Best (UK) home base for birding? (1 Viewer)

[Hotspur]

Your sending me to the land of nod (which is incidently on my commute to uni) with these claims marcus

 

[dantheman]

Get the feeling this thread is 'Drift'ing already (town/reservoir in Cornwall) . . .

West Cornwall or The Scillies would also be good places to live and bird - not such variety of breeding birds as elsewhere though??

 

[ColinD]

I like living here in Merseyside. I mean we're pretty central. Last week I went to Caerlaverock in southern Scotland for the day and still got home in time for tea with the rest of my familiy. An hour and a half would see me on the North Wales coast at Llandudno or Llanfairfechan, and another half hour and I'm on Anglesey, all easily managable in a day trip.

I can be on the east coast at Flamborough in 2 and a half hours, the Lake District is 90 minutes away and Bowland about an hour. Bowland has breeding Hen Harriers, Merlins and Short-eared owls. Even Eagle Owls these days.

Leighton Moss is less than an hour away with its Bitterns and Bearded Tits, we have three major estuaries within half an hours drive, the Ribble, the Dee and the Mersey. Hilbre Island is 40 minutes (Leaches Petrels etc.) and Martin Mere (loads of widlfowl) 30 minutes.

In St Helens, within 5 miles of home, we have large flocks of Pink-footed Geese in winter, (around 10,000 this year), and we still have breeding Yellow Wagtails, Corn Buntings and Tree Sparrows.

We're about 40 minutes drive from Formby Dunes, with it's Natterjack Toads, Dune Helloborine orchids, Sand Lizards and Red Squirrels.

So I reckon that unfashionable Merseyside is the best place to live for all round birding.

 

[Jos Stratford]

Merseyside is the best place to live .

But it's in the north, yuuuk!

 

[John Cantelo]

Last week I went to Caerlaverock in southern Scotland ......
An hour and a half would see me on the North Wales ...... another half hour ... I'm on Anglesey ..........

I can be on the east coast at Flamborough in 2 and a half hours, the Lake District is 90 minutes away and Bowland about an hour.

Leighton Moss is less than an hour away ......
QUOTE]

Great stuff, Colin, but rather against the spirit of the post. Personally, I blanch at the idea of spending much more than an hour or two in a damned tin box before I get birding and again afterwards. Perhaps, though, the roads are less congested than in SE England,

John

 

[Sancho]

Nafferton? Not a patch on Twatt, Shetland Mainland.

There´s a place near Tacumshin (great birding spot) in Wexford called....Bastardstown. I´m not joking. Okay I know it´s not in the UK but I just thought I´d throw it in and pretend it was about access to good birding spots as per thread topic. I´ve even included this link http://wikimapia.org/6760291/Bastardstown to prove it. See, that´s Tacumshin lake on the right of the map.

 

[markgrubb]

Great idea for a thread, John

Lothian and Edinburgh where I live may not be the absolute best but is pretty good

350+ on the county list. I live in the city and ring ouzel, lesser scaup and snow buntings have been seen within one mile of where I live in the last year. And within county confines there is beach, moorland,ancient woodland and hills up to 2000 feet-and being on the east coast it gets it's share of migrants. A real mosaic of habitats. Not overcrowded with birders too-haven't seen more than about 10 birders on a twitch. So for variety of birding in peaceful surroundings it is pretty damn fine

 

[gandytron]

I always thought that if I had to live in the UK, Edinburgh would be a good choice, with excellent coastal birding, mountains within striking distance and lots of non-birdy stuff (culture, galleries, nightlife) to keep you sane when the birding is dull.

Only problem is it's damn cold. I ended up in Bangkok, with Spoon-billed Sands 30 mins from the house, say no more...

 

[gordon hamlett]

If you really don't want to travel very far, how about St John's Loch, just south of Dunnet Head in Caithness?

