IanF
Moderator
JohnJ has already posted a report of his visit to this area of Scotland. We visited several of the same reserves a month earlier and so saw similar species.
Aviemore 27th April – 5th May 2002
This Spring we decided to forgo our normal week in the sun and decided to head up to Scotland instead intending to do a little sightseeing combined with birdwatching. My wife Margaret has really taken to birdwatching over the last year or do. We’ve visited Scotland on several occasions but never stayed around Aviemore which after a little research sounded like a birdwatching paradise – it was !
A search on the computer found a nice little cottage in Aviemore
*Our accommodation
We stayed in Coire Mohr, meant to accommodate up to five, but two was very comfortable. We self catered for breakfast but dined out in the main. Anyone else who visits may like to try the Winking Owl PH, main street Aviemore, which did excellent meals at a reasonable price.
I’ve included links to several photos in the text, but a travelogue from the whole trip can be viewed on this link -
* Scotland 2002 travelogue
The photos have been optimised to ensure speedy loading.
Saturday 27th April
Travelled north by car from north east England having a pleasant drive up the A68 into Scotland in sunny conditions – about the last time that we saw the sun that week.
One bird we wanted to get a good look at was the Ospreys. We stopped off at the RSPB reserve at Loch of the Lowes near to Dunkeld on the A9 and were rewarded with our best views up to then of several birds on two nests. It was a good start to the week.
We carried on north, stopping off at Pitlochry and to stretch our legs properly we headed down to the Loch Tummel dam, hoping to see Salmon in the fish ladder, but there weren’t. We did see several leaping in the river below whilst we sat eating a picnic lunch, shared with Chaffinches and watching bobbing Wagtails.
We arrived in Aviemore around 3.00 pm, stopping off at the Tourist Information Centre to pick up leaflets and then located our cottage with out a problem. It was a lovely cottage with superb rear aspect overlooking the Cairngorm Mountains. Just as we finished packing I looked in the field at the rear to see deer grazing not thirty yards away. We got used to seeing them each morning and evening during the rest of our stay.
Stag -
Doe -
Sunday 28th April
Being Sunday we decided not to travel too far following the long journey the previous day. We had a run up to RSPB Loch Garten a few miles to the north and managed to see Ospreys again. I was a little disappointed by the sight of the main nest tree, dead, totally devoid of greenery and held together by planks of wood nailed/bolted on with a TV camera mounted on a pylon tower beside it. The birds didn’t seem to mind, though they failed to mate for the first time in several years.
Osprey tree -
Osprey -
We revisited the reserve several times during the week, it being so close to hand. The visitor centre was superb and staff very friendly and knowledgeable. On that first visit we also found out about the early morning Capercaillie Lek viewing. We visited several times that week. Beside the visitor centre were numerous feeders attracting mainly Siskins and Chaffinches with numerous Red Squirrels.
Red Squirrel -
The Caledonian Forest beside the reserve and nearby Loch supported a variety of other birds, including Northern Wheatears, Great Spotted Woodpecker and Crossbills. Crested Tits were about the previous week, but there were no reported sightings in the time we were there and we looked hard enough for them, but had to travel a bit further to find them.
Around 3.00 pm we made our way to Loch an Eileen, apparently used as the setting in some of the Monarch of the Glen episodes (trail leaflet from Tourist Info Centre). What a beautiful little loch with a circular walk around it. We saw loads of birds, but they were mainly around the car park side of the Loch and included Siskins, Chaffinches, G S Woodpeckers, Wrens, and best of all Crossbills. We found a flock of about a dozen birds. First sign of them is the sound of fir cones bouncing off tree branches as the birds discard the cones. The trees were quite high but we managed reasonable views. I’m happy to call them Scottish Crossbills, but I really wouldn’t know. They were certainly larger than I’d expected. I tried for a few photos but the results weren’t good, taken against the light.
Siskin male -
Siskin female -
Crossbill -
Wren -
We were a bit late in visiting as you could easily spend a half day or more wandering around the paths.
Monday 29th April
Rain, rain, rain – it poured down that day. We decided to give the birdwatching a miss and have a run up to Inverness, hoping the weather was better a little further north – it wasn’t ! We looked around the shops and then headed back to Aviemore.
Tuesday 30th April
I was up early – 4.30 am, as I wanted to get up to Loch Garten to see the Capercaillies. It was well worth the effort with three birds out on the Lek. We had views through the provided scopes and on the video monitors. My only complaint was that I’d have liked to get a lot closer. I did manage a few photos but only at extreme distance and not good quality.
Capercaillie -
As they do their mating dance they bound into the air, several feet off the ground, a spectacular feat for such a large bird. This one was caught mid leap.
