READER HOLIDAY NORFOLK
£975pp + £85 single supplement
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Maximum of 14 people; two vans, two leaders. Book online at www.oriole birding.com
Norfolk is one of the must-visit locations in British birding, both because of the variety of its breeding birds, and the number and range of its passage migrants.
We’ve teamed up with Oriole Birding to offer a superb spring break taking in all the major birdwatching sites. Based at the Briarfields Hotel, just a short walk from the RSPB’s renowned Titchwell reserve, we will be exploring the best that this fantastic and varied county has to offer during the height of spring migration.
It’s not only a great time for observing such birds as Nightingale, Spoonbill, Ring Ouzel and Grasshopper Warbler, but has also, in the past, produced an array of rare or uncommon species, including Hoopoe, Wryneck, Woodchat Shrike, Alpine Swift, Red-rumped Swallow, Black Kite, Citrine Wagtail, Purple Heron,
Temminck’s Stint and many more! Hobbies will be back, and regular migrants include Little Gull, Wood Sandpiper and Garganey.
The trip includes a full day birding in the Brecks, where we should find Stone-curlew, singing Firecrest, Wood Lark and sometimes Goshawk, while the woodlands resound to spring birdsong. All this and more makes this a great time to be birding in one of the UK’s best counties – with Marsh Harriers displaying overhead, Bearded Tits ‘pinging’ as they zip across the reeds and Bitterns ‘booming’ on the marshes, this will be a great introduction to Norfolk birding or, for the seasoned traveller, a fantastic year-list booster and a chance for one or two rarities!
ITINERARY
DAY ONE We meet at Briarfields Hotel, Titchwell, at 3pm, then head to the nearby reserve. The freshmarsh is buzzing with breeding birds such as Avocets and Mediterranean Gulls, while passage waders frequently drop in – we’ll look for species such as Wood Sandpiper, and Temminck’s Stint. Reed and Sedge Warblers, Bearded Tits and Cetti’s Warbler can all be heard and seen. We return to the hotel for a pre-dinner drink and chat before the evening meal.
DAY TWO We’ll explore the North Norfolk coast, centred on Burnham Overy and Holkham. This fantastic area comprises habitats including grazing marsh, pine forest, coastal marram dunes, saltmarsh and shoreline. If conditions are favourable, migrants in the dunes can include Greenland Wheatear, Redstart, Whinchat and Willow Warblers. Great White Egrets and Spoonbills breed and are easily seen here, and sometimes Cattle Egret can also be found. A variety of spring warbler song, the first Swi
