Witton Gilbert, County Durham – 09 August 2008
Arrived this evening with my wife to stay a few days with my father, having just completed a 6-day family trip to the north-west Highlands of Scotland. My wife and I, our daughter and son-in-law, and our 2 sons and their girlfriends all stayed at holiday cottages on the Attadale Estate on Loch Carron.
I got up early every morning for a walk around the grounds and picked up many species that I had not seen before, including Twite, Common Chiffchaff, European Stonechat, Redpoll, Meadow Pipit, Grey Wagtail and Coal Tit. Others photographed were European Robin, Eurasian Wren, Common Cuckoo, Eurasian Chaffinch, Hooded Crow and Rook. On our daily drives exploring the area to the north of Loch Carron, as far as Inverewe Gardens at Poolewe and Loch Maree, I also added White-throated Dipper and Eurasian Curlew. Non-birding photos included Scotch Argus butterfly and Red Deer.
We made two trips onto the Isle of Skye crossing to the island via the bridge that opened in 1995. My first visit to Skye was in 1971 during my university studies, when Loch Alsh had to be crossed by ferry. The first day on Skye involved a circular drive around the northern half of the island, from Sligachan to Dunvegan and then via Uig up to the northern tip of Skye, then following the east coast past The Storr south to Portree and back to Sligachan. We stopped at the Kilt Cliffs on the east coast where I was able to photograph Great Black-backed Gull gliding along the clifftops on the updraft.
The highlight of our Highland trip was the second day on Skye. While my wife and daughter did something less energetic the rest of us went on a RIB boat trip (‘The Puffin Run’) from Elgol on the south-west coast of Skye to the Small Isles, passing close to the Isles of Rhum and Soay, landing on Canna some 16 miles as the gull flies from Elgol. Birding began at the jetty at Elgol with Hooded Crow and European Herring Gull of various ages everywhere you looked. Once out of Loch Scavaig into the open sea we got the first sightings of Northern Gannet, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Great Black-backed Gull and Great Skua. Closer to Rhum we added Black Guillemot, Red-breasted Merganser and a single Eurasian Curlew on its way to the island. From close offshore we were able to see some of Rhum’s Feral Goat population, some Red Deer stags with impressive antlers and several rafts of Common Murre already well into the transition to their winter (non-breeding) plumage. The rocky coastline of Canna provided opportunities for European Oystercatcher and European Shag. Once we had landed at the slipway on Canna it was a short walk to the café in the small hamlet on the island for refreshments. The path was along a stretch of rocky and pebbly shoreline where dozens of Common Eider were to be seen, with the occasional European Rock Pipit. The return leg took us close inshore past the Isle of Soay.
At the end of our stay, while the others returned to London my wife and I had the much shorter journey to Durham.