Leaping Caper -
Just as strange was seeing them perched in trees, for such large birds it was unexpected. Still no Crossbills around.
After returning to the cottage and having breakfast Margaret got up and after hearing what I’d seen, she decided to accompany me next day.
After breakfasting we travelled to the RSPB Insh Marsh reserve, again close by. We saw several Ospreys overhead but little else on the reserve. A highlight of the whole week was watching a Grey Heron catch and then with a struggle eat a four foot long eel, which was determined not to become it’s lunch. In the end it succumbed, but what an unusual sight it was. A sequence of photos of the event is on the link.
* Scotland travelogue 2002
Wednesday 1st May
Early start again and another visit to the Lek accompanied by Margaret. Two were about that day and I managed a view from the ‘forward’ hide, but the Capers were still a long way off. We then had a walk through the Loch over to Loch Mallachie and back. There were several Goldeneye on the loch but little else. In the forest we saw Chaffinches, Blue Tits, Great Tits, Siskins, Tree Creepers, Goldcrests, Great Spotted Woodpeckers and even a buzzard, but no Crested Tits or Crossbills.
We then had a trip to the Findhorn Valley, just a few more miles north. What a spectacular place it was. I have never seen so many deer in one place and not least disturbed by our presence in the car.
Stag -
Does -
My wife wasn’t so struck by the endless twisting single track road, but I thoroughly enjoyed the trip. Our aim was to see Golden Eagles and we weren’t disappointed. We saw four together circling in a thermal overhead. We didn’t see any Ring Ouzels, but Wheatears were a plenty as were nesting Black Headed Gulls.
B H Gull on nest -
We then followed another narrow road with superb views of the mountains over to Farr and then onto RSPB Loch Ruthven for another ‘must see’ the ‘Horned’ or ‘Slavonian’ Grebe. Again we weren’t to be disappointed as there were seven birds quite close to the edge right below the hide. I managed a couple of photos too.
Slavonian Grebe -
There wasn’t much else on the Loch other than a pair of Red Throated Divers, a first for us though we did see them again later that week.
We also fitted in a trip to Cairngorm that day, only venturing as far as the ski lifts to take a few photos from the car park and also having a pleasant afternoon walk around by Loch Morlich on it’s southern edge. We saw several Great Spotted Woodpeckers, Goldeneye, Eurasian Wigeon, Teal, Pied and white Wagtails, Red Throated Divers and a possible Great Northern Diver, though we couldn’t be positive on the id.
Thursday 2nd May
Another early start to the day and a visit to Loch Garten to see the Capers again. Quite a crowd of people today and a couple of birds spotted, but only visible on the cameras.
Not having seen any Crested Tits and getting quite desperate to do so, we had a trip up to Culbin Forest by Nairn, where Crested Tits were almost guaranteed. Again we weren’t disappointed. It took a while to get your eye in, but once spotted they were a delight to see. We spent several hours wandering the forest rides, but the most birds and best sightings were close to the car park. We saw several Ospreys, Golden Eagles, Buzzards around the forest, gliding in thermals over the cleared areas. We even came across a Cuckoo, which Margaret spotted on a tree quite nearby. I failed to get a photo of a Crested Tit but there is always next year !
On the way back were returned via Carrbridge where passing through we saw Red Grouse and even espied a Black Grouse, but when I tried to get a better view, it had disappeared. We see plenty of them though back home.
We called in again at Loch Garten but there were no sign of any Ospreys and the staff were concerned that none were likely to breed this year as it was getting too late. They never did. On leaving we came across some more Crossbills, right above the gatehouse, but still difficult to see clearly.
Friday 3rd May
A sight seeing day. We had a run over to Fort William and then a run back up through the Great glen to Inverness. Not a lot of birding got done, though we did come across this friendly little Chaffinch by the A86. He was obviously used to passing tourists.
Chaffinch -
On driving alongside Loch Ness we also saw several different variations in plumage of Hooded Crow from almost black and white to murky shades of grey, but we couldn’t stop for photos.
We called in at Loch Garten again for the Ospreys and got chatting with and gentleman also on a birding holiday. He told us about the fish farm at Rothmericus where Ospreys feed each evening. Come 4.00 pm we had a ride down there and for a pound you can enter to bird watch. Sure enough three Ospreys turned up and began fishing in the ponds. What a sight it was to see them from so close. If we’d known sooner then we’d have been there every evening. I managed a couple of photos but nothing decent due to poor lighting.
Osprey -
We also saw more Hooded Crows there.
Saturday 4th May
Basically our journey home. We stopped off at Loch of the Lowes again, but no birds were about.
