Friday 31st October 2025.
It was back to dear old Portsmouth today after a superb week up in North Norfolk. The dogs got their early morning walk this morning before we had breakfast and packed to go home, but nothing really of note was seen, though I could hear a few Redwing calling overhead in the grey, drizzly sky. Once the dogs had done their business, I headed back to the Cottage to finish off the packing with Becky and then by 8.30am, we were back on the road heading southbound.
On the way back, we saw a large group of Grey Partridge by the side of a roadside field, but to be honest, apart from the Partridges, hardly anything of note was seen on the way back, despite the 200 mile trip home, for the weather was poor with a lot of rain on the back. When we finally got home at a reasonable 5 hours later (and that included a stop on the Services on the M25), we unpacked and chilled out and that's when I discovered on Birdguides that a Black-browed Albatross was seen with Gannets off Cley Coastguards!!!! Un-bloody-believable! Also in North Norfolk, a Waxwing was at Holm Dunes for its second day (possibly the bird I saw at Titchwell?), a Snow Bunting was still at West Runton and the Grey Phalarope was still on Cley Marshes.
While I have been away, Hampshire has had some nice birds that included a Great Grey Shrike at Pig Bush, New Forest and was still present this morning and a Short-eared Owl came in off the sea at Hill Head. Yesterday, at the same site, Mark Francis found a Leaches Petrel over the sea among the Gulls. Meanwhile, over in West Sussex, the Isabelline / Red-tailed Shrike was still at Wood Mill Nature Reserve at Henfield today and a pair of Snow Buntings and an Osprey were still at Thorney Island.
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