Norfolk, October 2010 (3): Wells Wood, Warham Greens & Kelling

Wells-next-the-sea beach, October 2010

It'd been a few years since I'd been to the eastern end of Wells Woods, and I was genuinely excited about being there again on this beautiful, sunny autumn morning. I paused in the partly flooded quayside car park in Wells town centre, along the B1105, to look at the high tide in the harbour and enjoy the hustle and bustle of this still busy small port: although the open sea is over a mile from the harbour now, due to silting over the last two centuries, the quayside is still a hive of activity.

Before long, I was heading north on the Beach Road and parking in the large car park between the lifeboat station and holiday park. I've always found the path network here a bit of a maze, never going there enough to get to know it, and on this occasion I headed east, out the far end of the car park, past the boating lake and into the woodland.

Wells Woods

The pine woodland here - part of the Holkham National Nature Reserve - is a beautiful walk, set just behind the beach on a sandy ridge, and it's also a well- known spot for finding migrant birds on passage through the UK. The previous days had seen Yellow-browed Warbler, Ring Ouzel and Firecrest all found here, and I was hopeful of seeing some or all of the above. The birdlife was certainly lively this morning, enjoying the warmth, and Chaffinches, Blue Tits, Great Tits, Blackbird, Robin were aplenty.

After a half-hour's strolling, watching and listening, I took the raised boardwalk path to the beach itself. The sun was glorious and the beach was reasonably busy with couples and families enjoying the Sunday sun. The beach huts themselves here are worth a visit!
Beach hut, Wells-next-the-sea beach

The tide was receding now, leaving channels, sand banks and dune islands behind (see left). Across the edge of these, in mixed groups, were strung around 300 Oystercatcher, maybe 100 Sanderling and the same number of Ringed Plover, 80 Dunlin and 40 Grey Plover.

Wells-next-the-sea beach, October 2010

After a half-hour walk eastwards along the beach, I reached a pathway back into the woods and wandered casually back through the pines towards the car park. In a clearing near the toilet block, I came across a female Redstart and a Treecreeper, and, on the pathway back to the car park, Goldcrests and a Coal Tit flitted non-stop amongst a group of birches and berry bushes.

With nowhere particular to be and barely a cloud in the sky, I didn't want to spend long in the car. Heading east from Wells on the A149, I stopped after just a mile and a half at Warham Greens, an area of saltmarsh backed by farmland, hedges and an old quarry. Whilst best known for its winter raptor roost - Hen Harriers come in daily, Merlins are frequent visitors and you can regularly get good views of Short-eared Owl and Peregrine - the site is also a good area for migrants, especially in autumn. With a Radde's Warbler recorded the day before, I decided to explore the site for the first time.

The car park takes four or five cars and is located down a rough surfaced track called Garden Drove (turn off at TF944427), opposite the access drive to Northgate Hall Farm. If you're not sure about the track, there are are a couple of spaces on the main road just next to the entrance.
Looking north from the car park

I walked up the track towards the marshes, scanning the hedges and scrub for birds. Three Redwings were feeding on berries, three Goldfinches on teasel and a flock of eight Linnets were flitting around. It's a pleasant spot and one to check when passing.

From Warham Greens towards Wells-next-the-sea

Farmland around Kelling Quags 

Enjoying exploring new places, I headed further east along the coast to Kelling Quags, an area of water meadow, open water and farmland with hedges between Kelling village and the coast.

From the car park - which is situated on the north side of the A149 in the village centre at TG094429, just 30m east of the junction with The Street - there is also a beautiful 500m walk along a hedgelined farm track called Meadow Lane (see left) to the site's southern boundary, and these hedges are worth watching closely for finches, warblers and thrushes. On this beautiful October lunchtime, Robins, two Chiffchaffs, two Linnet and two Mistle Thrushes kept me company. In the fields on the west side of the track, a Stock Dove was amongst a large group of feeding Woodpigeons and Rooks.