Look at http://artsmith-caithness.co.uk/artsmith_birds/ for an impressive garden list

Then you've got seawatching from the cliffs, the flow country, Sutherland mountains...

Gordon

 

[Farnboro John]

Farnborough isn't a bad place to be. Fleet Pond, Moor Green, Frensham inside ten miles: Theale, Staines (other London reservoirs are available) less than half an hour away.

Thursley, Ash Ranges, Wishmoor Bottom for heathland species: the whole of the Hampshire chalk farmland to the West. New Forest in less than an hour, loads of smaller woodlands of all types closer.

Smack on the motorway network for easy access everywhere. An array of coastline accessible in an hour to an hour and a half (Dunge once in that time, don't ask.)

John

 

[John Cantelo]

Farnborough isn't a bad place to be. Fleet Pond, Moor Green, Frensham inside ten miles: Theale, Staines (other London reservoirs are available) less than half an hour away.

Thursley, Ash Ranges, Wishmoor Bottom for heathland species: the whole of the Hampshire chalk farmland to the West. New Forest in less than an hour, loads of smaller woodlands of all types closer.

Smack on the motorway network for easy access everywhere. An array of coastline accessible in an hour to an hour and a half (Dunge once in that time, don't ask.)

John

Let's face it, anywhere can be claimed as 'good' if it's close to the motorway system and you don't mind driving for 1-2 hours, but its this that I'm trying to get away from. There a lot of talk about twitchers and patch watchers, but peope forget that there's a third category - local birders; those not manically wedded to one site, but also not (usually) willing to drive for hours at the drop of a hat.

Farnborough? I'm not so sure since it's too far for my liking from the coast .... and the New Forest come to that. Mind you I did see my first ever Night Heron there many years ago! Thank goodness I've seen more as I'm not sure it was a genuine one! Then again as the home of the late great polemicist William Cobbet it can't be too bad!

North Norfolk was one of the obvious choices. Non-birding Mrs C once volunteered that she'd love to live in Holt; as it was in pleasant surroundings, had good local shops, wasn't too far from Norwich and was less exposed than the coast (it's also home to at least 3 ex-Kent birders which says something!)

I'd never have considered Edinburgh, but now it's mentioned I see why. I've a soft spot too for the Weymouth area,

John

 

[TwoDipsfromAmsterdam]

Great idea for a thread, John. I was thinking of starting something along these lines but for a different reason. We shall probably be returning to the UK within the next 2-3 years and as retirement beckons we shall be reasonably free to go wherever we want.

Must agree with Jos re Exeter; that's where I started birding in the early 1970s and I learned so much on the Exe as well as Woodbury and Haldon. But Exeter may not be a possibility as Mrs DiP would probably prefer somewhere nearer to London (and recent non-birding visits to Exeter suggest that the place has gone downhill - possibly becasue Jos is no longer there!).

I guess that leaves East Anglia and Canterbury (or east Kent to be a bit wider). I used to live close to London doing the daily commute and would like to be well clear of commuter-land, which I guess Canterbury just about is. North Norfolk seems another obvious choice but my idea of birding does not include doing it en masse with hundreds of others. Or is the area relatively birder-free much of the time?

Of course, as Mrs DiP is an American and a staunch Obama fan I guess the US might now be a possible. Cape May anyone?

David

 

[Dog]

Coventry- we aint got a lot, thats why I took up twitching, don't even have any rare plants, drags' or Butterflies.


Mike.

 

[John Cantelo]

I guess that leaves East Anglia and Canterbury (or east Kent to be a bit wider). I used to live close to London doing the daily commute and would like to be well clear of commuter-land, which I guess Canterbury just about is. North Norfolk seems another obvious choice but my idea of birding does not include doing it en masse with hundreds of others. Or is the area relatively birder-free much of the time?David

Well, it'd be very good to welcome another birder to east Kent! However, with the opening of a fast train service from Ashford we'll soon be well within commuter distance (although at a price). Although it breaks my half hour rule, another advantage of Kent is the ease with which you can pop over to France for a spot of birding.

