Sun, Beach, Birds, Mother & Titchwell RSPB!

Mother and I at Holme Beach this morning – high tide, beautiful day!

I spent a wonderful morning with my mother at Holme. Its been very difficult to get my mother to go out much at all, so I was pleased she agreed to come out with me. Although, going out on a bank holiday weekend was probably not the best idea! Mother can't walk very far (because of illness) and gets very short of breath, so we couldn't go too far.

Parked up on the NOA car park and walked north over the dunes and sat on the edge of the dunes overlooking the sea. It was a very high tide and it was really beautiful – far too many people and dogs though (see picture below). Mother agreed to a 'selfie' with me, which didn't come out too bad at all! I couldn't see a single bird on the sea, even though it was high tide.

Holme beach – hot day, busy bank holiday!

We continued our walk through the pine belt, up the new wheelchair friendly board ramp and on to Holme Bird Observatory to see Sophie, but she wasn't there and Ray Roach was manning the observatory. Ray kindly let us look through his scope at the Great White Egret sitting on a fence, way out in the heat haze of the marshes – good tick! Mother thought the new windows and door looked good and we discussed the plaque for father, which we will be sorting very soon. Had a nice catch up with Ray, sitting in the cool observatory – it was too hot to sit outside. Red Admirals and Small Tortoiseshells were on the orange buddleia. Mother has not been to Holme reserves since we scattered father's ashes on the 4th May, so she found it a bit difficult to cope with, especially when we passed where he is now at rest.

Made our way to the NWT visitor centre for lunch. Both the NWT and NOA car parks were jam packed with cars and also cars were parked alongside the road (never seen that before!). Sadly we discovered the cafe were not doing hot food because of the volume of holidaymakers, so we had sandwiches, cake and cold drinks. We very luckily got a table in the shade! Headed back to the car at the NOA car park. Mother had no energy left to walk round the NWT hides to look at the Great White Egret and it was too hot to leave her here whilst I went, so I took her home. On route we stopped to watch and photograph Swallows gathering on telegraph wires between two houses, not far from the entrance of the Firs Road.

Back at the family home, we both had a Spanish siesta for a couple of hours in the wonderful coolness of the house. Watched Robins bathing in one of mother's many little ponds, a Blackbird, Chaffinches, Hedgesparrow, Great Tit and several rats! We both had some fruit salad, which I made last night and then I left to go to Titchwell RSPB.

It was slightly cooler now and a much nicer temperature. I sat in the Titchwell car park having a cup of coffee before I set off and bumped into photographer David Tipling! I headed to the East Trail where I had a wonderful time watching a tit flock in a large hawthorn, which included a party of Long-tailed Tits, Great and Blue Tits, several Chiffchaffs and best of all a cracking Lesser Whitethroat! A flock of Goldfinches and Greenfinches were perched on a large dead tree, south of the East Trail path and a Great Spotted Woodpecker bounded across east to the wood. A Sparrowhawk also flew west and I watched a Stoat scurry along the path and disappear in the undergrowth.

From Island Hide I counted 60 Dunlin feeding, 2 Spoonbills flew west and another east later on. Lots of Ruff, Black-tailed Godwits, Avocets, Redshanks, Shelducks, Lapwings, Herring Gulls, Black-headed Gulls, Lesser Black-backed Gulls, Great Black-backed Gulls, a Curlew, a Bearded Tit pinging and a Hobby flew low over the reserve at 8.20pm. I walked back by moonlight! I don't like the shorter evenings – now dark by 8.30pm.

Phoned Eddie about a gull I had been watching and he told me that he and Richard M. had watched two young Otters in front of Daukes' Hide briefly at dusk!!! Lucky them! Left Titchwell and bought a single portion of chips for mother and I to share from Eric's at Thornham. The fish 'n' chip restaurant was still packed out with people at 8.45pm and they stop frying at 9pm! People were sitting outside having their fish 'n' chips by candle light! I was annoyed to find the price of the chips has now jumped up from £2.00 to £2.25! After mother and I enjoyed our chips, I left to go home. Working all day tomorrow on the hottest day of the weekend – oh joy!

MORE PICTURES TO FOLLOW