On reaching the reserve itself. I continued on the western boundary path, past the pool and the junction with cross path heading east, to the gorse thickets near the north-west corner. A Barred Warbler had been showing here intermittantly over the last few days and I put in an hour of staring at the dense gorse in the hope of him flitting between the different mounds but succeeded only in seeing a male Blackcap, two Goldcrests and a Robin. Still, it was hardly a hardship on such a gorgeous day and I happily wandered back along the lane in the sun. This is a lovely walk and reserve, and the beach is close by for a spot of seawatching too. With Suffolk my destination for the night and the next day, the Isabelline Wheatear that pitched up that afternoon at Lowestoft was a neat stop-off and a first for me and I headed for Southwold and a pint of Adnams a happy man.

Norfolk, October 2010 (2): Cley, Stiffkey, Salthouse & Blakeney

Binham Priory, Norfolk

After missing the B1156 turning to Cley at Langham and deciding to just go with the detour, the sight of Binham Priory on Warham Road made me stop for a quick look. Among the most complete and impressive ruins of a Benedictine priory in Norfolk, the sites dates from the early 12th century and it's worth a stop for a walk amongst the old walls, with no entrance charge. The nave still acts as the local parish church and is on a grand scale, as its height in the photo above shows.

Cley Next The Sea is world famous for two reasons: its picturesque windmill, which is a well-known landmark that adorns many a painting or calendar and is now a stylish B&B, and Cley Marshes, a Norfolk Wildlife Trust (NWT) reserve that is one of the best places in the world for birdwatching and a beautiful part of the Norfolk Coastal Path. Having said that, this picture postcard village itself is unmissable, with its narrow streets, magnificent church, art galleries, deli and one of my favourite pubs in The George.

Cley Marshes, from the Avocet hide

The marshes has a fantastic, modern visitor centre and this is always first call, both to buy a reserve pass (£4) and find out what's out on the reserve. With breakfast a distant memory, I also took advantage for the first time of the café and enjoyed a sandwich and pastry looking out the panoramic window over the nearest pools to the coast.

With no particular goal in mind, I strolled out to the nearest hides and enjoyed an hour watching typical birds for the season. Black-tailed Godwits, Ruff, Lapwing, Dunlin, Ringed Plover, Snipe and Avocets waded amongst Wigeon, Teal, Gadwall, Shelduck, Shoveler and a solitary Pintail. Simmond's Scrape from the Dawke's Hide.

Photographing the godwits from the Avocet hide, thoughts started to turn towards finding some accommodation for the night. However, a Stoat suddenly appeared, just a couple of metres from the hide! Stunned, I am ashamed to say I didn't get off one capture before he disappeared again into the long grass. Within a moment or two, he reappeared and promptly spent the next few minutes hunting up and down a nearby fenceline but not getting within photo range again. Shucks. Returning to the car, two Marsh Harriers were gliding over the reedbed, a small flock of Meadow Pipits flew over and a Stonechat watched me pass from a nearby fencepost.

With news coming through of an Olive-backed Pipit on Stiffkey Marsh, I was soon parking up on Greenways lane and walking out 800m across the marsh (see left) to the Stiffkey Meals, on the edge of the saltings. There were some thrills and spills in the deep tidal creeks and mud! Frankly, wellies are essential (and I didn't have any).

Out on the Meals, the Pipit was showing intermittantly but more fun was searching the gorse strip (see left, looking back towards Stiffkey) for migrants. We found Robins, Goldcrests and a Redstart before finally a Yellow-browed Warbler - which had been calling constantly - gave good views.

There are some great walks at Stiffkey, either from the National Trust car park on Greenways lane (can also park at the south end of the lane if you don't mind a longer walk) or from the layby on the A149, although there is little option for a circular route. Do keep to the footpaths in this area - or you can be quickly up to your thighs in mud! The car park is a great place to watch raptors combing the marsh in winter and the small, stunted woodland running west from here is also a good place for migrants in spring and autumn.

