We journeyed north, not for a birding trip, but the whole family to celebrate my mum's birthday. Regardless, I have the opportunity to pop out for a walk around before breakfast each morning, to take the air and undertake a spot of birding before the day starts in earnest.
We had travelled up on the Friday morning, arriving for lunch, then spent the rest of the day eating and chatting with my mum. The following morning started very wet, and I abandoned any thoughts of even walking the beach opting instead for a leisurely coffee in the room before heading to have breakfast in the hotel.
Sunday morning arrived, and it was forecast to be light showers. However, when I looked out the window into he darkness, I could see it was actually dry. I quickly pulled on some clothes and made for Bogside Flats (the old Racecource beyond the Irvine Golf Course) parking up at the clubhouse. I made my way through the course, passed a practice range and onto the edge of the flats. I hoped to connect with a short-eared owl which I'd seen on my last visit and had been photographed well by another birder after my visit.
I settled in and noted the six whooper swans out front on the narrow stretch of water. They swan up and down but soon took to the wing and headed off towards Irvine. A kestrel made a couple of passes and then in the distance, by a small building some crows appeared to be mobbing a buzzard. I scanned through my bins to see that it was in fact not a buzzard but a ringtail hen harrier! I raised my camera just as the crows won and the harrier dropped down into the reeds and out of view, not to be seen again.
A pair of stonechats darted around the scrub and bushes and as sunrise arrived, the sound of singing skylark increased substantially.
There had been a couple of roe deer on the far hillside and another to my left, but both had been distant in the half light. I turned to look back up the practice range and saw a single roe deer coming my way - eventually it spotted me and accelerated passed and over the fence into cover, looking back to make sure it wasn't being followed.
I decided to make a pass along the scrubland to see if I could see any owl movement but with no success and as I packed up to leave numbers of curlew passed in the distance heading for the estuary - silhouetted against the sky. No dice with the owls but an enjoyable visit - back to the hotel by 8.25am.
After checking out of the hotel the family decided that we'd have a quick walk on the beach just to say we had. I didn't pass up the opportunity to strap on my camera, just in case. On the rocks beyond the burn running beside the Seamill Hydro I saw a group of five turnstone and then joining them were two redshanks.
We crossed the burn and walked to the next rocky outcrop and scanned the water. I could see what looked like a red-throated diver but couldn't be sure in the waves and swell - damn - even photos were not conclusive at this distance as the bird was facing away. I repositioned to see if I could get a better view and lost the bird. I did then spot a couple of purple sandpipers feeding in the edge of the incoming tide and then a red-breasted merganser closer in that my mystery bird had been. Another flew by as we set off back to the hotel and car.
We stopped at the bridge across the burn and the girls played "Poo-sticks" - I soon moved on to see if I could find my mystery bird along the shoreline but without success. Eventually the family called me back as the dipper had appeared but as I approached a dog-walker crossed the bridge and the bird flew off, back up the burn and out of sight - no photo today.
We made our way back up to my mum's house and spent the rest of the day, through to late afternoon, with her before making our way home in readiness for another working week.
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