Nov 6th Minsmere

Me and my Grandparents

I'm at Minsmere today. It was originally going to be another outing to this reserve with my mum. However, at the last minute, my grandparents decided to tag along, too. It was quite a surprise as they haven't been out with us to a nature reserve in a very long time. This was a rare occasion. They are both in their 80's and my nan has to use a mobility scooter to get around, which meant they weren't going to walk very far anyway. So, I was told that I could make my own way around Minsmere, while my mum took her parents down to the beach.

Bittern

I was now free to go as far as I wanted and so I began my walk towards Island Mere Hide, where close views of bitterns have been pretty much a guarantee in recent days. When I got to the hide, I was not disappointed. Its location was almost exactly the same spot I saw one last year, in a narrow ditch right in front of the hide. Annoyingly though, it was hiding in a small patch of reed that was swaying in the wind, providing fleeting glimpses with every gust. Thankfully, the bittern eventually moved out of the reeds and into the open where we could see it perfectly clear. Everyone in the hide was watching its every movement. For some, it was their first ever bittern and were very excited. Of course, this was not my first time seeing one, but I was pleased all the same. Bitterns just have that kind of impact on people.

View from Island Mere Hide

Autumnal colour

View from Bittern Hide

View of the scrapes from the dunes

This turned out to be the only highlight of the day for me. I made my way to Bittern Hide and around the scrapes, but it was pretty empty of birds for the most part. Only the scrapes in front of the East Hide provided a slight bonanza of wildfowl and gulls. I also saw a snipe and, outside, a stonechat. I was told that a Dartford warbler was seen/heard in the gorses on the dunes, but it wasn't there when I was walking by. Slightly disappointed on the lack of seeing anything as exciting as the bittern that I saw earlier, I returned back at the visitor centre and met up with Mum and my grandparents for lunch. It turned out that they had an enjoyable walk, though also not seeing much.

The sea

Stonechat

Wigeon

Great Black-backed Gulls

Teal

Gadwall and Shelduck

Lapwing

Lesser Black-backed Gull