Back at RSPB Bempton Cliffs (Have I Really been Away?)!

 

Black Redstart

Well, today was my first day back at RSPB Bempton Cliffs for over twelve months, as a Sunday volunteer, courtesy of Covid-19 and the lockdowns. I suppose, really, I've never been away as it is my local patch and the venue of my local exercise walks. If I'm honest, I have enjoyed the solitude of lockdown but now serious considerations needed to be made. To be fair, I deliberated long and hard in the last month as to whether I was going to return and I knew deep down that if I didn't, I wouldn't. It felt very strange dressing in my blue RSPB uniform and even more strange entering the inner sanctum of the visitor centre since March 15th 2020! I have to say that I enjoyed my day (7hours, the longest I've been out since March 2020!). A dry day with a bit of a cooling south westerly hooley enforced local exercise continued!

Bird wise, it was again quiet with thousands of Gannets dominating the scene. Best birds for me were year ticks in the form of Black Redstart and Lesser Black Backed Gull. It was also nice to see and hear a Corn Bunting on the RAF station fence. There were reports of Puffin on the sea, and a few Guillemots and Razorbills were spotted but none on the cliffs. Similarly, only a couple of Kittiwakes on the cliff but a few small rafts on the sea. One of the peregrines harassed the feral pigeons and Shags were seen on Staple Newk. One of the Barn Owls quartered the fields adjoining the nature trail.

Black Redstart (New Rollup Viewpoint)

Corn Bunting

Gannet Life

Kittiwake

Fulmar

Shags (Staple Newk)

Best I could get of the Peregrine!

Some of the views

As it was low tide, the remains of the the Italian steamer, the Radium could be seen below New Rollup viewpoint. The 3,254 ton steamer was transporting coal from Newcastle to Venice, when it perished on the rocks in 1923, in thick fog and gale force wind. Thankfully, all the crew were saved by coastguards. All that is left is part of the propulsion system and its two boilers.

All images taken handheld with Sony RX10 mk4.

Please stay safe and abide by government guidelines when visiting Bempton Cliffs. Covid-19 has not gone away and the fat lady hasn't sung, so it is not over yet.