Tag: Short-eared Owl

  • Mesmerising murmuration; Druridge Bay Bespoke birdwatching 15/11/18

    A lot of our clients muse on the possibility of retiring and moving to Northumberland, and John had done just that and booked a bespoke day out with us to explore some of the lesser-known birdwatching sites around Druridge Bay and southeast Northumberland… With an almost cloudless blue sky and a chill wind we set…

  • Save the best ’til last; Druridge Bay Safari 20/04/18

    All of our Safari Days have developed over the last ten years, and even on our familiar, regular Druridge Bay Safaris there’s always the possibility of changing the route slightly and visiting sites that we visit ourselves regularly but haven’t taken clients to yet… That’s how I found myself with Ian and Elaine & Becky…

  • Springtime in the hills 🙂 North Pennines Bespoke Birdwatching 24/04/17

    This morning was another early start, and I crawled out of bed at 03:30 as the alarm disrupted my sleep… I collected Daniel and Nigel from Ponteland and we headed towards the North Pennines.  Curlew and Lapwing were displaying over the fells, but in the icy cold stiff breeze, Red Grouse and Black Grouse were…

  • Early Spring; Bespoke Cheviots/Druridge Birdwatching 10/04/17

    I collected Adrian and Ruth from Seahouses for the first of their two days out with us this week; a Cheviots-plus Bespoke tour… We started at Bamburgh, with Oystercatcher, Redshank and Purple Sandpiper along the edge of the breaking surf, Common Eider, Common Scoter, Red-throated Diver and a lone Puffin surfing the waves just beyond…

  • Dodging the showers; Lindisfarne Safari 09/08/16

    The unpredictability of the weather in northern England is one of the reasons I love living here.  Early August and you just don’t know whether there’ll be clear skies and sunshine, or something akin to the depths of the autumn… I arrived at Kingston Park and met up with Chris (for his third trip with…

  • Bird of the Day; Lindisfarne Safari 10/05/16

    I can’t think of a species of bird that I don’t enjoy watching.  Every last one of them has something special, but some just have more than others… I collected Steve and Carrie from the Bamburgh Castle Inn and we headed north towards Lindisfarne.  Starting with a walk along the Crooked Lonnen we’d soon found…

  • “Just the day I needed”; Lindisfarne birdwatching 03/11/2015

    Losing yourself in the landscape and the wildlife that inhabits it is sometimes just what you need… I collected Sue from her holiday cottage in Swarland and we headed north towards Holy Island.  The weather had been a mixed bag as I drove across; mist, fog, clear blue skies, sunshine, more mist, more fog.  This…

  • Gems; Lindisfarne Bespoke Birdwatching 08/10/2015

    Thursday was Tony’s second bespoke birdwatching day with NEWT, and we were heading to Holy Island.  The weather was an extraordinary contrast to the mist, murk and torrential rain of Wednesday; clear blue skies and bright warm sunshine accompanied us on the drive north… Our first port of call on the island was the Vicar’s…

  • Never mind the Balearics…

    …here’s the Bonxies. Watching the weather forecast during the week, and having a day on Holy Island on Thursday with Malcolm (trip report to come soon!), convinced me that there was somewhere I needed to be at dawn on Friday.  Arriving at Church Point in the half-light there were a few cars already parked, and…

  • Scouring the moors; North Pennines birdwatching 25/06/2013

    Returning clients have become a bit of a theme for NEWT in the last couple of years, and it’s always lovely to meet up and hear what our clients have been doing, and seeing, since they were last out with us. Mike and Maggie were visiting Northumberland again, and their day out with me this…