With daylight fading, I headed back west along the coast to Salthouse, a favourite stop of mine. The car park here (TG081442) is right on the beach and less busy than Cley. It's a reasonably reliable place for Snow Buntings in winter (I saw my first here) and excellent for Little Tern in the summer. The shingle ridge is perfect for seawatching or a bracing tramp east along the beach to Gramborough Hill, where a Romano-British settlement once stood, now a great viewpoint 30m above the surrounding area. Behind the shingle ridge is a series of wet meadows, essentially an extension of Cley Marshes to the east and indeed also managed by the NWT.

Looking south west from Saltmarsh beach car park towards the village

Today, there were more people than birds - tonight's tide was to be the highest of the autumn and there were many groups fishing along the beach. A Wheatear and Brambling were flitting between the meadow and the shingle, and a couple of Common Gulls were amongst the Black-headed Gulls gliding past.

With dusk, I set about the Blackberry to find somewhere to stay and took a room at a very reasonable rate at the Blakeney Manor Hotel. The en-suite room was on a single-storey courtyard development adjacent to the main hotel and, whilst basic, was fine for £45 and a night on my own. A pint of bitter at the bar was less than great but I'd already decided to spend the evening elsewhere. Checking out early the following morning did prove more of a hassle, with no-one manning reception before or during breakfast.

The Blakeney Manor Hotel: cheap and cheerful-ish;

the courtyard area is pictured below

For dinner, I headed along the quay to the White Horse, sister pub to The George at Cley - and, I must say, at least it's equal. The pub was packed full and the owner hoped he could squeeze me in to a table later. So, I sampled the ales - all excellent, Adnams and a local micro-brewery - and tried a glass or two of red, whilst reading a good book. After an hour and a bit, the owner beckoned me to a table for two and I ordered the ribeye steam, medium rare, and excellent is was too, especially with a glass of Argentinian Malbec. It's not a cheap place, but if back this way with the other half, I will try to stay here first.

After the White Horse, I strolled a little further up the road to try out the Kings Arms, an authentic, traditional Norfolk pub that dates back to the 17th century. Immediately recognisable due to its red pantiled roof adorned with "FH • 1760" in large letters, the interior is just as unique and the beer well kept. Definitely worth stopping in to slake your thirst and admire how pubs used to be.

The following morning, after negotiating check-out from the Blakeney Manor Hotel, I walked outside to a day as bright and beautiful as the previous one was grey. The tide was indeed high (see left) and local people and visitors were enjoying the weather and the view, strolling north along the seaward paths or taking to their boats.

After a few minutes of the air and sun, I took to the car, another day of walking and birding ahead.

Boats off Blakeney Quay at high tide, October 2010

Norfolk, October 2010 (1): Welney WWT & Lynford Arboretum

With some great birds around, good weather in store and the missus away with work, I took the opportunity for a few days exploring Norfolk and Suffolk. Being on my own, I decided to follow wherever the road, weather and birds took me, with no planning, just to make things a little more interesting...

Main lagoon, Welney WWT reserve

Leaving west London at 2.30pm, first stop was at WWT's Welney reserve, 26 miles (42km) north of Cambridge. A Wilson's Phalarope had been around for a few days and it made a perfect pit-stop en route to the north coast. Unfortunately, a road closure meant I only scraped into the reserve at last entry, 4.30pm, with just a half-hour to see the Wilson's...and he was nowhere in sight! A Pectoral Sandpiper was on the nearest spit and a male Sparrowhawk, perched inside some scrub, gave great views through the scope, but was scant consolation. After a rather glum walk back to the car, I decided to stay in the area overnight rather than head out to the coast, in the hope he would be back the following morning.

Foraging Hawfinch, photo by potarou under Creative Commons licence

With Welney not opening until 9.30am the next day, I thought a morning visit to Lynford Arboretum would give me a chance to catch up with a secretive and uncommon bird...the Hawfinch. I'd eaten at the Crown Hotel in Mundford before and luckily they had a room going spare; the bar was lively, the beer good and dinner delicious...breakfast was even better, with everything cooked to order, and this will definitely be somewhere I'll stay again.

