A day of two halves...

First half, this morning went quite well.

Out with a  recovering terrier ( she was spayed on Thursday) first thing, a Lapland Bunting flew south over the village calling, then, better still for me, 3 White fronted Geese flew low right over our house, a great one for the garden list. Seen only with the naked eye they were low enough to see the full blaze on the lead bird and the thick black belly bars on them all as they passed right overhead.

This isn't the WF Geese from this morning, but the view was exactly like this. These birds were near Boulmer a while back... 

A male Blackcap was on the last remaining elderberries in the garden a bit later on...

Then.

Late morning...

A message came through that ADMc had turned up a Greater Yellowlegs at East Chevington.Putting this in context, I have seen about 4 Lesser YLs in the county but must be the only Northumberland birder who failed to make the relatively short trip to Rockliffe for one of the last twitchable records of this species about 20 years ago. Why, I cannot remember...

So, a lifer and a county addition, 20 mins from home had me twitching like an epileptic at the oscars. the problem being, I had to take Bunty for a vets check up at 11.40 and would not be 'daan saaf' before 1pm.

I duly arrived at a queue of cars at Chev at 1 o'clock to find 50 birders gazing at water, the bird having gone north 20 mins earlier towards Hauxley. Off I went...

Bondi Pool -  Redshank 4 nothing else.

Hauxley main pool from the Tern Hide - Lots of birds but not a sniff of yellowshank. Worse still, I'm on me todd, not another birder in sight to help look.

Striding back towards the car a small podgy wader flew from my right only 20 yards away, low over the dunes and out of sight on to the shore - Grey Phalarope! No, must be a roosting Sanderling heading back to the shore and off I traipsed never giving the 'sanderling' a second glance. I had bigger fish to fry.

Amble Braid - Checked the Coquet estuary very briefly as Alan Jack had beaten me to it and still no mega yank to be had.

Out of time, I was gutted and limped off home to lick my wounds.

4.10pm RBA annouces - GREATER YELLOWLEGS, Bondi Pool ( it stayed til dusk) and...GREY PHAL on the beach.

Shite.

Guess where me and most of the birding community ofr 300 miles will be in the morning....