Booked Northumberland again. With a twist (1 Viewer)

[Steve_Halstead]

Love this county as we do, my (now wife not fiancee) have been and booked our favourite spot in Northumberland again. This being Beadnell.

Our twist is that instead of july/august we have booked a trip early to mid april.

I look forward to seeing your wonderful castles, county, pubs and wildlife.

Any tips on where you would go in April is always welcome of course!

Farnes at least three times is a given. The craster arms usually does well out of me too!

 

[Nutcracker]

Sorry to disappoint a bit, but early/mid April isn't actually too good a time to come here - spring comes very late to the NE coast, as the sea stays cold (April sea temp 7-8℃). Auks will be in on the Farnes in good numbers, but only a few Sandwich Terns yet; no more than the very occasional Arctic or Common until typically 15th-20th April. Keep an eye out for Black Guillemot though, can be one or two wintering birds hanging around the islands into early April.

Stag Rocks at Bamburgh is worth checking for wintering sea duck, grebes and divers - they often stay until late April or even early May.

On land, expect very few summer birds in yet; realistically only Wheatear, Chiffchaff, Sand Martin, Ring Ouzel (Cheviot Hills), and occasional early Swallows, Blackcaps and Willow Warblers.

If you're willing to head off inland a bit, Kielder Forest is good for Osprey, and Goshawk should still be displaying; check the river for Mandarin Ducks as well as Goosander and Goldeneye. Harwood Forest is also good for Gos, and often has a lingering Great Grey Shrike or two (tricky to find, though). Also check rough pastures in the hills, it's a good time to see large passage flocks of Fieldfare and Redwing before they head off.

Be prepared for cold weather, there's been quite a few years when April has produced the heaviest snow of the winter (!!), and when a northeaster blows (which happens a lot in early spring), the coast can be very bitter indeed :eek!:

 

[Steve_Halstead]

Sorry to disappoint a bit, but early/mid April isn't actually too good a time to come here - spring comes very late to the NE coast, as the sea stays cold (April sea temp 7-8℃). Auks will be in on the Farnes in good numbers, but only a few Sandwich Terns yet; no more than the very occasional Arctic or Common until typically 15th-20th April. Keep an eye out for Black Guillemot though, can be one or two wintering birds hanging around the islands into early April.

Stag Rocks at Bamburgh is worth checking for wintering sea duck, grebes and divers - they often stay until late April or even early May.

On land, expect very few summer birds in yet; realistically only Wheatear, Chiffchaff, Sand Martin, Ring Ouzel (Cheviot Hills), and occasional early Swallows, Blackcaps and Willow Warblers.

If you're willing to head off inland a bit, Kielder Forest is good for Osprey, and Goshawk should still be displaying; check the river for Mandarin Ducks as well as Goosander and Goldeneye. Harwood Forest is also good for Gos, and often has a lingering Great Grey Shrike or two (tricky to find, though). Also check rough pastures in the hills, it's a good time to see large passage flocks of Fieldfare and Redwing before they head off.

Be prepared for cold weather, there's been quite a few years when April has produced the heaviest snow of the winter (!!), and when a northeaster blows (which happens a lot in early spring), the coast can be very bitter indeed :eek!:

Then its pub lunches and wrapping up for walks!

 

[Rob_S]

Sorry to disappoint a bit, but early/mid April isn't actually too good a time to come here - spring comes very late to the NE coast, as the sea stays cold (April sea temp 7-8℃). Auks will be in on the Farnes in good numbers, but only a few Sandwich Terns yet; no more than the very occasional Arctic or Common until typically 15th-20th April. Keep an eye out for Black Guillemot though, can be one or two wintering birds hanging around the islands into early April.

Stag Rocks at Bamburgh is worth checking for wintering sea duck, grebes and divers - they often stay until late April or even early May.

On land, expect very few summer birds in yet; realistically only Wheatear, Chiffchaff, Sand Martin, Ring Ouzel (Cheviot Hills), and occasional early Swallows, Blackcaps and Willow Warblers.

If you're willing to head off inland a bit, Kielder Forest is good for Osprey, and Goshawk should still be displaying; check the river for Mandarin Ducks as well as Goosander and Goldeneye. Harwood Forest is also good for Gos, and often has a lingering Great Grey Shrike or two (tricky to find, though). Also check rough pastures in the hills, it's a good time to see large passage flocks of Fieldfare and Redwing before they head off.

Be prepared for cold weather, there's been quite a few years when April has produced the heaviest snow of the winter (!!), and when a northeaster blows (which happens a lot in early spring), the coast can be very bitter indeed :eek!:

Thanks for the advice here. Also visiting in early April.

Is there any chance there may still be Pink-Footed Geese around in Northumberland still? And if so where?
Do you ever see Brent Geese? And again, if so, will they still be around and where?

Any help much appreciated.

 

[Nutcracker]

Yep, should still be quite a few (low hundreds) Pinkfeet around, though far fewer than in winter.

Brents will be mostly gone, but there may still be a few (low tens) lingering around Lindisfarne NNR.

 

[Rob_S]

Yep, should still be quite a few (low hundreds) Pinkfeet around, though far fewer than in winter.

Brents will be mostly gone, but there may still be a few (low tens) lingering around Lindisfarne NNR.

Thank you.
We never see Brents in the Midlands, and only very occasional overflying Pinkfeet, so both species require a journey to see.

 

[Rob_S]

Yep, should still be quite a few (low hundreds) Pinkfeet around, though far fewer than in winter.

Brents will be mostly gone, but there may still be a few (low tens) lingering around Lindisfarne NNR.

Thanks again for your help. We had a small flock of Pink-footed Goose fly over us whilst out walking on Friday morning, and then another (or the same?) group in a field next to the ECML at Cockburnlaw the same afternoon.
Likewise a small group of Brent Geese early in the week, and then a single bird as we were driving back across the Lindisfarne causeway on Thursday.

Lovely week, even if the weather was ropey. Birding alongside a family holiday with kids is never easy, and there were several places I'd have liked to linger but didn't get the chance. Managed 89 species over the week, with a pair of Wheatear at Craster and then Razorbills on the cliffs at Dunstanburgh Castle being the final pair on Saturday.

24 species added to my year list, and several birds I'd never seen before (although calling them 'lifers' is a bit of a stretch as I've only been birding 4 years).

Birds of the week:

A wonderful close encounter with a Red-throated Diver as we were walking around Budle Bay at low tide. It swam alongside us for a good 10 minutes, occasionally diving. About 20 ft away at times.

My first male Red-breasted Mergansers. I've seen females in Scotland over the last couple of years but never the male. That's a smart bird.

Black Redstart (male) in the corner of a field next to the ECML at Cockburnlaw.

Grey Plover in the harbour at Lindisfarne on Thursday morning.

I'd recommend the cottages at Laverock Law to anyone looking for somewhere to stay in the area. We recorded 30+ species in the woodland and fields nearby, including resident Tree Sparrows.
http://laverocklawcottages.co.uk/

 

[ClarkWGriswold]

Sounds like you had a decent week Rob:t:

 

[Nutcracker]

Nice write-up!