexpected Green Sandpiper (for me).

The evening pelagic took place with some extraordinary glowering skies to the north. As the swell began to develop, we were treated to very close views of Gannet and Fulmar before returning to Royal Quays in the dark, but the abiding memory of the last week is the extraordinary spectacle of a little-known cetacean, hunting, leaping and playing in the seas off Northumberland.

07/08/2010
Variety Show

Yesterday we had an afternoon/evening safari around southeast Northumberland and Druridge Bay, an exciting prospect as these are producing some of our most memorable sightings.

Around lunchtime I started to receive calls about Bottlenose Dolphins, 5 past Newbiggin and 20-40 E of St Mary’s. When I arrived at Church Point at 14:40, the dolphins had departed but a Harbour Porpoise was close inshore. Once our clients had arrived we set off up the coast. First stop produced a juvenile Little Owl, lazing in the afternoon sunshine. A seawatching session revealed plenty of Gannets and Sandwich Terns, and Katie quickly spotted more Harbour Porpoises. The rest of the afternoon’s birdwatching produced excellent views of Lapwing, Common Sandpiper, Dunlin, Greenshank, Common Tern and some very entertaining Grey Herons. Non-birdy interest included Small Copper and Dark Green Fritillary butterflies, Blue-tailed Damselfly and a Common Frog. I chose a picnic spot giving us a wide view over the increasingly calm sea, producing further sightings of Harbour Porpoise, a distant group of Bottlenose Dolphins and a Peregrine.

Then we were on our way to the evening’s final destination. As we walked, quietly, through a heavily shaded steep wooded valley, I began to question myself; could we really be succesful with a group of 6 clients, when we were searching for an animal that is so easily disturbed? A Red Fox crossed the path ahead of us, although everyone other than Alice was looking the other way. I allowed everyone to settle into position on one side of the valley and we waited. In what seemed like no time at all, a stripy black-and-white head appeared from the undergrowth on the opposite side of the stream and our first Badger of the evening came trotting along. It paused briefly and then crossed the stream before vanishing up the hill behind us. After 30 mins, and another 6 Badgers!, we headed back to the Landy. With the bat detector switched on, we listened to, and had close views of, Common Pipistrelle and Daubenton’s Bat. Family bookings are always interesting, but the enthusiasm and cheerfulness of Emma, Katie and Alice made it such an enjoyable day (not forgetting the three older members of the group of course).

We’ll be running afternoon/evening safaris throughout the year, so give us a call on 01670 827465 to arrange your own Northern Experience 🙂

05/08/2010