Norfolk enchants of mcdonalds

Yesterday was my first boozy birders trip for well over 6 months and my first serious days birding since then,pretty much since breaking my ankle.
Howard Vaughan took his troops up to the windswept North Norfolk coast on what was at first a cool,breezy sunny Morning.On the way up i enquired about the traditional Mcdonalds pit stop en route but as we was heading for Cley as our first stop,the mcdonalds was sadly out of the question,instead we raided Tesco's at Brandon instead,stocking up on Sandwiches,cakes and the like.
We arrived at Cleys East Bank around 7.30am and walked down the long grassy path to the Beach,on the way we saw Spoonbills,Godwits,Bearded Tits,Sedge warblers,Cormorants in very high number,54 Pink Feets were a pleasant surprise and a sign that winter is only round the corner.We made it to the beach after half hour or so,stopping briefly to watch the beardeds pinging about and to take in the half a dozen or so Spoonbills on show,on the beach it was windy but the sun was starting to make an impact now and was quite warm when you got out of the wind,almost like a septembers day lol.
It started quiet but soon enough we had Gannets whizzing past in decent numbers and many Juveniles (see pics) were around including two individuals which got within around 30 feet or so of us.Not two many divers aroumnd,Howard spotted a Great Northern Diver on the horizon and the odd Red Throated Diver,along with the odd Auk.Plenty of Meadow Pipits were around the dunes and we walked to the Beach hide to look for the Pectoral Sandpiper which had been seen recently.On the way we had a lovely,obliging Wheatear,which i and others got good photos of,once in the hide we were confronted by the usual waders,along with the Pectoral in the distance,Little Stint,Yellow Wagtail,dunlin etc.Throughout the day,Raptors were quite thing on the ground,especially Marsh Harriers which we only saw one of all day,at Cley.
After ticking all the waders off we headed back to the Visitor Centre,to get refreshments,myself was after a sandwich but at 10.55am,i was informed that i would have to wait till 11.30am for anything to eat,charitable organisations,why do they make such ridiculous rules on food for birders,the majority of which get up at silly 0 clock and by mid morning are starving hungry,perhaps places like Cley arent really aimed at birdwatchers,well the centre anyway??? Harsh?? Maybe but still bloody stupid.
We the made our way to Kelling,had a nice walk but didn;t really see anything apart from a good amount of butterflies,sparrowhawk,Buzzard and a very brief Red Legged Partridge,nice place and good to know but quiet yesterday.
By now it was after 1pm so we made the 20 mile or so drive to Titchwell,once there we had our lunch and the others went for a walk while i stayed in the car for a kip as i was working all night,would rather be birding but sometimes i just have to kip,glad i did as by 2am this morning i was absolutely shattered.
The group returned to the car around 5pm,leaving me suitably refreshed for the drive home,but howard had one last surprise in store,the Barred Warbler at Holme via the apparant 22 speed humps that some idiot has put in on the approach to their car park,tossers!!!!
We got decent views of the bird and i got decentish views of it,it was a lovely juvenile and a lifer for myself.Also at Holme we saw 3 Barn Owl,including one on a post which i got a half decent shot of,we then made the journey to Swaffham where Howard had PROMISED us Fish and chips at Old Mother Hubbards,famous chippy,we got there,it looked open,Howard went in,came out again,informed us there was a refit today and we wouldn't be getting their famous grub,me and 4 others defied H's claims that the chippy across the road was naff,sadly he was probably right as the others,apart from me and jonesy either returned with nowt or looked suitably unimpressed lol.We headed home,arriving back in Upminster around 9pm,a top day out and i think i have got my birding Mojo back again,won't be too long till i get my sorry arse back up to the Norfolk coast,i can feel it calling me now!