North Norfolk certainly has a LOT of birdwatchers and can be a bit crowded. However, it also has several good places to buy (or browse) both optics and bird books, John

 

[joannec]

Hi John

Nice thread idea. I haven't been birding that long, only seriously for about three years but East Sussex isn't bad. I'm less than half an hour from the coast, got woodland on my patch, reservoirs not far away and my 'within-half-an-hour' list is just over 200 (kinda guessing here). I know that's not a lot to most of you people but I've not been doing it that long and I reckon there is more to be found.

Joanne

 

[deborah4]

Hi John

I haven't been birding that long, only seriously for about three years but East Sussex isn't bad.
Joanne

Sussex is pretty good I reckon!

I'd say West Sussex perhaps has the edge.

I'm not willing to drive for hours simply because I don't drive! So I'd say I'm very much a local patch birder (having lived here since a kid) unless I go for specific birding trips abroad/Scotland/Norfolk etc.

I guess diversity of habitat is the key: - here, coastal marsh/estuary, ancient woodland, downland, farmland, meadow, wetland, heathland, all within the one County of Sussex. (Although for the non-driving city dweller, we're still talking on average an hour and a half to reach these places by public transport!) However, even 'City' has it's advantages with Black Redstart, Peregrine etc. and our urban parks/gardens often throw up passage migrants.

I'm planning to relocate in the next few years and obvious places like Norfolk may figure amongst the possible choices. However, for now, I'd say Sussex ranks pretty highly, not just in terms of diversity of species but rarities. Difficulty is, because there are so many good birding spots and it's a very large county, the coverage is probably less than it could be - Sussex birders are such awful out-of-County twitchers - usually to Kent or Devon!

'Fraid the 'half hour' rule wouldn't work for me, it can take that long for a bus to arrive to get me out of the city centre to the nearest birding patch!

 

[Marcus Conway - ebirder]

I have lived in Southport, Merseyside and Leeds, West Yorkshire and can catagorically state that neither are a good base.

In Yorkshire, Scarborough is probably up there as you have the forests and the coasts right on your doorstep plus Flam/Filey and the Moors are less than half an hour away.

I wouldlove to spend sometime in Grantown on Spey, just so I could say I was bored of seeing Capers! Would that happen? I spent a week at Findhorn on the Moray and again that is an excellent spot. At Culbin you can get Caper, Crested Tit, all the Scoter and waders, Finches and Crested Tit, Buntings, possibly Wildcat and Dolphin, Seals and Raptors. It's like Holme in Scotland!

 

[DavidP]

The Isle of Wight isn't too bad. For such a small place theres a remarkable diversity of habitats from coastal downland, high cliffs, large saltmarshes, estuaries, wet marshes and grassland (RSPB reserve Brading marshes), ancient woodland. Also farming on the island is less industrial than on the mainland and farms tend to be smaller with smaller fields , more hedgerows and still a fair diversity in crops from arable to livestock so perhaps more diversity in that way. Of course all within a short distance, you can't drive more than about 30 minutes most places are far closer as its quite compact.

 

[BADCATZ]

Hi John,

Yes its Sandwich/Canterbury for me too! The Marshes, The Bays (Sandwich/Pegwell), The River Stour, The Golf Courses. Stonar, Fordwich Lakes, its endless.

We've just had the pleasure of seeing a Desert Wheatear on 1 of the Golf courses, it was there Fri-sun. Not sure if its still there today although the SBBO website should say.

Anyway, thats my pick, 'There's no place like home'

Pew Pew Pew

 

[Connor Rand]

Looking at the Norfolk coast the ideal site must be Cley. Within 40 mins drive: Holme, Titchwell, Burnham Ovary Dunes, Cley (obviously), Sheringham, Kelling, Weybourne etc. etc