A Four day trip to Scotland

Hooded Crow

My  grandson Michael came over with Brian to give us a lift to Stanstead Airport and we are off on my first vist to the Highland's. A one hour flight to Glasgow and we are in the hire car for the 2 1/2 hour drive to Fort William a great drive along the bank's of Loch Lomond. Magical view's to take your breath away. Soon we  are at the cabin called Robin's nest underneath the highest mountain in Britian Ben Nevis,What a sight looking up at the snow capped summit.Once inside the cabin we start to unpack when Brian call's out there is a Hooded crow in our garden. Jimmy & I rush to see it and get a lifer within 2 minute's of being here. Brian has alway's wanted to see a Hooded crow and we are feeling really good with the tick, we did not know that by the end of the trip we would have seen many many Hooded crow's.

We want to start birding straight away so we take a short car trip before we find  a place to eat , not a lot about so hunger take's over and we head for a pub meal, on the way  we see a dark shape by the side of the road ,we pull up and follow it as it run's into the grass, it is a nice Black Grouse & we then see 3 more this is great as we all need it for a life tick, now to eat and get ready for tomorrow as we will be up before light so we will give it a real go tomorrow. Day 2 up by 4 o'clock and Brian cook's scrambled egg on toast and I make the tea.
 And we are off  to get on the Corran ferry.We pay the £7 ferry fare and a few minutes later we are on our way to the first stop Ardery, We see Mergansers, Shags, Eiders and 7 Seals, not to much about so we set off for Adnamurchan. To get there we drive along 12 miles of single track bendy roads, we stop at a information centre with a cafe, Brian gets a nice ham toasty , Jimmy & I have a sausage in a roll with a mug of tea. Brian gets he's first and it is nice, he finishs it before ours come along,when it arrives it looks nice a massive big round toasted roll but the smallest bit of sausage meat stuck in the middle, the old girl who cooked  it came out to see if we needed sauce I said yes please , so I wait a little time and no sauce arrives so I start to eat, when I look up and see Brian with tears in his eyes due to him having a fit of laughter at my effort to try and get to the filling in the roll , it start's us off in a fit of uncontrollable laughter. you know when you don't  know what your laughing at but you get tears in your eyes and it starts everyone off, we get control of ourselves and I finish the roll, but I am still looking for the  filling when the old girl turns up with the sauce, Brian & Jimmy leave the table as quick as they can, I think to myself maybe if I ever come back this way I could use it then. 
Off we go nearly fed to try to see the Golden eagles that someone had told us about nesting near by,we get to a car park down in a valley and start to scan the sky with scope, no luck for a couple of hours and its starting to drag a bit as we really need to see these birds its the  main .reason we came.Then Jimmy calls Eagle we all get a sight, but its very high up , it is starting to get closer  now.Jimmy has it in his scope all the way and he calls it as a White tailed eagle, we now can all see the white on the tail another life tick a great spot by Jimmy. 
We head down to see the lighthouse at the most westerly point in Briton.We take a different path to Brian this seems to happen a lot but it gives us more chance to see something, as is the case this time when he calls out for us to get to him quick as he has a 30 foot Basking shark feeding in the bay. We get a great view when we find it  after a few mins, that was not what we thought we would see when we set out today, so a right bonus, never seen one before so a life time great for us all. Going back we stop to talk to a birder who is set up with a scope, He tells us he has a Eagle nest, so I cop a quick view in his scope just as the bird sets off, a view but want a better view.We hang about for ages and I get a bit tired and have a sit in the car, the head was nodding a bit when  the cry goes up eagle, in all we see 5 Golden eagles all in flight and high up but the target bird is in the bag.Off home to the cabin now.    Day3     Up early again we are off to Loch Garton for the Capercaillie, on the way we stop off at Laggan dam because the book we are following tells us  we can  get Twite here. A beautiful place to see and after 10 minutes we  see the Twite and carry on for the target bird. 

Brian & Jimmy

We get to Loch Garton  just after it is open and the man takes our money and says the bird is on his camera, so off we go maybe 100yds and see birders  who tell us the bird has just flown off, not to worry it we be back we tell ourself, How wrong can you be, we stay until  10 o'clock when the centre shuts for a couple of hours.We move on to Abernethy forest and get another lifer when we get a Crested Tit a very quick view on the tree and in flight but a ticks a tick. Back to see if any sign of target bird, a bit of a stay with some nice people to talk to,I like that side of birding as much as seeing the birds. 

This site is best known for the nesting Osprey's and we get good views in the scope. But no sign of our target so lets give up maybe we can try tomorrow if time allows.As we come out of the vistor centre the Red Squirrels are running about playing. It's really nice to see. On the way back Brian calls a Red grouse Jimmy & I did not see it so we get the scope out and scan, not long before Jim spots 3 more ,we get great views and another lifer to tick. A really great day fantastic views across the lochs & mountains a lot of birds seen and a couple of lifers and as the boys said it beats working any day.         Day4 up and packed ready to load the car we have to be at the airport at 5 o'clock. We plan to stop off and do more sight seeing and birding along the way.  Good-bye Roybridge, sad but time to go.

  

We stop and look for some butterflys at Allt mhuic,   but a waste of time as theres not a single one about due to the weather not being to nice.We head down into some woods and get a nice Tree pipit, then a Wood warbler is heard so the chase is on to trace it for a view,Jimmy soon finds it and I get the best view I have had of it , nice.   

We travel a bit nearer to the airport and stop to get views of a Black guillemot that the boys already had ,but I as usual had missed it when they first got it so it is nice of them to take the time to get the old boy another lifer.



reflection



Paying respect



High up but the best I got.White-Tailed Eagle




                                                                                                 



                                                       



Wood warbler

 Off to see the commando memorial, it is very sad when you see the plaque's laid just this year for soldier's that are still giving their lives so we can be safe.It really makes you stand for a while and reflect on the sadness of it all.

One last stop and Brian get's us a spotted flycatcher, we need it for a year tick so a nice finish to the trip.



Time is going fast now so we head to  the airport .


A great trip,with over one hundred bird's seen.seven lifer's
                                                                                                      
                                      Golden eagle,   White tailed eagle,    Crested tit,    Hooded crow,   Red grouse  Black grouse,    Black guillemot.

   Also lovely place's. that  we saw.       GLEN ROE. FORT WILLIAM . ROYBRIDGE. INVERNESS. LOCH LINNHE. LOCH MALLACHIE. AVIEMORE. LOCH LOMOND. MORAY FIRTH.CAIRNGORNS.ABERNETAY FOREST. FINHORN VALLEY.ADNAMURCHAN BAY.LAGGAN DAM. PLUS MANY MORE.AND A VIEW LOOKING OVER THE ISLAND OF MULL.
                                    MAGICAL, FANTASTIC.      

Also  Red deer,   Otters,  Red squirrel,  Basking shark.



world famous Neptune's staircase





Red deer
one of many