We thoroughly enjoyed our week in Scotland, and hopefully will return if not next year then the one after.
Aviemore 27th April – 5th May 2002
This Spring we decided to forgo our normal week in the sun and decided to head up to Scotland instead intending to do a little sightseeing combined with birdwatching. My wife Margaret has really taken to birdwatching over the last year or do. We’ve visited Scotland on several occasions but never stayed around Aviemore which after a little research sounded like a birdwatching paradise – it was !
A search on the computer found a nice little cottage in Aviemore
*Our accommodation
We stayed in Coire Mohr, meant to accommodate up to five, but two was very comfortable. We self catered for breakfast but dined out in the main. Anyone else who visits may like to try the Winking Owl PH, main street Aviemore, which did excellent meals at a reasonable price.
I’ve included links to several photos in the text, but a travelogue from the whole trip can be viewed on this link -
* Scotland 2002 travelogue
The photos have been optimised to ensure speedy loading.
Saturday 27th April
Travelled north by car from north east England having a pleasant drive up the A68 into Scotland in sunny conditions – about the last time that we saw the sun that week.
One bird we wanted to get a good look at was the Ospreys. We stopped off at the RSPB reserve at Loch of the Lowes near to Dunkeld on the A9 and were rewarded with our best views up to then of several birds on two nests. It was a good start to the week.
We carried on north, stopping off at Pitlochry and to stretch our legs properly we headed down to the Loch Tummel dam, hoping to see Salmon in the fish ladder, but there weren’t. We did see several leaping in the river below whilst we sat eating a picnic lunch, shared with Chaffinches and watching bobbing Wagtails.
We arrived in Aviemore around 3.00 pm, stopping off at the Tourist Information Centre to pick up leaflets and then located our cottage with out a problem. It was a lovely cottage with superb rear aspect overlooking the Cairngorm Mountains. Just as we finished packing I looked in the field at the rear to see deer grazing not thirty yards away. We got used to seeing them each morning and evening during the rest of our stay.
Stag -
Doe -
Sunday 28th April
Being Sunday we decided not to travel too far following the long journey the previous day. We had a run up to RSPB Loch Garten a few miles to the north and managed to see Ospreys again. I was a little disappointed by the sight of the main nest tree, dead, totally devoid of greenery and held together by planks of wood nailed/bolted on with a TV camera mounted on a pylon tower beside it. The birds didn’t seem to mind, though they failed to mate for the first time in several years.
Osprey tree -
Osprey -
We revisited the reserve several times during the week, it being so close to hand. The visitor centre was superb and staff very friendly and knowledgeable. On that first visit we also found out about the early morning Capercaillie Lek viewing. We visited several times that week. Beside the visitor centre were numerous feeders attracting mainly Siskins and Chaffinches with numerous Red Squirrels.
Red Squirrel -
The Caledonian Forest beside the reserve and nearby Loch supported a variety of other birds, including Northern Wheatears, Great Spotted Woodpecker and Crossbills. Crested Tits were about the previous week, but there were no reported sightings in the time we were there and we looked hard enough for them, but had to travel a bit further to find them.
Around 3.00 pm we made our way to Loch an Eileen, apparently used as the setting in some of the Monarch of the Glen episodes (trail leaflet from Tourist Info Centre). What a beautiful little loch with a circular walk around it. We saw loads of birds, but they were mainly around the car park side of the Loch and included Siskins, Chaffinches, G S Woodpeckers, Wrens, and best of all Crossbills. We found a flock of about a dozen birds. First sign of them is the sound of fir cones bouncing off tree branches as the birds discard the cones. The trees were quite high but we managed reasonable views. I’m happy to call them Scottish Crossbills, but I really wouldn’t know. They were certainly larger than I’d expected. I tried for a few photos but the results weren’t good, taken against the light.
Siskin male -
Siskin female -
Crossbill -
Wren -
We were a bit late in visiting as you could easily spend a half day or more wandering around the paths.
Monday 29th April
Rain, rain, rain – it poured down that day. We decided to give the birdwatching a miss and have a run up to Inverness, hoping the weather was better a little further north – it wasn’t ! We looked around the shops and then headed back to Aviemore.
Tuesday 30th April
I was up early – 4.30 am, as I wanted to get up to Loch Garten to see the Capercaillies. It was well worth the effort with three birds out on the Lek. We had views through the provided scopes and on the video monitors. My only complaint was that I’d have liked to get a lot closer. I did manage a few photos but only at extreme distance and not good quality.
Capercaillie -
As they do their mating dance they bound into the air, several feet off the ground, a spectacular feat for such a large bird. This one was caught mid leap.