Under a very overcast sky, I made it out to Lynford for 8.30am, a little later than intended. I've stopped off at the arboretum three or four times on the way to the coast and, whilst yet to bump into any Hawfinches, the trees and peaceful atmosphere of this former part of the Lynford Hall estate never fail to inspire, even on a grey day.


This day was no different...including the complete lack of any sight or sound of a Hawfinch! But the time of year wasn't perfect - Lynford remains one of the best sites in eastern England for this engaging species between late November and April, even if not in the same numbers as a few years ago. For the best viewing, walk south from the main car park (TL 822943) through the arboretum, cross the bridge over the lake and, keeping your ears open for the distinctive 'pix' call, carefully check the Hornbeams and Hawthorns in the large paddock on your right. You can do a circular walk around the paddock and back to the arboretum. In addition, it's a good site for Lesser Spotted Woodpecker and Firecrest.

Still, a party of Long-tailed Tits and some rattling Mistle Thrushes kept me entertained until a light rain sent me back to the car and onward to Welney.

Arches, Lynford Arboretum

Back at Welney, the first winter Wilson's Phalarope was playing nicely and showing well and I watched with a few other birders in the comfort of the main hide (see left). The bird was feeding frantically on the main lagoon, with great views through the scope, head going up and down like a knitting machine!

Welney has become one of my favourite sites over the last couple of years (see post on a previous visit) - it's a peacful spot with great views, a modern visitor centre and café, it doesn't have the captive bird collections of other WWT sites and the winter assemblage of birds is impressive to birders and non-birders alike. Despite somewhat wanting to get away to the coast, it was a pleasure to sit and watch the waders and wildfowl go about their morning business. And I was glad I did - after about an hour, a couple of Common Cranes dropped in and gave decent if distant views. This is an occasional occurrence at Welney and a welcome one for me - although I've watched cranes extensively in France, these were my first UK birds.

Wilson's Phalarope: first winter plumage (left) by Amy McAndrews and

summer pluamge (right) by Dominic Sherony, both under Creative Commons

With the Cranes regally surveying the reserve, the Phalarope still pecking away and a Little Stint showing well, I reluctantly tore myself away and headed for the north coast.

Purple patch at Farlington Marshes, September 2010

Purple Sandpiper

The lure of a Lapland Bunting took me to Farlington Marshes at the end of September. This Hampshire Wildlife Trust reserve on the north side of Langstone Harbour between Portsmouth and Havant is a great spot...and the site's first Purple Sandpipers definitely made it a memorable trip.

On arrival at the car park (located just off the A27 / A2030 junction), there were great views of Grey Plover, Dunlin and Lapwing on the mudflats and saltmarshes. There are also fantastic views of birds and the harbour from all around the seawall. Find a map here.

On this beautiful sunny lunchtime there were over 300 Oystercatchers, 200 Redshank and 100 Black-tailed Godwits on the western lagoon, plus Curlew, Greenshank, Snipe and Turnstone - quite a wader fest!

Round at 'The Deeps', a pool and creeks behind the seawall, a few of us spent time searching the Mippits and Linnets on the pool fringe in the vain hope of one being the Lapland Bunt. An Osprey overfly distracted for a while.

Eventually, an eagle-eyed birder spotted the Lapland Bunting sat shivering in the lee of a small hummock and I managed a shaky capture through the telescope with the Nikon Coolpix 4500 I was testing.





Rather unwilling to leave, the slow walk back still had some great views and birds to offer. A Wheatear showed well on the fringe of The Deeps and fifty or so Starlings were going to town on the ripe blackberries. But the best was saved for last: two Purple Sandpipers - the first recorded on the reserve - landed on the western seaswall and were quite happy to be watched and photographed at just a couple of metres range. It was a privilege to watch them and I did so for a good half hour before tearing myself away...but definitely a spot to return to. Check out the Trust's Langstone Harbour blog for what is about.

Purple Sandpipers

A Great Park at Windsor, September 2010

How have I managed to live 15 miles away for four and a half years and not visit Windsor Great Park? Maybe it's the part of me that prefers to find my own new places rather than visit well-know spots! Luckily, Heather has been horseriding there over the last few months and persuaded me to make a couple of trips...and it's well worth the visit.

