My family's holiday 'carbon footprint' has been pretty modest in 2023, not out of any highly principled stance, I should add, but due to a complete inability to agree on where to go. I lobbied for domestic breaks, the others held out for more distant lands, and the ensuing stalemate resulted in the odd week spent at home with lots of local birding by bike and the occasional family day out. A near annual birding trip to Shetland with friends, however, had been in the diary for late September/early October since the turn of the year, and finally provided and opportunity to get away from the peeling paint, unkempt lawns and domestic servitude of home.
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| Veery, Lunna, 30th September |
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| Veery, Lunna, 30th September |
A new team had been assembled for this year's adventure - team leader/driver/organiser-in-chief David Bradnum, fellow Dorset birder Dr Phil Saunders, and author/togger/cricketing all-rounder James Lowen. Vaughans Bob and Howard, companions to David and I on several of our previous Shetland sojourns, were sorely missed, but the new team gelled well having previously birded or travelled together in various guises.
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| Veery, Lunna, 30th September |
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| Veery, Lunna, 30th September |
The long road north was punctuated by the traditional east coast stopover which provided opportunities to admire a very close Red-footed Falcon and a not very close Red-breasted Goose in Northumberland. Pulses quickened
en route when news came through of two American rarities - a Veery and a Tennessee Warbler - on Shetland.
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| Veery, Lunna, 30th September |
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| Veery, Lunna, 30th September |
A fitful night's sleep on the ferry ensued, but within 40 minutes of disembarking we were arriving at Lunna, peering into the under-storey of a windswept belt of Sycamores to admire the cinammon upperparts and surprisingly bright underparts of the Veery.
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| The first of several Yellow-browed Warblers for the week at Loch of Voe, 30th September |
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| Red-breasted Merganser below Busta House, 30th September |
With the twitching urge sated for the day and the trip starting on a high, we set about finding our own birds. This turned out to be successful only in hindsight as in fading light near the community woodland at Brae we flushed a bird from underfoot which was seen too poorly to be identifiable, but which at the same time was sufficiently interesting to merit a follow-up search the next day. It turned out to be the team find of the week - a River Warbler - more on which in my next post. The trip was off to a flyer - but had we peaked early?
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| Otter below Busta House, 30th September |
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| Otter below Busta House, 30th September |
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| Otter below Busta House, 30th September |
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