Finally made it!
And so glad I did!
No doubting bird of the day:
But more of that later.
Finally arrived on the island at 0910, just the forty hours late, and after settling in at Ayres Rock Hostel (with the first migrant noted in the garden - a typically furtive Robin) I headed straight to Lady Village, popping into the shop for some snacks and giving the gardens there a grilling (not much there, just two more Robins of which I ended up totalling six).
And then it was out east to do the North Loch loop. Plenty of highlights, including a little bit of obvious arrival: a Redwing flew in from the east, and a Goldcrest did likewise, pausing briefly on a wire. A Willow Warbler called from deep in the bushes at The Gallery, and it was here that I also had an Orkney tick in the shape of a Great Spotted Woodpecker. I knew that up to four had been around recently, but I didn't know where, and it was nice to not have to twitch it!
Walking north from there a scan of a 300-strong Golden Plover flock revealed a Ruff (obviously with a minor heart attack before it was seen sufficiently well), with a Peregrine going over soon after.
And then island resident Russ Neave appeared in his car. Had I got his message? No, signal on my phone is awful. Well get in, I've found a Hornemann's Arctic Redpoll!!
After a shortish wait it treated us to some really nice views on the beach and nearby posts
And then after Russ headed off to work, I was really spoiled as it posed on fences surrounding the garden at Meur, where I eventually left it, still out in the open
A couple of Wheatears were on the beach in this area, but I was in for another shock as I headed inland from Sandquoy - a group of about 50 Starlings bathing on a field edge included a juvenile Rose-coloured Starling!
Unfortunately they were close enough to being behind vegetation that my camera refused to focus on them, and soon after they flew off to join a much larger flock a few hundred yards away in stubble. I picked it out a couple of times on the deck, and a couple more when birds perched up on wires, but the whole lot moved further away and I eventually gave up trying for a pic. A couple of Lapland Buntings flying over there was nice, even if my pictures weren't!
Back down at Salties I got glimpses of the Willow Warbler, but it was tricky
But not as tricky as the Goldcrest!
And that was more or less the end of an excellent less than a day. 56 species noted, and nice weather (for here). Another nice day forecast for tomorrow, but then it's going seriously downhill for Friday!
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