North along the Long Walk to Windsor Castle, September 2010

Covering 5000 acres, the park - which was, for many centuries, the private hunting reserve of the Royals at Windsor Castle - in any case provides plenty of scope for getting away from everyone else, although it's a little more busy in the south, around The Royal Landscape of Virginia Water, Savill Gardens and Valley Garden (map here). My first two visits have concentrated on exploring the western central area of the park from Bishopsgate (OS grid ref. SU 977722), as far east as Snow Hill - a tremendous viewpoint - and the start of the Long Walk up to the Castle and also south to the Cow Pond.

Fly Agarics, in woodland south of Bishopsgate

Bonus: it's fungi season. The park is stuffed full of bright and brown mushrooms; I must admit to some ignoring of the latter these days, they just take too long to identify! Out in the deer pasture towards Snow Hill, delicious Parasol Mushrooms the size of dinner plates hover above the grass. Walking south from Bishopsgate towards the Cow Pond, my planned walk takes a nosedive as I spend way too much time photographing Fly Agarics, Blushers, Blackening Russulas, White Saddles and Common Puffballs amongst others.

Common Puffballs

Eventually, with the sun setting behind the trees, I made it to Cow Pond - a sea of pink waterlillies that must look stunning at the right time of day - too late to get a decent photo (left)!

Heading back to the gate, I snapped a few shots of the sun filtering through the park's amazing trees (like the grove of birches above) and also stumbled across a hidden cache of Blushers in the undergrowth (below). A swift half in the Fox and Hounds pub later, I took the 15 mile journey home, a route I will be retreading back to the park very soon.

Colourful day at Dungeness, July 2010

Looking west along Dungeness' shingle beach

Dungeness has become one of my very favourite spots to visit over the last couple of years: the various elements - the RSPB reserve, Denge Beach, and the wooden shanties dwarfed by the nuclear power station - are a unique environment - it feels like a foreign shore, forty years in the past.

Purple Heron over reedbed by Jean-Jacques Boujot,

under Creative Commons licence

The birds are great too. Dungeness has brought me three 'firsts' over my last two visits and, on a Sunday morning in July, I spent a couple of hours on the Dengemarsh Road hoping for the Purple Herons - the first to breed in the UK - and a Great White Egret to show. It was a beautifully sunny morning and it was extremely pleasant to simply lean against the car and scan the reedbed, meadow and pool; even the soundtrack of machine gun fire from the adjacent MOD range was not an irritation. In the couple of hours that I watched, an adult Purple Heron came in just once to where the nest was presumed to be, flying low over the reeds, and the Egret also only showed briefly, wheeling up into sight above the reeds as he moved along the pool to a more likely spot to fish. But it was one of those days when it didn't matter; a couple of Corn Buntings sang and three Yellow Wagtails bobbed arund the meadow.

From the reserve, I did my usual and drove down to the beach for a stroll - although without enough time for my normal lunch stop at the Light Railway Café.

Looking north from the beach,

near Dungeness A power station

I spent 15 minutes watching The Patch (left) - the bubbling hot water outfall from the power station that enriches the biological productivity of the seabed and attracts seabirds from miles around - trying to turn the Black-headed Gulls into Med Gulls without success.




The trip finished with a few flypast photos of gulls whilst strolling back. For those who haven't been, I can heartily recommend a visit to this unique and wild corner of Kent.

Herring Gull

Birdwatching in west Suffolk and Cambridgeshire, June 2010

A trip out through Suffolk and Cambs in mid-June was aimed at seeing two or three unusual bird species. I pitched up early at the Lakenheath RSPB reserve in Suffolk - just north of the town on the B1112 - in hope of seeing Golden Oriole in the UK for the first time, but the weather proved less than ideal and there was no sign or sound of the little blighters in overcast and slightly damp conditions. I spent a couple of pleasant hours walking along the Little Ouse River and the droves around West Wood, with Marsh Harriers active (photo, above), a Grasshopper Warbler reeling and pairs of Cuckoo perched both in the open and the birch woodland, before the sun peeped through and a few bars of that flute-like Oriole voice floated through West Wood...but that was it! Still, an enjoyable first visit to this reserve and I look forward to visiting again at other seasons. There is a good visitor centre and some great viewpoints over the fen.

