My Diary
A weekend in Bempton. Day 1.
28/06/10
Guillimots on the cliffs at Bempton.
Friday morning saw us rendezvous at Mike Gould’s house, me arriving just after Steve Ray and Allan Ashdown, and a few minutes after 6 o clock, we left in our hire car and travelled the 250 miles to Bempton, just North of Bridlington in North Yorkshire. After one re fuelling stop, for us, not the car, we arrived at our hotel, the Flamberg in Flamborough, just after 1 pm. A quick freshen up, and we were off to the RSPB reserve Bempton, just a couple of miles down the road, where we spent the afternoon. Tree Sparrows were our first encounter, with a flock of 10 to 20 birds feeding around the visitors centre, with Chaffinch and Greenfinch in attendance as well. We then made our way down to the cliffs, where Gannet, Razorbill, Guillemot, Kittiwake, Fulmar and Herring Gull were all in plentiful supply. Steve got his wanted life tick immediately, in the shape of a Puffin, a bird we chased after for the few days we spent there, all trying to get a few decent photos of this comical looking auk. We then settled on a view point to the South of the reserve, where we had a few hours photographing Gannets as they came into the cliff top to land. Exposure was our biggest problem, we all found it difficult to get the lighting right, without burning out the white of the Gannet, but a few pleasing images were taken, along with a lot more that were not quite so pleasing. (The joys of an amateur wildlife snapper). Returning to our hotel, we showered and then went to the North Star pub, which was a few hundred meters down the road, where we had dinner and a few pints before returning to our hotel for the night. If any one does this trip, which is a must for the opportunity to photograph Gannets and Auks at close quarters, then the Flamberg hotel is a great place to stay. The room prices are reasonable, the service is excellent, and the food is as good as any I have tasted on our trips away. (Try the fresh Raspberry cheese cake). Also the landlady was extremely helpful when we were planning our day, organising taxis and late meals etc etc.