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Message: <blockquote data-quote="edenwatcher" data-source="post: 1264155" data-attributes="member: 8070">For all the delights of Kyushu and Honshu, the northern island of Hokkaido is the one with the most charismatic birds.  The snow continued unabated throughout the night and we glad to get down to the motorway and clear roads.  The layout of Tokyo Haneda airport (divided into North and South terminals depending on which part of Japan you are going to) meant that we encountered total chaos.  Northern Japan had been hit by a big storm (heavy snow/strong winds)!  Although Kushiro was unaffected we weren't able to check-in!  We eventually left a couple of hours late.  Hokkaido was rather cold - the display at the aiport said -10C (and was dropping as we watched it!).  We spent the night in Tsurui near Kushiro, in the heart of red-crowned crane country.  Dawn the next morning saw us on a bridge over the Tsurui river with hordes of Japanese photographers as the sun rose over cranes roosting in the river.  It was a brisk -21C!  Later in the morning we visited (unsuccessfully) a Ural owl stake-out, seeing our first Steller's eagles en route.  A very confiding pair of cranes was much appreciated however.Rob</blockquote>