Red-necked Grebe, Red Kites and a dodgy Fudge!

Brian and I took advantage of a calm (but very cold) day to visit the North Coast. We stopped first at Wells, where we were astonished to see that the water was literally just a few centimetres below the top of the quay!  As we drove past Holkham a Red Kite was being harassed by what looked a lot like a Rough-legged Buzzard: only the Kite lingered for photos!

From there we moved on to Brancaster Staithe, where the only birds in the channel were Little Grebes and a pair of Mergansers. Westwards to Titchwell, where our fortunes began to change: the regular Barn Owl hunted the grazing meadow, while the feeders dripped with Siskins. A flash of halcyon along the path heralded a very close Kingfisher that caught a roach in a tiny pool just a couple of metres away.

The sea was disappointing (just an Eider for the year list) but the pools held all the usual waders at close range. After lunch and a chat with the delightful Sue Bryan we returned to Brancaster: this time Brian found the RNG straight away and it performed beautifully for us.

We walked to Holkham Lake with a really nice young guy: a teacher from the Bradford area on half term. The Ferruginous Duck wasn't in its usual tangle of branches, but walking south we came across a group of eight birders who claimed to have it in their scopes: a quick glance was sufficient to reveal that they were looking at one (two?) of the reported hybrids... Nearby a couple of Scaup loitered by the far bank.

Coffee at Cley and then home: a great day out!