Don’t Fret

Today saw our first Water, Wildlife & Walking Tour get off the ground after a winter of planning; or at least we would have seen it had it not been for the sea fret that has enveloped the north east coast for the past few days. The tour went ahead of course in perfect walking conditions though less than perfect visibility.

The ‘Water’ phase of the tour on board Serenity’s twin-hulled catamaran surprisingly delivered some great views of mammals and birds alike despite the fret. A Grey Seal loafed a few metres from the boat before we broke the harbour mouth. A steady stream of Guillemots, Shags and Gannets appeared from the gloom before disappearing again into the white void.

With our skipper manoeuvring us to within 5m of Gull Crag on a flat calm sea our group managed superb views of Kittiwakes, Razorbills and Fulmars on the ledges.

A few minutes later we squeezed through the narrow entrance to Craster harbour and the group passed it’s next challenge disembarking by ladder. A Rock Pipit was quickly noted by on of the group low on the harbour wall and Turnstones and Oystercatchers fed across the harbour.

Despite the fog we could hear many singing birds on the first part of our route through some great small bird habitat, Blackcap, Chiffchaff, Willow Warbler, Yellowhammer, Greenfinch, Wren, Dunnock, Great Tit were all picked out by ear and then by sight.

As we approached Dunstanburgh Castle, first one then a further three Wheatears entertained on the beach, showing off their ‘white arses’ to aptly demonstrate the name derivation. Shelduck, Gadwall, Teal and a single drake Wigeon showed well on the flooded meadows as well as an unlikely Black Swan.

The next stretch of links was fairly quiet with the odd Skylark for company, though about halfway we heard a brief snatch of a reeling Grasshopper Warbler, then another further along the hedge and a third a few hundred yards further by a small Phragmites bed where a Sedge Warbler sang but wasn’t seen.

After a splendid male Stonechat we stopped to admire male Yellowhammer and Reed Bunting side by side and were delighted when a pair of Yellow Wagtails dropped in as well offering excellent views.

Newton Pool was quiet, Little Grebe and a non-singing but visible Sedge Warbler the pick of the sightings here. Whilst warmer the mist continued to linger, not deterring the Bank Holiday tourists but adding a slightly eerie ‘close encounters’ kind of look to the beach activities as we ate lunch.

Another Wheatear and a Common Snipe were around Stringer Scrapes north of the pool. The long walk to the Long Nanny produced little but as we approached the burn a Grey Heron fed in the shallows and then a Greenshank was picked out, quickly followed by 3 Ringed Plovers and a Dunlin.

We stopped again at Beadnell Harbour where the House Sparrows put on an x-rated show over the lobster pots as we caught up with some refreshments.

We opted to stay on the beach between Beadnell and Annstead and walked to the constant calls of nearby Sandwich Terns without seeing one! Another Wheatear sat out on Annstead Golf Course before a last look at the Kittiwakes on Annstead Point and the short hop back to Seahouses.

The sea fret may be back tomorrow but we certainly won’t ‘fret’ about it after a fantastic day with some great birds.