Montagu's Harrier and much more!

A drive up to the North Coast in hope of some returning waders proved to be much more rewarding than anticipated! First stop was Cley, where Brian and I had a brief seawatch: lots of Gannets and a couple of Manxies were heading east. The scrape in front of Bishop's Hide held good numbers of Avocets, Godwits and Ruff, as well as a single Green Sandpiper. Hobby and Spoonbill both flew through too quickly for photographs, although we later saw the Spoonbill distantly while enjoying a Little Grebe from the East Bank. An obliging pair of Kestrels checked us out for edibility before swooping off eastwards!

We moved west along the coast towards Titchwell, where we paused for lunch before walking out to Parrinder Hide. Another Spoonbill, a delightful Little Gull, a Little Ringed Plover and some very bright Ruff were the highlights: from the crowded hide we picked out a distant Spotted Redshank.

We interrupted the journey home at a traditional site where a short wait was rewarded with distant - but pleasing - views of a pair of Montagu's Harriers at their nest site. After a couple of passes the birds flopped down into the cereal crop and didn't reappear by the time we had to leave. Nearby we came across a fabulous stand of Giant Hogweed: thank goodness these plants haven't been hacked down like so many others...