Pied Wagtail, Welney WWT

Things went less well at Welney WWT centre, with no Bluethroat on show and just three hours sunburn and a Pied Wagtail (above) to show for the effort! Naturally, it turned up about twenty minutes after I left and sang its heart out... Actually, despite Bluey's no-show, Welney was great - a friendly bunch of folks waiting, baby Sedge Warblers (below) getting fed within a few metres and Black-tailed Godwits and Avocets flying overhead.

Best was saved for last. Under the evening sun in a beautiful blue sky, I stopped off at Berry Fen, near Bluntisham - a newly restored area in the Hanson-RSPB wetland project to create Ouse Fen nature reserve.

Berry Fen RSPB, June 2010

It wasn't easy to find but eventually parked up just west of Earith and walked south-west along the Ouse Valley Way. The habitat looked superb and enjoying it, freshly arrived from nearby Fen Drayton Lakes RSPB, was a Blue-winged Teal. It was a little distant for the camera and directly into the sun, but there are some great pictures of this individual on the Back in Birdland blog by Mike Lawrence. I will definitely call in again when in the area.

 Blue-winged Teal, under Creative Commons licence

  

The slight struggle to find Berry Fen was worthwhile, however. I stumbled across pretty St Mary's in Bluntisham and spent a half hour exploring the churchyard, which is a beautiful mixture of managed and wild areas.

St Mary's Church, Bluntisham, Cambs 

Isle of Skye (3): Small Isles & seabirds, June 2010

If you've made it as far as Skye, it's a must to go a little further and take a trip out amongst the Small Isles - Rum, Eigg, Muck and Canna.

Isle of Rum from Camasunary

We took a trip in a rigid inflatable boat (rib) with Aquaexplore (part of Bella Jane) out to the waters off Soay, Canna and Rum and thoroughly enjoyed it; there are also a couple of other comapanies offering different trips. All outer clothing was provided (although some a little large!) and you can wear your own if you have good waterproofs. Do wrap up warm though, whatever the weather.

First stop was the islets of An Coileach and A' Charc (left) off the coast of Soay, where Grey Seals and Shags loaf and sunbathe. The seals can be quite inquisitive and we got good views as a couple bobbed around the boat.

Under the towering cliffs of Canna

After a 15 minute blast across the water, with a Great Northern Diver, Guillemot and Arctic Skua lifting off from our path, we reached the northern coast of the Isle of Canna. The towering 400ft granite cliffs are home to thousands of nesting seabirds. Guillemots and Razorbills sat packed on ledges whilst Puffins took leaps of faith from their grassy burrows and whistled past our ears as they tried to flap hard enough to get airborne. Fulmars and Kittiwakes were also on the cliffs in smaller numbers. An eagle - Golden or Sea, I couldn't tell - soared high overhead.

After drifting along the cliffs watching the birds, we landed at the island's harbour for a quick explore and restroom stop. The scenery was stunning and I hope we can return for a longer stay in future. We had only a quarter of an hour but reached the tiny St Columba's church (see photo).




Just as we were boarding the rib to leave for Rum, the island doctor landed and let us know that a couple of Basking Sharks had been seen in the area. With excitement, we headed out into Canna Sound and quartered the sea in hope of seeing one.

Just as we were on the verge of giving up, we spotted one of these fantastic fish dead ahead. It was feeding back and forth in the sound and, besides its unmistakeable dorsal fin, its nose could just be seen peeking through the waves, allowing us to estimate its length at about 20ft.

Sadly leaving the Basking Shark, we passed by the Isle of Rum where Red Deer are regularly seen along the shore on our way back to Elgol to complete a memorable trip.

Elgol harbour from the water