One of our regulars, has always wanted to see a Ptarmigan, so we decided to visit Scotland over Easter to see some. Our friends in Yorkshire, who visit Scotland every couple of years, also had a trip planned so we joined forces and arranged to meet them. Now as often happens when you plan something, it doesnt work out, as our I still need to see Ptarmigan friend dropped out!
An American White Winged Scoter had been present on the sea near Musselburgh, Edinburgh for around a week. It seemed like a good place to meet as 3 of our party had not seen one before. We left Rochdale at 5am and made good progress along the M6, M74 reaching Musselburgh at around 8-15am. The tide was out and it was cold and a little damp, but undeterred we headed out along the seawall. Only a couple of other birders were present as we began to do a bit of sea watching, we saw: - Common, Surf & Velvet Scoter, Slavonian Grebe, Sandwich Tern, Long Tailed Duck and a few Red Breasted Merganser. As the tide began to come in, a few more birders had arrived and it wasnt long before the American White Winged Scoter was seen in the company of 3 Velvet Scoters. Our friends from Yorkshire had now arrived and we all enjoyed good views of this very rare sea duck. A Ring Necked Duck at Duddingston, Edinburgh was next on our places to call at. The bird was not seen on the lake / loch which was just below Holyrood.
It was time to head for the hills by now and the long, scenic road up to Glenshee just south of Braemar was covered in a couple of hours. Lots of snow means lots of people skiing on the slopes or pistes and there were lots. After we all had wobbled about in the snow for an hour or so we had not seen any Ptarmigan, there were lots of Red Grouse though. We met a skiing instructor who told us that there are quite a few Ptarmigan in the area but they retreat to the tops of the mountain when there are lots of skiers around. He also said, If you wait for the slopes to empty of people the birds will fly down to feed We thanked him and began to wait whilst searching the slopes, it wasn`t long before one of the lads found a couple of birds feeding on the snow covered ground. What cracking birds, its around 30 years since I have seen one and there were two. We all enjoyed our time at Glenshee, but it was getting very cold! We left the area and headed for Grantown on Spey for some well-deserved food then on to our bed and breakfast at Boat of Garten. A long and enjoyable day.
After an early morning stroll looking for Crested Tit, without success, we enjoyed a good breakfast and headed off to the coast. Around 7 White Billed Divers had been present from the quaint harbour walls of Portsoy during the week. We all had a good sea watch but we didn`t see any of our target birds. Gannet, Razorbill, Long Tailed Duck, Glaucous Gull, Kittiwake and Red Throated Divers are always nice to see though. At Burghead we managed to see Black Throated Diver, Eider and lots of gulls. A few of us had a walk to the place where we had seen a Grey Tailed Tattler in 1994, great fun eh? We headed through Elgin & Forres and were soon in Findhorn Valley and our search for Golden Eagle and various other birds of prey began. Upon arrival we saw Peregrine, Hen Harrier & Buzzard within the first 30 minutes, was our luck going to be in? We met a few birders who had seen Golden Eagle about an hour before our arrival. After a good walk and scan at the head of the valley we had no joy. A walk around a forest near Carrbridge didn`t revealed the hoped for Capercaillie. Another take away after a couple of beers rounded the day off very nicely.
A quick look in the forest near Carrbridge again drew a blank in our search for Capercaillie, another good breakfast followed upon our return. We headed up towards Cairngorm on a sunny, mild morning with the possibility of trying to see more Ptarmigan, Snow Bunting in breeding plumage. Unfortunately there were so many people up there that a new plan had to be made. Myself and Bob carried on and went up the mountain on the small funicular railway, the other lads went up the Findhorn Valley and had a good day there managing to see a Golden Eagle and a White Tailed Eagle also, well done lads. We enjoyed the trip up the mountain but it was bird less, back at the bottom of the railway a smart Snow Bunting male was seen. We headed off to watch the Osprey at Loch Garten and visit the feeders on the car park that, lucky for us had a Crested Tit feeding there, what a smart little bird. We watched the single Osprey as it searched the skies waiting for its mate to return, then one of the wardens said that there is a Crested Tit on the feeders by the visitors centre, we dashed out and enjoyed great views of the bird as it helped itself to the peanuts. We called into a couple of lochs and enjoyed the spectacular scenery of the area. Another trip to the fish bar followed by a couple of beers again ended the day off nicely.
With the prospect of the journey home being a snowy one, we got up to find the cars covered in snow, so after breakfast we went to Loch Garten to try to find Crested Tits for the lads. The snow was falling quite heavily by now and a decision to depart was taken. We left our mates from Yorkshire (must do it again soon lads) and headed south on the A9 and the snow stopped, making progress easy. A bit more traffic on the M6 slowed us a little, then as we saw the first mention of Manchester on the road signs the rain started and at times was almost like a monsoon. We reached Rochdale around 5pm having all enjoyed the Easter break.
