12/10/17 to 16/10/17 North Yorkshire Tour with the East Grinstead RSPB Local Group

Thursday 12th October to Monday 16th October 2017
North Yorkshire, near Scarborough

The run of bad luck with the weather conditions continued - this time in Yorkshire!   With mainly westerly winds, there was very little chance of picking up new migrants as they moved south.  Nevertheless, our guide, this time Chris Bradshaw, dug deep and laid on a first-class birding trip with a species count of over 120.


Our group of 6 assembled at 8 am at East Grinstead railway station before heading for Kings Cross station to catch the train to York. A quick change saw us join the train to Seamer where we were picked up by Chris just after 1.30pm.  Within minutes we were off birding!

• First port of call was Filey.  We had no luck with passerines as we made our way from the car park to the beach - probably due to the windy conditions.  Our seawatching was much more productive with a Velvet Scoter the pick of the sightings.  It was showing well in the distance along with a Red-breasted Merganser and 4 Common Scoter.  A Red-throated Diver also put in an appearance.

We eventually arrived at our B&B in Hunmanby around 5.30 pm. The Southgate - a 7 roomed facility is ideal for bird groups like ours with comfortable rooms, great breakfasts and situated next door to a lovely delicatessen.  It was pleasing to find out that Sue and Mick, our hosts, had continued to prosper since our last visit in 2016 and were reaping the rewards for providing a first class service.

• Day 2 saw us head for Spurn where we were hopeful of seeing some of the lingering rarities.  The Rose-coloured Starling showed well - eventually, on the housing estate at Easington.  The Red-backed Shrike, however, had left overnight but we did spot our first Yellow-browed Warbler there and Chris managed a new "Yorkshire tick" when a couple of Ring-necked Parakeets flew overhead.  On to Kilnsea where we twitched the Artic Warbler - my second one this year, in the bushes at the car park of the Crown and Anchor pub.  The Kilnsea Wetlands provided us with a glut of waders in the afternoon as well as a first sighting of 2 newly arrived Whooper Swans.

• Flamborough Head was the venue for our early start on Saturday.  I have never seen so many Tree Sparrows in one place - stunning. We were really seeking much better views of Yellow-browed Warbler than the ones we had at Easington and Kilnsea.  We found the ideal place in the Old Fall Plantation area where we were able to have grandstand seats over the sheltered glade below.  The Yellow-browed Warbler put on regular shows and we were all able to pick out the main ID features and listen to its distinctive call.

• Patrick was keen to see Goshawks so Chris took us off to the Wykeham Forest raptor viewing point where we saw at least 3.  The views were quite stunning in the afternoon light.

• Sunday was quite misty at the start.  After looking at a small group of Mediterranean Gulls on the beach on the outskirts of Scarborough we went to Long Nab in search of Lapland Buntings.  This is where Chris normally does his seawatching and his bird ringing. After a thorough search, where we all spread out across the stubble field, Chris heard, then saw, one flying.  We followed the bird getting a reasonable views and even we managed to flush a Jack Snipe as a bonus.  Not being content with this, Chris repeated the process on the return leg, this time with more success and better views of our target bird.  The stubble was just too long however to allow us to get the ground views we wanted.

• Shaun was desperate to see Willow Tits but try as he may, over the space of Saturday, Sunday and Monday Chris was unable to find one at any of his usual sites.

• Monday provided us with our final birding opportunity before leaving for home on the 01.55 pm train.  After looking for Willow Tits we headed off to the North Yorkshire Moors, and Langdale Forest in particular, where we saw Crossbills.  To the delight of everyone present and Jonathon in particular,  we saw a Merlin flying by, completing some unfinished business from our last visit in 2016.

• Lesley, who was staying with Chris and his wife, was the only member of the group to see Barn Owls.  She (and Chris) had sightings on 3 occasions, on the way home after dropping us off at our B&B.  Chris made several detours each evening to look for them but each time we drew a blank.

• A great trip with lots of birds but no new migrants, unfortunately, due to the westerly winds.  
• Chris was excellent, working so hard on our behalf with little or no help from the weather.  
• We dined in 4 different restaurants in the evenings so the food side was superb.  
• A bespoke lunch was provided each morning from the delicatessen next door. 
• Our hosts at the Southgate, Mick and Sue, did everything to make our stay there as comfortable as possible. 

Well done Lesley!