rollingthunder
Well-known member
Having twitched a lot in the 80's and visited the Scillies 8 consecutive Octobers' i had a good run and enjoyed the crack and the, then, reasonably priced ornithologically hedonistic experience.
How is the current situation with the price of fuel impacting on peoples twitching expectations? There are now threads and Facebook pages dedicated to car-sharing etc. Back in the 80's we never went anywhere without a minimum of 3 people and generally 5 which meant somebody drawing the short straw of NO seat belt. Sure, some of the 'Doody' types turned up on their own in a car but we did'nt talk to them anyway? I hitched (apart from the ferry bit) over to Ireland and back for a BeltedK and dipped (and again in Staffs) when there was NO pagers, NO internet, NO iphones.............Just Nancys' Cafe!
Like a lot of birders of my age (55) i now spend my limited funds birding in the Western Pal and enjoy finding my own stuff without a Gosney, mainly in Morocco. I will still travel (if there is an offer) within a couple of hours or a tenner return from here in sunny Stourbridge, West Midlands. For example, over the weekend i had cracking views of the Desert Wheatear in Shroppie, a species i am familiar with in Central/Southern Morocco. Not a lifer and not a tick altho a new British bird. All v enjoyable but i enjoyed the bird better because i had seen them elsewhere and had some experience to base it on. Having said that, it takes me dangerously to 400 for the UK so, obviously, my British list is still important otherwise i would'nt have gone!
For birders whose British list is all important it must be worrying times, i have read elsewhere of somebody who chased 400 in a year and spent close on 30k!.............Not a chance but we are all different.
Has the high fuel prices really impacted on peoples twitching activities, are people organising lifts? This would make things far more socialbe 'just like the good old days'.
Just my thoughts for what they are worth..........
Laurie -:t:
How is the current situation with the price of fuel impacting on peoples twitching expectations? There are now threads and Facebook pages dedicated to car-sharing etc. Back in the 80's we never went anywhere without a minimum of 3 people and generally 5 which meant somebody drawing the short straw of NO seat belt. Sure, some of the 'Doody' types turned up on their own in a car but we did'nt talk to them anyway? I hitched (apart from the ferry bit) over to Ireland and back for a BeltedK and dipped (and again in Staffs) when there was NO pagers, NO internet, NO iphones.............Just Nancys' Cafe!
Like a lot of birders of my age (55) i now spend my limited funds birding in the Western Pal and enjoy finding my own stuff without a Gosney, mainly in Morocco. I will still travel (if there is an offer) within a couple of hours or a tenner return from here in sunny Stourbridge, West Midlands. For example, over the weekend i had cracking views of the Desert Wheatear in Shroppie, a species i am familiar with in Central/Southern Morocco. Not a lifer and not a tick altho a new British bird. All v enjoyable but i enjoyed the bird better because i had seen them elsewhere and had some experience to base it on. Having said that, it takes me dangerously to 400 for the UK so, obviously, my British list is still important otherwise i would'nt have gone!
For birders whose British list is all important it must be worrying times, i have read elsewhere of somebody who chased 400 in a year and spent close on 30k!.............Not a chance but we are all different.
Has the high fuel prices really impacted on peoples twitching activities, are people organising lifts? This would make things far more socialbe 'just like the good old days'.
Just my thoughts for what they are worth..........
Laurie -:t:
BY THE WAY- UNITED NOT ARROGANT JUST BETTER!:clap:
