With a Little Help from my Friends

Belly full of pig, sky full of clouds and an acute lack of birds another opportunity to work on the up and coming trip. So, instead of the usual endless ramblings I'll post a few more Waders for the 'birders' among you to ponder. None of these pics are certain as to identification, having already changed my mind on each a number of times. Not easy in the field, let alone from photographs, (unless they call/sing which none of these did) you may have a few spare minutes to confirm these findings. I'll await any help at the address below.

E-mail - captbagsy@waitrose.com

Lesser (Mongolian) Sand Plover - Uda Walawe NP, Sri Lanka

Greater Sand Plover - Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka

Short-billed Dowitcher (with Pectoral Sandpiper) - Whitehorse, Yukon Territory, Canada

Long-billed Dowitcher - Whitehorse, Yukon Territory, Canada

Lesser Yellowlegs - Cape May, New Jersey, USA

Greater Yellowlegs - Creamer's Fields, Fairbanks, Alaska, USA

Happy Anniversaries

I walked the Rodwell Trail for the tenth time in fourteen days this morning, and there is definitely something missing. In recent times they have asphalted the full length and it looks very good, save for the dog muck that simply cannot leach through the surface - the 'toe-rags' don't live at Littlemoor, they are residents of £300,000 homes at the top of Wyke and the back of Lodmoor, with their precious pets. Anyhow, what is missing are the Grey Wagtails, despite a thorough search each day I have not been able to locate one, the first time since I was a nipper. Having said that, there were 3 flying over Ferry Bridge this morning, along with about 50 each Dunlin and Ringed Plover, 2 Mediterranean Gulls (1 x second winter & a juvenile), 4 Wheatear, and singles of Sanderling, Knot and Peregrine.

And talking of 'nippers' and anniversaries, it is 48 years to the day since I joined the Royal Navy at the tender age of 15 years and 50 days. With never one regret about that decision, I know that one way or the other I would be serving Her Majesty either at HMS St Vincent, or one of the 2 institutions up 'top hill'!! After and extremely tough year there and a short training programme as a Sonar (Asdic then) Operator at HMS Vernon we were sent on what was advertised as a short spell on a ship to get our 'sea legs'. I joined HM Minesweeper Nurton in No.3 dock in Pompey, the current home of the Mary Rose. A week later she completed her refit and was towed back to the M/S base which was also at Vernon. On that epic ocean voyage (believe it or not) the screw (propeller) dropped off and she was returned to dock. I needn't have taken those sea sick pills and still had no idea if I would need them when the great day came to go to sea proper. I didn't have to wait long, and soon found myself on the Junior Seaman's messdeck of HMS Keppel based, albeit shortly, with the 2nd Frigate Squadron at Portland. After HMS Russel was struck by a massive wave inside the Arctic Circle, it was the Crabby K's duty to relieve her, where I spent the next year plying between northern Norway and Iceland. Next came what in naval terms would be described, a luxury yacht. HMS Eskimo was one of the 'new generation', gas turbine super frigates designed especially for the Persian Gull, where back in the mid 60's things were a bit 'hairy' to say the least. The up side in Eskimo was all bunks, where in the K it was hammocks, but somehow they were never quite so relaxing. No time here for too much reminiscing but we were heavily involved with the pull out of Aden, drug, precious stones and gun running in the Gulf and Beira Patrol, Mozambique, which was effectively the blockade of Ian Smith's Rhodesia.

Back in the UK I had a short spell in HMS Undaunted, which ended her days as a target for surface to surface missile trials, and then had the bright idea of volunteering for 'boats'. As a Submariner I would get a £1.00 a day allowance to my pay, and as a side to that training I also completed a Divers course bringing in another 4/- (shillings) a day. These, believe it or not, were enough to pay our mortgage so a worthwhile diversion. To be honest I loved every minute, bearing in mind that in those days it was diesel 'boats' that undertook the 'sneakies' (looking out for Ivan the Red coming around the North Cape) that the 'nukes' do today. As a consequence I have sailed and flown over and under the Arctic Circle.

Oh, and by the way the other anniversary is my Son Out Law (they're not married so he's an Outlaw, get it?) was born 50 years ago today, and that as I understand it was at a fairly young age. So, it's all hands to the Black Dog, Broadmayne this evening for a pint of rough, some Rock 'n' Roll and a hog roast - bon appetite.

2 days in the Navy and not a Christmas at home yet. At least with 'wind scoops' like that, this lads hat would never fall over his eyes!

'New Entries Division' - September 1961

Anchors & Cables training on the mock forecastle, HMS St Vincent 1961

A further selection of Waders, today's candidates are all American and on the larger side.

American Golden Plover - breeding on the tundra outside of Barrow, Alaska

Marbled Godwit - Newport Beach, Oregon

Willet - el Segundo Beach, Los Angeles, California

Hudsonian Whimbrel - San Francisco, California

Enough to Brighten any Dull Day

Wallcreeper - Rhodope Mountains, Bulgaria

Didn't even leave the house today, there comes a time when some travel plans have to be made, along with catching up notes/computing and even a bit of washing up. So today was the day I had to bite the bullet. A few more Waders for you to brows and a short video footage, as the tile suggests.

Grey Phalarope - Barrow, Alaska

Red-necked Phalarope - Ditto

Terek Sandpiper - Cairns Sea Front, Queensland, Australia

Latham's Snipe - Warrnambool, Victoria, Australia

The Next Adventure

It's chilly and chuckin' it down with rain, but the flights are booked so probably this is a good time to announce the next trip. Saturday 21st November inst, fly to Bogota, Columbia and Wednesday 24th February 2010 fly home from Buenos Aires. In between, some parts are set in tablets of stone, while most will be a 'suck it and see, backpacking adventure'. The first 3 weeks will be with Birdseekers starting with a couple of days close to the capital and culminating in the Santa Marta Mountains. From there I have an open-jaw booked Bogota / Caracas / Caracas / Quito, and while in Venezuela will spend a week with David Ascanio (a well thought of guide) looking, in the main, for 'endemics' at Coro, Maracay and the Henri Pittier NP before heading for Colonia Tovar and return to Caracas. From here it's solo, though not all in uncharted waters, to Guyana (probably via a stop-over in Port 'o' Spain, Trinidad) then Suriname, French Guiana and onward to Ecuador. Up to now I have been unable to obtain a Suriname visa, (the only county on the whole continent where you have to get one up-front) and some of you have asked for an update on my progress, if indeed there has been any. Well, having downloaded and completed all the forms from the internet, I got stuck with the ambiguous nature of some of the questions. There is no embassy in London, the nearest being Amsterdam where it was suggested by the Honorary Consul to Great Britain, I might send my details and passport. Not flippin' likely! I also drew a blank with the Suriname embassy in Georgetown, Guyana who told me I must obtain the document from my nearest Suriname embassy, so back to square one. Close to a 'last resort' I telephoned TraVisa who advertise being able to source visas for any country. The chap on the other end had never heard of Suriname, so not the best start, but said he would be able to get me one for the princeley sum of £95 + VAT + of course the price of the visa. The upshot was, he couldn't and told me that during his investigations had found that I would have to make an appointment and visit the Honorary Consul in London personally. He in turn would supply the required documents for me to obtain the visa at the countries border. I spoke to Dr Amwed Jethu the SHC who said "just bowl into our embassy in Georgetown, and they'll fix you up". Why didn't they say that in the first place. This missif is from your corespondent banged up in a Paramaribo jail, Suriname.

From here it will be familiar territory as my ex-boss, Mike Hughes and I did most of the following some years ago. Overland from Quito (hopefully coastal) to Guayaquil and fly , return, to Baltra, Galapagos, onward to the Peruvian border, by bus, where last time we were palmed off with US$100 worth of counterfeit Sol. The next town is Tumbes after which a number of bird species are named, so will endeavor to stay longer this time. Next comes Trujillo, arguably the second largest city in Peru. Myquese and I had a whale of a time here being invited, right out of the blue, to be guests of honour and take the salute at the cities annual parade. This we did with great pride and respect and got to meet the President of Peru and his wife at an after parade party. The intent will be to visit the Tourist police armed with the photos of that gig, and see if there's another 'freebee' going. From there, bypass Lima to Paracas and Pisco, springboard for the Balastas Islands, then cross the Andes, adjacent to Santiago, Chile hoping to reach Bahia Blanca, south of Buenos Aries for Olrog's Gull. So, that's the plan, let's hope I make it. I never draw up a wants list but the single species that has captured my imagination is Oilbird, so there will a massive hope for that!

and Representing the Dotterels

The Wader count at Ferry Bridge was little different to yesterday, except Sanderling numbers had increased to 4 and there was a single Curlew (and a Wheatear). Tout to the PBO was, for me, totally devoid of passerine migrants, but there was some good news at the Obs. Shearwaters in the form of Balearic and Sooty were passing through in decent numbers, in fact the best count this season, I was told. There were also a couple of Bonxie adding a little more variety, but my target was Sooty bringing the 'year list' up to 244.

Red-kneed Dotterel - Shady Camp, Mary River, Kakadu, Northern Territory, Australia

Banded Dotterel - Kiakora, South Island, New Zealand

New Zealand Dotterel - Tauranga, South Island, New Zealand

Rufous-chested Dotterel - Gypsy's Cove, East Falkland Island

Roses Are Rosy - and so, sometimes, are Starlings

It was destined to be a dull day, as for a kick-off I had to go to Dorchester on 'domestic duties'. I did squeeze Radipole and Lodmoor in first with 6 over-flying Yellow Wagtail and a singing Chiffchaff at the former, and 9 Black-tailed Godwit, 25 Dunlin, 4 Little Egret, who knows how many vocal Water Rail and a Common Sandpiper at the latter. The 'mundane' completed I arrived home at the same time as a text from 'Bomber' announcing Rose-coloured Starling at Weston Road - not to be missed! It was a bit flighty when I re-located it at Pound Piece and was soon on the Royal Manor School sports field, then the accompanying flock fragmented and I didn't see it again. I'm sure there will be better photographs at other sites before the day is out, but for me this was the first Dorset image of this species, plus a 'year tick'. So it wasn't that dull after all was it?

Rose-coloured Starling - Weston, Portland

Little Grebe - Radipole Lake, Weymouth (couldn't resist this smart looking bird)

Waders Continued - a few more to keep you going, I particularly like the Stint, but did you ever see a Dunlin quite like that. There are suggestions, so I am told by those in the know, that this Alaskan alpina could be split?

Red-necked Stint - Barrow, Alaska

Dunlin - Barrow Alaska

Great Knot - East Point, Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia

Grey-tailed Tattler - Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei