As an alternative to our usual autumn trip to Cornwall, looking for migrants, we’ve come to Shetland. It’s been over 50 years since I was last here, on a teenage camping holiday. The birding highlight of that trip were the Snowy Owl on Fetlar* – the last year they bred successfully I think. We drove up to Newcastle on Thursday to stay with Neil and Nicola before heading off to Aberdeen with them to catch the overnight ferry to Lerwick. Birding on the way, we’d amassed a list of 65 before nightfall – including another Eastern (Siberian) Stonechat at Amble and a heap of interesting sea duck in Gosford Bay. There was no birding from the ferry – it was dark when we set sail and still dark when we docked – so our first taste of Shetland birding was a dawn stroll along the shore of Clickimin Loch, with it’s iconic broch. One of the first birds we saw was an obliging Barred Warbler. This would have been a Kernow highlight but here they are a little more regular. Let’s hope it’s not the only highlight.

* Rob if you are reading this perhaps you could post a copy of your original pics?