When we arrived the sun was out for a change. First stop was Salthouse where there were lots of Linnets, a few Wheatears and the odd wader on the pools.
After a short stay to strecth the legs we headed off to Wells next to the sea. This was the first time I had been down to the beach area. Looks nice for sunbathing but not really alot around apart from a few little grebes on the lake next to the car park.
From here we headed to Titchwell even though we had been warned it may be busy as a Little Bittern had been seen. Upon arrival the car park was full and a bus load of people had just arrived. We found a space in the car park and headed to the beach were we were hoping to see some waders. It wasn't long when we came across a group of approx 30 people all looking into the reeds. After speaking to the one guy he said he had been there for the last 2 1/2 hrs and all they saw was movement within the reeds. That was enough for me and Ken so we continued up to the beach. A few waders where on the pools but everything was 200 plus meters away :( When we arrived at the beach the wind was so strong it was blowing sand all over us, neither of us dared to get the camera gear out in these conditions. A small break whilst sitting behind the rocks gave us some shelter before heading back to the car. On the way back the crowd of people had got a lot larger and there must have been 100 plus people blocking the path and bankment trying to get a look at the bittern. One kind twicher let me see through his scope, the Bittern was approx. 1 foot within the reeds and you could only just make out what it was. We soon continued one and had to push our way through the crowd of people.
From here we decided to head back to Cley where hopefully it would be quieter. In the middle hide we got some great views of a Little Egret which came out on a regular basis to feed, this was the highlight of the day and some great pics were captured. Whilst in the hide we also saw 3 Marsh Harriers and had a great view of 5 spoonbills flying past us before returning back to the island.
We are now starting to get to know the area better so hopefully the next trip at the end of Oct will result in some good pics. Can't wait.
Little Egret in flight
I was in the same hide all day so I recognised that egret on your flickr site which I follow! I had a blinding time there; plenty of action and decent light. I had been on a photography wader workshop over the weekend and the place to go seems to be Gore Point up at Holme. I crawled around on wet sand for two afternoons and got some good shots (and lots of aching muscles!) so if you go back in October (as I might!) try parking just past the houses on Firs approach road and walk up a bit and then out. If you start just as the tide is turning, you get about 3 or 4 hours at it. You need wellies and waterproofs and you and the gear do get sandy but it comes off and my 7D + lens seem to have survived. Best wishes, rosie-a-g
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