Two brilliant days!

Day One: Lincolnshire

Let's be clear: they really were. I didn't get wet [Tiggy went through some terrible puddles] and the sun shone sometimes! Day One was Frampton Marsh RSPB in Lincolnshire followed by Freiston Shore RSPB also Lincolnshire but north of Boston.  The lure was a white rumped sandpiper at Frampton Marsh.

I got there early, as is my wont. Swifts were flying low screaming around me. I suspect I shall die without taking my ideal fantasy photograph of a swift. Every detail clear; everything sharp. Here's my latest effort.

Swift The sandpiper was on North Scrape - as usual at Frampton long walks are de rigueur. Time for one of my cuckoo category photos! Legions of regular readers will know this means a rubbish photo of a bird that is simply too far away. It doesn't even qualify as a record photo really!

White-rumped Sandpiper!!! The white rumped sandpiper is just contemplating a bit of mooning, flanked by a juv black-headed gull [left] and two ringed plovers [right]. Just a year tick but a top quality one. I walked on. Some swallows let me get close.

Swallows Swallows Avocet activity was clearly audible. Some had well advanced young like this one.

Avocet The adults looked quite dirty with all the mud around. Reminded me a little of american avocets.

Avocet Avocet I saw a hare watching me from across a pool. I didn't realise that as I prepared to take the photo he turned his back on me!!

Hare

Approaching the far hide [East Hide, I think] a young pied wagtail eyed me from the fence. The background shows the strange light effects that morning. It's sunshine on mud.

Pied Wagtail Another avocet made a pleasing image.

Avocet Further on a lapwing was getting very agitated. But that's a way of life for a lapwing.

Lapwing In the hide a great crested grebe came close and a redshank flew across my field of view. They both got immortalised.

Great-crested Grebe Redshank Then, after tramping through the mud on top of the sea wall I left for Freiston Shore. Here terns were very active and quite nearby. I looked for roseate tern as a pair had been dropping in but all mine were common. Here are some nice views of these lovely birds.

Common Tern Common Tern Common Tern Along the path a blackbird was sunning himself. Why do they do this? Is it overheating?

Blackbird From the hide an adult BHG was coping with two unruly young. The young a this stage seem bigger then their parents!

Black-headed Gull

Day Two: Yorkshire

Thought I'd start at North Cave in the hope of an early morning close-up of a blackcap. As usual, it was not to be. Maybe I went one better. I detected movement to my left in some dead bramble. Here he is.

Lesser Whitethroat Lesser Whitethroat I like this one! It's a lesser whitethroat. Grey legs are diagnostic.

After that I returned to Tiggy and put the macro lens on. I had already seen lots of damselflies. Nice flowers were nearby.

Borage                                                                                             Borage:  borago officinalis

Field scabious                                                                                       Field scabious:  knautia arvensis

Common mallow Malva sylvestris                                                                              Common mallow: malva sylvestris

Going back into the reserve with the macro lens on one looks for different things. This lichen was covering the bark of a birch tree. I liked the patterning.                                                                               There had clearly been a recent emergence of meadow brown butterflies.

Meadow Brown Meadow Brown Common blue damselflies were mating.

Common Blue Damselflies Or waiting for Mrs Right...

Common Blue Damselflies Common soldier beetles were in freshly polished uniforms.

Soldier Beetle ...and a small skipper butterfly just caught my eye, flew off quickly and then [bless him*] posed!

Small Skipper *The two diagonal black lines on the wings tell me it's a male.

Next stop: Wharram Quarry. Bishop Middleham and Wharram as well as both being former quarries have something magical about them. Almost like going back to Shangri-La. I assume you've been there at some point in your mind.

Common Spotted / Heath SpottedOrchid WQ This year the orchids defied belief. Hundreds of pyramidal, over sixty bee and thousands of common spotted. Plus a lifer butterfly, mating common blue butterflies. Heaven. Chiffchaff, whitethroat and blackcap heard but for once my eyes were on the ground not sky scanning whilst tripping over all manner of obstacles!

Common Spotted Orchids plus 1 pyramidal. WQ Spot the lone pyramidal orchid among the common spotteds. Towards top right, much darker red.

For the other orchid photos, see my special 2012 Orchid posting.

Small Heath There were many small heath butterflies and I tried for a long time to photograph one. All the other butterflies were easy compared to the small heath and yet they were the most numerous. So I was glad to get this unremarkable image. Incidentally it was a surprise and a thrill to meet Howard Frost and his wife - he co-ordinated the wonderful book 'The Butterflies of Yorkshire.' Thoroughly recommended!

Common blues were very active interacting with each other and often unaware of me. Three males:

Common Blue Common Blue Male and female. Note female underwings are darker than the male.

Common Blue Common Blue Females are more timid than the males.

Common Blue My first small tortoiseshell of the year...

Small Tortoiseshell ...followed by my first ever marbled whites. I saw three in the end.

Wharram Quarry: marbled white I'd never seen broomrape before either. This chlorophyll free parasitic plant feeds from pea family plants like the vetches. A bit sinister looking!

Common broomrape: orobanche minor. Wharram Q Common broomrape: orobanche minor. Wharram Q

                                                                               Common broomrape: orobanche minor

This nice dog rose wanted  to be photographed.

Dog rose rosa canina I'd grown campanula glomerata in the garden but didn't know it as a wild flower.

Campanula glomerata. WQ Thought I might squeeze this common spotted in as the insect is so nicely focussed. I wonder what it is. Try asking ispot!!

Common Spotted. WQ So it was time to move on. However if you can you must visit Wharram Quarry asap. Try to find the thyme!!

Thyme. WQ Final call at Wykeham forest raptor watchpoint. Saw turtle dove and a common buzzard. The interest was more at my feet. A common lizard entertained me.

Common Lizard Common Lizard Saw my first ringlet butterfly of the year.

Wykeham Forest: Ringlet See the little rings!

To my surprise, on the dark and gloomy path to the viewpoint I saw several common spotted orchids.

Common Spotted Orchid. Wykeham Forest raptor watchpoint That's it.

Postscript: Saturday July 14th 20112

My son lost an expensive 6 foot wingspan power assisted glider on Friday 13th, somewhere over the old airfield at Acaster Malbis. With all the clues I could muster, plus an OS map I set off Saturday early to walk the old runways. Binoculars in hand I kept scanning the fields. I climbed old mounds of soil and gravel. I walked a very, very long way. I eventually made it back to the car having covered all the area he had suggested.

Then I drove along more abandoned concrete runways to the south. In one field I saw something white sticking up. I stopped Tiggy, grabbed the bins. I had come. I had seen and I concurred. I was a hero after all!

I had found it.