I spent four nights up near Alnmouth, where a group of a dozen birdwatchers from the Harrogate RSPB club were staying at the HF centre. By the end of their stay they had spotted 104 different species! I managed 30 new species for this year.
On the way up I called at Corbridge Roman Town to see the dodecahedrons which were on temporary display. Very intriguing. I joined a guided tour of the complex, one of the major towns and part of the Hadrian's Wall complex. I nosed around the museum too, so made good use of my English Heritage membership.
Walkmill campsite was lovely, and thankfully my pitch was on hardstanding at the top of the hill - there has been almost continuous rain for months I didn't like the look of the sloping, grassy access to the lower pitches some of the campers were on. Lovely site, but I suspect it gets packed in good weather.
On the first evening I drove down to meet the group for a talk from one of the local reserve wardens. I now know how to spot a sandwich tern and a kittiwake.
The next day we met at Craster, and spent over 5 hours birdwatching as we wandered along the 3 miles of coastal path down to Boulmer. A fantastic day, clear blue skies and great company. I spotted a linnet (spot of the day!) and the other highlight for me was the beautiful stonechat. Kittiwakes and sea birds plus something called a purple sandpiper that I'd never heard of.
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| Note the group of people on top of the cliffs, to get the scale. |
The following day the forecast wasn't as good so we went to Hauxley reserve, a reclaimed quarry with lots of hides so we could shelter from the showers. Mainly warblers and ducks, but it included the gorgeous shelduck, one of my favourites. We also heard a grasshopper warbler, another bird I'd never heard of. (Pretty sure they were't making these up to tease the newbie.)
Day 4 they were heading off to Lindesfarne and other coastal spots to look for terns, but I'd had my fill of socialising - 2 days on the trot being in a group is something of a strain these days. Instead I went to Warkworth Castle, which was a mere mile or so from the campsite. The Hermitage was sadly closed, due to lack of a boat (!).
Warkworth looked like an interesting village too, but I was tired out after exploring and so after a quick trip to the beachfront for a picnic lunch, I replenished supplies at Morrison's at Amble then headed back to the site and chilled out.
