Camping

We decided to be brave and attempt our first family camping trip with our 21 month old. We chose a spot by a lake only 2kms from the car park with good enough tracks that we could take the pram. Camping wise everything went well, we had a fantastic fire burning, good food, and a campsite right by the lake. Only problem was the littlest getting ill and throwing up all over herself whilst asleep in the tent at 11pm. Luckily I had chosen to sleep under the stars (was also required as the tent is not big enough) and had hoped this would allow me to hear some owls. Unfortunately I wasn't succesful with this although it was fantastic to see the sunset and stars although this is already getting difficuly as the sky does not get fully dark until around 2330 and is already light again around 0400.
I was very surpised to hear a pair of Cranes calling to each other on the Saturday evening and then again early on Sunday morning before they flew low over my head at 7am (the video is taken from my sleeping bag!).

Otherwise birding was very slow going. At dawn I could hear Black Grouse calling distantly aswell as a Black Throated Diver but the dawn chorus consisted only of Blackbirds, Chaffinches, Tree Pipit, Robin and Willow Warbler. On the lake a male Red Breasted Merganser, a pair of Teal and a noisy pair of Canade Geese joined a pair of Common Sandpipiers.