The Report
The day started well when I awoke before the alarm, brownie points there as I didn't wake anyone else.
No major birds seen whilst waiting for Rob, just the usual blackbird, goldfinch, woodpigeon and collared dove. A great spotted woodie alarm call from over the way was a bonus, first record of one in the area for a few years. A dog fox crossing the road further up the street stopped and had a good look at me before resuming it's mooch from garden to garden.
Rob arrived, without Ken who had to cry off the trip, hope you are feeling better soon man. With scope and snap in the back we were off to the M62. Other than a few carrion crows it was a relatively bird free journey until I spotted a flock of lapwing flying close to Drax power station, as they wheeled in the sunlight I realised that there were a good number of golden plover in the flock, their plumage visibly glowed in the sunlight. Again a quiet spell until, in fields close to Thorngumbald, I found a small group of curlew, there are benefits to being a passenger.
On arriving at the Bluebell car park, James and Mark were already sat sea-watching and Mike was just getting his kit from the car. We were soon being updated on what we'd missed through not arriving early doors, even though it was still in front of the scheduled time... sooty shearwater and arctic skua apparently. Yellow wagtails were flitting around the gate of the field behind us and linnets flying around the fields.
As the wind was a bit sharp we decided to make for the sea-watching hide, where we were soon sat scanning the water. Plenty of gannets both North and South, auks as well. First year tick for me was a sandwich tern, of which we saw several through the day. This was followed by common terns, manx shearwater, a couple of them at first which proved flippin' difficult to get onto for me, but I managed it. thereafter we had a slow spell and then an arctic skua flew South, again I didn't get onto it straight away but managed to see it before it disappeared.
Then the bird of the day, James, who was sat behind me let out a shout of 'storm petrel, close in', the hide was electrified. Everybody strained to find the bird, Rob lucky man had the bird in his scope, I did manage to get a short view of the bird really close in as it flew above the breakers, Mark and Mike also got views of the bird. I believe that was a life tick for 2 other members of our party as well as myself. The day had taken on an altogether brighter feel now.
A distant bonxie while welcome as a year tick, wasn't a pom. More arctic skuas and also arctic terns progressed in front of the hide and then a chap down the other end of the hide called 2 velvet scoter North, once more a bit of scramble to get onto the birds, I only managed to get fleeting views of the birds through my scope but I believe the others got better. New scope, only second outing with it and still not 100% sure where I'm pointing it is my excuse. It's amazing how much difference moving from an offset eyepiece to an inline eyepiece alters your aim. I was consistently aiming to the left of things until really quiet late in the day.
As it was approaching high tide time we had a walk from the hide back up to the Bluebell Car park via Canal Scrape hide, from where we had decent views of yellow wagtail, lesser whitethroat and kestrel. We also saw plenty of waders on the mud close to here, including whimbrel, dunlin, greenshank, redshank and 4 little egrets.
From the car park we drove to Chalk Bank and the hide there to watch the wader roost, several hundred knot, along with a few sanderling, some summer plumage grey plover, barwits and the inevitable dunlin. I thought I'd seen a curlew sandpiper moving through the knot but as I couldn't keep the bird in view I had to let that go as a possible. There were little terns here, as well as sandwich terns. James came up trumps again with a juvenile gull which, after discussing the finer points of the bird's tertials and the vague 'mask', he called as a yellow-legged gull, an id I was happy to go along with.
After leaving Chalk Bank Hide and having a snack at the cafe, it was on to Beacon Pond where we managed to locate a more co-operative curlew sand, or possibly two. There was an odd looking wader that we never fully id'ed and after a shufti through 'Waders of Europe, Asia and N Am' I am hoping that it was just a dunlin. More little and sandwich terns, 3 more little egrets and reed bunting were also seen from the hide here. As we were leaving the curlew sand gave one last show as it landed quite close by on the mud allowing decent views from outside the hide. The walk back to the car park was enlivened (as it had been on the way out) by the number of crickets 'singing' in the long grass and the fact that I for one could not actually hear them. The last bird seen from the car park, other than a common gull, was a blessed dunlin! However Rob and I did manage to get another raptor on the way back as there was a marsh harrier north of the M62 just after we drove past the North Cave exit.
Altogether a very decent day's birding, maybe not quantity but certainly quality, here's to the next meet.