At this time of the year we love the west coast and in particular the isles, this year the Uists were the chosen location as we had a fantastic time here two years ago, some fear to return thinking that disappointment awaits, not us though....
A well planned drive north went smoothly enough and after an overnight stay in Connel we were handy for the ferry from Oban, the five hour crossing to Loch Boisedale was incident free and we spotted a few great skuas from the outside decks plus one pomarine skua and a few other birds and a small group of porpoises.
Locating our cottage on South Uist was easy enough and we were fortunate to have a lovely sunny evening where we could enjoy a glass or two of wine in the garden watching birds near the cottage.
Sunday was wet...to say the least! We decided that bird watching from the car was the best option, previous knowledge disclosed some good locations so out we went..
First shot a very fuzzy male hen harrier...
The sheltered bays seemed attractive as winds rocked the car whether moving or parked!
A turnstone
Dunlin
Ringed plover
...and redshank
The following day the winds were even stronger and the rain was a nuisance!
In between the showers we found golden plover...
More dunlin and turnstone
and sanderling
The highlight of the day was a great northern diver
But we also found eider ducks...
Tuesday and the sun comes out, we know a great place to see short eared owls ...success beyond our greatest hopes...
A check on a good place for buzzards worked well too :-)
Golden eagles are quite numerous up here, poor photographs are too!
Another view of a great northern diver...
Arctic tern
Ringed plover
Gannets
Twite
and a better hen harrier shot!
Red throated divers the next day
White tailed eagle
..and otter!!!
A wren which is unique to the Isles because they cannot fly far enough for the pure race to be diluted by continental birds...
The sun was great for views...
Golden eagles soared...
And the short eared owls continued to be entrancing....
We also found a relatively rare corn bunting part hidden in some reeds...
Many thanks to all who read, don't forget if you do comment that they come to me first for moderation.
Early start tomorrow to head towards the mainland and more wildlife watching.........
You certainly got lucky with the variety of wildlife. Excellent shots there Dave.
ReplyDeleteMaybe the luck that comes with knowledge and persistence Andy :-) Many thanks
ReplyDeleteYou had some great sightings even though the weather wasn't brilliant. Excellent photos
ReplyDeleteFabulous, especially the otter and the short eared owls. Simply amazing. we weren't too far away as the crow flies ( or the eagle perhaps?!), on the very NW tip of the mainland, so we had the same mix of weather. Looking forward to the rest of our photos from this holiday. Ann
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