Norfolk Trip Day Three.

Decided on Friday morning to stay local and give Cley a good checkout.Parked in the car park at the end of the east bank and headed straight to the Bishop hide.It was better than Wednesday there with a few Black-tailed Godwits, a couple of Common Sandpipers and a few Ringed Plovers showing but nothing really exciting.

I soon left the hide and decided to try my luck with getting some Marsh Harrier shots so I plonked myself down on my stool along the path that runs alongside the main road.Luck was with me as one showed up with 10 minutes and I managed a few shots but everytime it threatened to come close it veered away.Not complaining though.

I then decided to walk round to the North scrape hide.It was a lonely walk because although it was a fine morning I never met a sole.It was quiet birdwise as well and all I managed was a shot of a Sedgie and a Meadow Pipit.

Just before I reached the hide I came across a Turnstone and a Ringed Plover both feeding round the dried up pools at the back of the shingle bank.

The North hide is not good for taking shots as the sun is usually in your face and you are a long way from the action but I did managed a long ranged shot of the Temmincks Stints that had been there for a few days.

Also on the scrape was a lone Spoonbill which I think was a juvenile.Managed a couple of distant shots.Always nice to see.

By now I was getting hungry so off on the long walk back to the Centre.I decided to have a simple lunch and ordered a couple of cakes and tea for one.This somehow came to just under seven quid.Bloody Hell !!! When I was young you could buy a two bedroom semi for this.

I headed next to the Cley beach car park and had a walk eastwards to the Eye field as a Blue-headed Wagtail had been seen there earlier.I didn't see it but did see at least 10 Yellow Wagtails, at least a dozen Wheatears and quite a few Golden Plovers.All too distant for my lens.

I then went down the shingle bank to try and get some shots of the Sandwich Terns flying along the beach.This turned out to be a major mistake as I struggled to climb back up the steep shingle bank but just when I was going to call Air Sea Rescue I finally managed to reach the car park.By this time I'd got a bad case of shingle leg (your legs go numb walking to much on shingle) so I thought sod this birding lark I'm going to the pub.

Went to the Dun Cow in Salthouse.Left the bins and camera in the boot and took my book for a bit of reading.Sat down in the garden at the front of the pub.I'd only read half a page when I overheard a couple (not birders) sitting right by the road discussing a fantastic looking bird they could see across the road.I couldn't resist a look so I walked over to the road wall and saw a cracking looking Whinchat on the top of a bramble.

A quick dash to get the camera from the car and I managed a few shots before it flew off.It really was a stunning looking bird in summer plumage which was very pleasing as I'd only seen them before in the Autumn.