alan_rymer
Well-known member
Yesterday, Wed 18th Feb 2004 , I drove my wife and son down to Swansea in Wales ( about 170 miles ) to the open day at Swansea University. I had been informed that I needn’t attend as a sop to me driving and having to take a days holiday. I had previously posted asking advice. Stephen Dunstan, Deboo and Satrow all posted with advice about Swansea Bay and the Mumbles. I had been looking forward to seeing birds I don’t usually see. Sea ducks, Divers, Scoters and several species of waders on offer..
The day got off to a pleasing start soon after paying the £4.50 charge to cross the new Severn Bridge into Wales,. A couple of buzzards were soaring to my left on an increasingly sunny though cool morning. We also noticed that the tide was going out which was not a good sign ( I am told ). Not really much else to see, although it is a bit disconcerting with the wife occasionally saying " Keep your eyes on the road" whilst driving along at approximately 70mph.
Soon after passing Cardiff we called in at a service station for a coffee and a leek. In the car park was a Rook pecking away at a discarded fast food carton to the sound of Greenfinch’s and Chaffinch’s singing away, obviously enjoying the sun and the time of year.
We eventually arrived at Junction 42 off the M4 motorway, successfully avoiding the speed camera’s where they drop the speed limit to 50mph for no apparent reason. Turned off onto the dual carriageway into Swansea where I saw a beautiful Common Buzzard gazing down disdainfully whilst perched on a lamp post above the road. That got me another "watch where you are going" me with my head twisted up and round as we passed under the bird. It was soon after this point that the flow of cars turned into a stationary queue of traffic. We eventually started to inch forward and at 12 O’clock, when we were due to be at the Uni we were still looking out for the first waypoint "Sainsburys." . Anyway after getting to the outskirts of Swansea half an hour early, we arrived at the University half an hour late. I quickly dropped off the dependants after arranging to meet at 4pm and headed West towards the Mumbles.
On my left is a grassy bank which hid the sea and half a dozen Jackdaws were having a noisy squabble there. Peering left whenever the sea and beach came into view, things did not look good. The tide was way out and only a few white specks in sight, down by the water’s edge. After driving along the bay for quite a distance without seeing a place to park ( Jam packed with parked cars ), it seemed as if half of Wales had decided to take the kids to the seaside, it being half term.
I eventually parked in the cliff top car park above Mumbles pier, which was by some sort of miracle almost empty. On exiting the car I saw a Robin singing its little head off by the roadside. Went around to the back of the car for the bins and flask of tea, sandwiches, and then sat with the car door open gazing out across a flat calm expanse of water. The water seemed to be teeming with birds, which on focusing the bins turned into Bouys, multi coloured ones, but mainly stained black. The sea was devoid of birds, well, not quite. There was a disturbance on the water and I eagerly scanned around the area and was rewarded with a Cormorant which surfaced about thirty seconds later.
Finishing the sandwiches I locked the car and walked the few yards to the top of the steps which lead down towards the Shops and Pier. I scanned the beach below from this vantage point and saw, 3 Black headed Gulls and what looked like a first winter Herring Gull. Oh well, I decided to walk down the steps and see if there were any facilities down below. Lots of steps down, which explains why the Car Park at the top was empty, and just by the bottom, da dah, the loo’s. After getting rid of the mornings coffee and now the tea I walked to the far side of the pier and gazed out towards the Lighthouse on the headland. Nothing, except for another Black Headed Gull, this one with its chocolate brown summer plumaged head.
Back up the stairs to the top of the cliff, and a drive of a few hundred yards around the headland to another bay. Zilch. Sigh, back to the original car park above the pier. From here you can see all the way around the bay. Halfway around the bay, about were I think the Uni is, I see a lot of white dots. Back in the car and drive past the Uni, seeing nowhere to park, I eventually turned around and came back to a car park just west of the University above where I think the majority of the Gulls I saw were.
Paying my 80 pence I got my rucksack with tripod/scope/camera out and walked over the bank and into the dunes overlooking the sea.
Three/four hundred yards away was a group of about fifty Gulls with other small groups to the east every 50 yards or so. Set the scope on the tripod and started scanning the Gulls. There was nothing out of the ordinary, the majority being black headed Gulls with a few Lesser Black Backed and one Common Gull. Scanning further to the left was a bunch of distinctive looking waders, black and white, red legs and long red beak. Oystercatchers!, my first year "tick" of the trip. Looking further left, more Gulls, with a few Herring, Lesser Black Backed and Black Headed and not a lot else. There were other Gulls further down the beach but the heat shimmer ( heat? 8C ) inhibited what I could see.