Leaping Caper -
Just as strange was seeing them perched in trees, for such large birds it was unexpected. Still no Crossbills around.
After returning to the cottage and having breakfast Margaret got up and after hearing what I’d seen, she decided to accompany me next day.
After breakfasting we travelled to the RSPB Insh Marsh reserve, again close by. We saw several Ospreys overhead but little else on the reserve. A highlight of the whole week was watching a Grey Heron catch and then with a struggle eat a four foot long eel, which was determined not to become it’s lunch. In the end it succumbed, but what an unusual sight it was. A sequence of photos of the event is on the link.
* Scotland travelogue 2002
Wednesday 1st May
Early start again and another visit to the Lek accompanied by Margaret. Two were about that day and I managed a view from the ‘forward’ hide, but the Capers were still a long way off. We then had a walk through the Loch over to Loch Mallachie and back. There were several Goldeneye on the loch but little else. In the forest we saw Chaffinches, Blue Tits, Great Tits, Siskins, Tree Creepers, Goldcrests, Great Spotted Woodpeckers and even a buzzard, but no Crested Tits or Crossbills.
We then had a trip to the Findhorn Valley, just a few more miles north. What a spectacular place it was. I have never seen so many deer in one place and not least disturbed by our presence in the car.
Stag -
Does -
My wife wasn’t so struck by the endless twisting single track road, but I thoroughly enjoyed the trip. Our aim was to see Golden Eagles and we weren’t disappointed. We saw four together circling in a thermal overhead. We didn’t see any Ring Ouzels, but Wheatears were a plenty as were nesting Black Headed Gulls.
B H Gull on nest -
We then followed another narrow road with superb views of the mountains over to Farr and then onto RSPB Loch Ruthven for another ‘must see’ the ‘Horned’ or ‘Slavonian’ Grebe. Again we weren’t to be disappointed as there were seven birds quite close to the edge right below the hide. I managed a couple of photos too.
Slavonian Grebe -
There wasn’t much else on the Loch other than a pair of Red Throated Divers, a first for us though we did see them again later that week.
We also fitted in a trip to Cairngorm that day, only venturing as far as the ski lifts to take a few photos from the car park and also having a pleasant afternoon walk around by Loch Morlich on it’s southern edge. We saw several Great Spotted Woodpeckers, Goldeneye, Eurasian Wigeon, Teal, Pied and white Wagtails, Red Throated Divers and a possible Great Northern Diver, though we couldn’t be positive on the id.
Thursday 2nd May
Another early start to the day and a visit to Loch Garten to see the Capers again. Quite a crowd of people today and a couple of birds spotted, but only visible on the cameras.
Not having seen any Crested Tits and getting quite desperate to do so, we had a trip up to Culbin Forest by Nairn, where Crested Tits were almost guaranteed. Again we weren’t disappointed. It took a while to get your eye in, but once spotted they were a delight to see. We spent several hours wandering the forest rides, but the most birds and best sightings were close to the car park. We saw several Ospreys, Golden Eagles, Buzzards around the forest, gliding in thermals over the cleared areas. We even came across a Cuckoo, which Margaret spotted on a tree quite nearby. I failed to get a photo of a Crested Tit but there is always next year !
On the way back were returned via Carrbridge where passing through we saw Red Grouse and even espied a Black Grouse, but when I tried to get a better view, it had disappeared. We see plenty of them though back home.
We called in again at Loch Garten but there were no sign of any Ospreys and the staff were concerned that none were likely to breed this year as it was getting too late. They never did. On leaving we came across some more Crossbills, right above the gatehouse, but still difficult to see clearly.
Friday 3rd May
A sight seeing day. We had a run over to Fort William and then a run back up through the Great glen to Inverness. Not a lot of birding got done, though we did come across this friendly little Chaffinch by the A86. He was obviously used to passing tourists.
Chaffinch -
On driving alongside Loch Ness we also saw several different variations in plumage of Hooded Crow from almost black and white to murky shades of grey, but we couldn’t stop for photos.
We called in at Loch Garten again for the Ospreys and got chatting with and gentleman also on a birding holiday. He told us about the fish farm at Rothmericus where Ospreys feed each evening. Come 4.00 pm we had a ride down there and for a pound you can enter to bird watch. Sure enough three Ospreys turned up and began fishing in the ponds. What a sight it was to see them from so close. If we’d known sooner then we’d have been there every evening. I managed a couple of photos but nothing decent due to poor lighting.
Osprey -
We also saw more Hooded Crows there.
Saturday 4th May
Basically our journey home. We stopped off at Loch of the Lowes again, but no birds were about.
We thoroughly enjoyed our week in Scotland, and hopefully will return if not next year then the one after.
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