Well, the rain was back! After yesterdays almost complete dry day we awoke once again to the the sight and sound of the wet stuff pummelling the caravan. This was starting to get annoying! After an extended breakfast we decided to head out despite the heavy downpour. After a quick scan of Loch Scridan didnt produce much we went to Glenmor. We settled down and started to scan the ridges, hoping for something good. A couple of Ravens soared over, quickly followed by a couple more. And then something else glided in. Something noticeably bigger. With straighter, broader wings. Something that was clearly a danger to the Ravens as they immediately started to mob it. It was an Eagle. But it wasnt a White Tailed, it was our first Golden Eagle of the week. Excellent! We were beginning to think we might dip on this species but we neednt have worried. We watched this magnificent creature for a while as it soared effortlessly over the ridge and eventually into the distance. We then went to Aros Mains to have another try for Dipper. We had no luck again but we did get great views of a Spotted Flycatcher hunting over the river. We also seen a nice Treecreeper. From here we decided to visit Tobermory and have ourselves a nice fish and chips lunch. I absolutely loved this place! The quaint little main street with its luridly coloured houses was fantastic. You can easily see why its used in various tv programs. Mind you I was less impressed by the cost of the lunch! After a pleasant hour of eating and trawling through the book shops etc we headed off to a place called GlenGorm Castle. We had intended to have a walk round the grounds but the rain was still lashing down and there was no way we could even get out of the car. We did see the unusual sight of a cat that had caught a young rabbit, and was play hunting with it. Not the most pleasant of sights but certainly fascinating to watch.
We visited Ardmore Forest in the hope of a new species for the week. Its a big Coniferous Forest and at our first stop Steve immediately picked up the call of our target, the Crossbill. He managed to spot a couple of birds flying over head but myself and Dougie missed out. After quite a search we did eventually see some distant birds flying but we wanted better than that so we went for a walk. We could hear birds calling all around us but all we were getting was fleeting glimpses until eventually we got a bird sat in the open. Much more like it! Our next new species was along the Aros Road. There was a huge area of trees that had been cut down, so we stopped to see if we could pick up a Tree Pipit or two. We seen quite a few birds moving around but they were surprisingly difficult to pin down in such a dark background. But then we heard the distinctive call of a Tree Pipit and one lifted up, done a display song and landed on a felled trunk. We managed to pick out a few more before the rain had us headed back to the car. We then went to Loch Ba in the faint of hope of seeing some woodland birds. It was still raining, but not as heavily so we thought we'd give it a try seeing as we were in the area anyway and we had nowt better to do! So we spent an hour or so exploring a little wooded area on the edge of the Loch, but the best we got was a flock of juvenile Pied Wagtails! It was absolutely desperate so we headed back to the car. As we were walking back we heard some Ravens noisily squawking just behind us, and as we looked up we saw a truly unforgettable sight of a stunning White Tailed Eagle flying low down right above our heads!!! We couldnt believe it. This was an unbelievable piece of luck, at least until Dougie and Steve realised they hadnt taken any photos! On the way back to the caravan we stopped at various places along Balmeanach Cliffs in the hope of a Peregrine but we didnt see a thing. We also had another view of the White Tailed Eagle on the nest at Kilfinichen Bay before finally heading home for the night.
Well, the rain was back! After yesterdays almost complete dry day we awoke once again to the the sight and sound of the wet stuff pummelling the caravan. This was starting to get annoying! After an extended breakfast we decided to head out despite the heavy downpour. After a quick scan of Loch Scridan didnt produce much we went to Glenmor. We settled down and started to scan the ridges, hoping for something good. A couple of Ravens soared over, quickly followed by a couple more. And then something else glided in. Something noticeably bigger. With straighter, broader wings. Something that was clearly a danger to the Ravens as they immediately started to mob it. It was an Eagle. But it wasnt a White Tailed, it was our first Golden Eagle of the week. Excellent! We were beginning to think we might dip on this species but we neednt have worried. We watched this magnificent creature for a while as it soared effortlessly over the ridge and eventually into the distance. We then went to Aros Mains to have another try for Dipper. We had no luck again but we did get great views of a Spotted Flycatcher hunting over the river. We also seen a nice Treecreeper. From here we decided to visit Tobermory and have ourselves a nice fish and chips lunch. I absolutely loved this place! The quaint little main street with its luridly coloured houses was fantastic. You can easily see why its used in various tv programs. Mind you I was less impressed by the cost of the lunch! After a pleasant hour of eating and trawling through the book shops etc we headed off to a place called GlenGorm Castle. We had intended to have a walk round the grounds but the rain was still lashing down and there was no way we could even get out of the car. We did see the unusual sight of a cat that had caught a young rabbit, and was play hunting with it. Not the most pleasant of sights but certainly fascinating to watch.
We visited Ardmore Forest in the hope of a new species for the week. Its a big Coniferous Forest and at our first stop Steve immediately picked up the call of our target, the Crossbill. He managed to spot a couple of birds flying over head but myself and Dougie missed out. After quite a search we did eventually see some distant birds flying but we wanted better than that so we went for a walk. We could hear birds calling all around us but all we were getting was fleeting glimpses until eventually we got a bird sat in the open. Much more like it! Our next new species was along the Aros Road. There was a huge area of trees that had been cut down, so we stopped to see if we could pick up a Tree Pipit or two. We seen quite a few birds moving around but they were surprisingly difficult to pin down in such a dark background. But then we heard the distinctive call of a Tree Pipit and one lifted up, done a display song and landed on a felled trunk. We managed to pick out a few more before the rain had us headed back to the car. We then went to Loch Ba in the faint of hope of seeing some woodland birds. It was still raining, but not as heavily so we thought we'd give it a try seeing as we were in the area anyway and we had nowt better to do! So we spent an hour or so exploring a little wooded area on the edge of the Loch, but the best we got was a flock of juvenile Pied Wagtails! It was absolutely desperate so we headed back to the car. As we were walking back we heard some Ravens noisily squawking just behind us, and as we looked up we saw a truly unforgettable sight of a stunning White Tailed Eagle flying low down right above our heads!!! We couldnt believe it. This was an unbelievable piece of luck, at least until Dougie and Steve realised they hadnt taken any photos! On the way back to the caravan we stopped at various places along Balmeanach Cliffs in the hope of a Peregrine but we didnt see a thing. We also had another view of the White Tailed Eagle on the nest at Kilfinichen Bay before finally heading home for the night.
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