After that I went back to the car and read some of Tom Clancy’s " The Bear and the Dragon" before heading back to pick up Penny and David at four pm.
Overall, not very productive. But I enjoyed it.
Hope the trip to Norwich Uni on Saturday is more productive. Probably visiting Strumphaw RSPB for a few of hours!
The day got off to a pleasing start soon after paying the £4.50 charge to cross the new Severn Bridge into Wales,. A couple of buzzards were soaring to my left on an increasingly sunny though cool morning. We also noticed that the tide was going out which was not a good sign ( I am told ). Not really much else to see, although it is a bit disconcerting with the wife occasionally saying " Keep your eyes on the road" whilst driving along at approximately 70mph.
Soon after passing Cardiff we called in at a service station for a coffee and a leek. In the car park was a Rook pecking away at a discarded fast food carton to the sound of Greenfinch’s and Chaffinch’s singing away, obviously enjoying the sun and the time of year.
We eventually arrived at Junction 42 off the M4 motorway, successfully avoiding the speed camera’s where they drop the speed limit to 50mph for no apparent reason. Turned off onto the dual carriageway into Swansea where I saw a beautiful Common Buzzard gazing down disdainfully whilst perched on a lamp post above the road. That got me another "watch where you are going" me with my head twisted up and round as we passed under the bird. It was soon after this point that the flow of cars turned into a stationary queue of traffic. We eventually started to inch forward and at 12 O’clock, when we were due to be at the Uni we were still looking out for the first waypoint "Sainsburys." . Anyway after getting to the outskirts of Swansea half an hour early, we arrived at the University half an hour late. I quickly dropped off the dependants after arranging to meet at 4pm and headed West towards the Mumbles.
On my left is a grassy bank which hid the sea and half a dozen Jackdaws were having a noisy squabble there. Peering left whenever the sea and beach came into view, things did not look good. The tide was way out and only a few white specks in sight, down by the water’s edge. After driving along the bay for quite a distance without seeing a place to park ( Jam packed with parked cars ), it seemed as if half of Wales had decided to take the kids to the seaside, it being half term.
I eventually parked in the cliff top car park above Mumbles pier, which was by some sort of miracle almost empty. On exiting the car I saw a Robin singing its little head off by the roadside. Went around to the back of the car for the bins and flask of tea, sandwiches, and then sat with the car door open gazing out across a flat calm expanse of water. The water seemed to be teeming with birds, which on focusing the bins turned into Bouys, multi coloured ones, but mainly stained black. The sea was devoid of birds, well, not quite. There was a disturbance on the water and I eagerly scanned around the area and was rewarded with a Cormorant which surfaced about thirty seconds later.
Finishing the sandwiches I locked the car and walked the few yards to the top of the steps which lead down towards the Shops and Pier. I scanned the beach below from this vantage point and saw, 3 Black headed Gulls and what looked like a first winter Herring Gull. Oh well, I decided to walk down the steps and see if there were any facilities down below. Lots of steps down, which explains why the Car Park at the top was empty, and just by the bottom, da dah, the loo’s. After getting rid of the mornings coffee and now the tea I walked to the far side of the pier and gazed out towards the Lighthouse on the headland. Nothing, except for another Black Headed Gull, this one with its chocolate brown summer plumaged head.
Back up the stairs to the top of the cliff, and a drive of a few hundred yards around the headland to another bay. Zilch. Sigh, back to the original car park above the pier. From here you can see all the way around the bay. Halfway around the bay, about were I think the Uni is, I see a lot of white dots. Back in the car and drive past the Uni, seeing nowhere to park, I eventually turned around and came back to a car park just west of the University above where I think the majority of the Gulls I saw were.
Paying my 80 pence I got my rucksack with tripod/scope/camera out and walked over the bank and into the dunes overlooking the sea.
Three/four hundred yards away was a group of about fifty Gulls with other small groups to the east every 50 yards or so. Set the scope on the tripod and started scanning the Gulls. There was nothing out of the ordinary, the majority being black headed Gulls with a few Lesser Black Backed and one Common Gull. Scanning further to the left was a bunch of distinctive looking waders, black and white, red legs and long red beak. Oystercatchers!, my first year "tick" of the trip. Looking further left, more Gulls, with a few Herring, Lesser Black Backed and Black Headed and not a lot else. There were other Gulls further down the beach but the heat shimmer ( heat? 8C ) inhibited what I could see.
After that I went back to the car and read some of Tom Clancy’s " The Bear and the Dragon" before heading back to pick up Penny and David at four pm.
Overall, not very productive. But I enjoyed it.
Hope the trip to Norwich Uni on Saturday is more productive. Probably visiting Strumphaw RSPB for a few of hours!
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