Trimingham and Cley Marshes

June 26, 2022

Trimingham and Cley Marshes

The lure of regional Beeeaters grew too much and at the first opportunity Mal and me decided to trundle up to investigate. I wasn't expecting to be enthralled by Paul McCartney at Glasto, which made the 01:15 bedtime a worry when the alarm was set for 04:15! Still; only nature is real and sleep is for the weak*

* and well rested.

After all; what is life without birds, bird watching and good friends? I don't actually know.

We arrived onsite having seen the famed 'golf ball' aka air defence radar - which is more timely than ever given the Russksies are playing up.

The RSPB set-up around the Beeeaters favoured quarry was ideal. With a well distanced watch point - not too close to disturb the birds and not too far away to not be able to view, photograph and enjoy. I'd forgotten what absolute stunners Beeeaters are - which seems like a slightly stunted thing to say - but it is almost exactly 20 years since I last saw one!

That 20 years ago was as a fresh-faced, care free, eighteen year old doing nest protection on the County Durham birds which bred at Bishop Middleham quarry nature reserve. Here's a scan of a snap of one of those birds - given to me as a thank-you for volunteering...

Beeeater Bishop Middleham 2002

20 years on and as a less fresh-faced 38 year old, it was just as enchanting to watch 4 birds flit around the quarry, perch up on bushes and wires and visit the nest hole. I saw several types of bee devoured, a Red Admiral and also at least one instance of copulation (on a Sunday morning!). A great sign and fingers crossed for plenty more Beeeaters in years to come. Some in Suffolk would be nice...

Beeeaters - Trimingham - June 26th 2022

After the giddy heights of Beeeater it's hard to calm down to a socially acceptable level - so we decided to decompress, round the bend, at Cley Marshes. This proved an executive decision and a birding coup; Curlew Sandpiper, Spoonbill fest, Mediterranean Gulls, Sandwich Terns and my first ever Norfolk Hawkers! Very, very cool and thoroughly enjoyable - even through the daydream-haze of sleep deprivation and Beeeater induced colour blindness. Mal and me don't know everything - but we know how to bird watch...