Barn Owls & England are shit

No pictures of any Barn Owls but i keep seeing them,as is the norm,i see them at dusk or in the middle of the night,usually while driving,hence no pictures.Had a lovely one,sitting in a tree about 1/2 mile from my house monday night on my way back from London about 5am,just sat there while i drove past slowly.I wanted to get out to have a closer look but didn't really fancy disturbing it,plus my bed was calling but i sat there in my car,looking at it for a minute or so and it didn't seem too bothered by my presence,just kept looking at me with his big white face.
Popped over to the paddock on the ingrebourne last night,not too much about,had a couple of Buzzards,plenty of lapwings,saw a hobby and 3 kestrels,plus plenty of swallows still about.Went over there again earlier but again not too much going on,just a Green Woodpecker to add tonight.Also popped over to Bonnetts Wood,very quiet there with a couple of male pheasants knocking around as well as a small flock of Long tailed tits.
Watched England draw with the Ukraine last night,lucky to draw to be honest-wankers
Anyway,enough about footy,they arent worth writing about,overpaid useless twats,have some pictures

We win again

It was never in doubt really.
Come Saturday Morning,we were not bottom anymore,this wasn't due to any great win on our behalf,it was due to Truro going into Admin and losing 10 points,they may still not see the season out,which means i may have no trip to cornwall this winter,so i took a job on anyhow,fearing the worst.
Anyway,this obviously spurred our boys back in to action as they won 2-0 away to previously unbeaten Basingstoke Town,lifting us up to the heady heights of 17th,away from the relegation zone,shame i couldnt make the game,had some work until 1pm and could of gone for it but couldn't be bothered with the what would of been 3 hour drive in temperatures hovering around the 90f mark so stayed at home,plus i had work around 7pm so decided this was for the best,just followed the game on twitter which was more excitable than i imagined.
I also had a cheeky £50 on Thurrock to beat Basildon in the FA Cup at the ridiculous privce of 4/5,happy days,£90 back although feel slightly gutted that i didn't put at least £300 on it.
Birdwise,had a Red Kite over Thames Chase,my second of the year on the site,also had a Buzzard,2 willow warbler and a crossbill which was unusual for the site,one worth keeping a look out for as ar nuthatch and treecreeper this coming autumn winter etc.
I should be back birding more frequently in the next couple of weeks as the work becomes less frequent in autumn although its still really busy which is obviously good for the  pocket.
Am off to Norfolk with the Boozy Birders next Monday,my first real days birding for a while,looking forwards to it.
FA Cup Draw is today,we come in at the 2nd qualifying round and am looking forwards to seeing who we get,although i won't be at the game as once again i will be birding in sunny Norfolk,come on you urchins.
Anyway,enough from me,am off to pick some golfers up from Southend Airport now then off for a spot of birding,happy days

Birdwatching,whats that????

Been a couple of months since i last went birding,well proper birding anyway.Have had the odd 20 minutes or so looking for owls or stopping in the middle of nowhere to scan a field or a lake but havent really spent any serious time out in the field,saying that,the beauty of the hobby is that you are always birding,i notice birds where other "normal folk" wouldn't see them and whenever i see something out the corner of my eye i am onto it,today for instance,i saw 4 Buzzards on the way to Gatwick this morning and then 3 on my way to Stansted earlier this afternoon,one looked very good for a Honey Buzzard but doing 70mph up the M11 with passengers on board probably isnt the best time to check it out.
Last night at the Thames Chase Wildlife group meeting we saw the new calendars which have been produced by us for next year,these are currently on sale from the Visitor Centre in Pike Lane,Upminster for £6,most of the photos in the calendar are by seasoned proffesionals who have won awards for their photos and then theres me,i get a few smaller ones put in and am really happy about it,if you want one,let me know and i will sign it for you if you want lol


Have been to Thames Chase in the Evenings a few times over the last few weeks and usually the Barn Owl is knocking around,more often than not.Hopefully with work winding down for the summer in the next few weeks i will get back over there,need to get back into the whole photography thing and with the leaves dissapearing i may start being able to get good bird shots.
AFC Hornchurch started the season ok,performance wise but the last two games have been poor,drawing 0-0 with Weston Super Mare who were bottom and then losing 4-0 away at Bromley,so we are now bottom,it doesnt get any easier this Saturday as we travel to Basingstoke.We are actually not bottom anymore as Truro went into admin and are now on -3 points i believe after losing 10 points.
Managed a 2 week holiday in Southwold with Isla,Alice and her family,drunk plenty of Adnams,spent pretty much every day on the beach and in the Sea and got a lovely tan,happy days,think i may move up there one day,plenty of good birding sites around.
Going to watch our under 18 side tonight at home to Brentwood in the FA Youth cup before i go to work again at around 11,no rest for the wicked,anyway,heres a few photos from the odd bit of birding ive done recently,enjoy!!!!