Special excursion: eight days birding in Norfolk and Dorset – May 2010

We have prepared a special trip, limited to ten participants, to sample the renown birding sites in the eastern English county of Norfolk and contrast these with the south west county of Dorset.

The tour starts at the Holiday Inn, just a short taxi ride from Heathrow Airport, where we will all meet at 8pm in reception on the first evening. You should arrange your flights to get you to Heathrow Airport in good time. (You may like to combine your visit with some sightseeing in London before or after your tour.)

After some optional pre breakfast birding (available every day), we will depart by minivan to Norfolk where will spend the next three nights at the delightful Wensum Lodge Hotel, beside the River Wensum where it flows through the country town of Fakenham. We will be well positioned to sample many of the well known venues such as the Brecklands and the north coastal reserves like Titchwell and Holkham and build a good list during our stay. If this is your first visit to Britain, it will be a time when we can familiarize you with the common species, but we will also be looking for lowland east coast specialties such as Pied Avocet, Marsh Harrier, Bearded Tit and various shorebirds. There will be optional evening excursions to look for species such as Barn Owl, Eurasian Woodcock, Nightingale and Nightjar, or you may just prefer to relax at the hotel or do some exploring in the town. Each evening after dinner we will be calling a log of the birds seen that day, an ideal opportunity for us to relax and compare experiences.

On our fourth day, visiting a site for the curious Stone Curlew on our way, we will drive down to Dorset, taking a break to view the ancient stone circles of Stonehenge en route.

Our time in Dorset will be spent at the Poacher’s Inn, in the village of Piddletrenthide, with here the River Piddle passing close by the hotel. We will be visiting the coastal peninsula of the ‘Isle of Portland’ where, at the tip of Portland Bill, we can expect western birds such as Fulmar, Shag, Rock Pipit, Black-legged Kittiwake, and various auks including Atlantic Puffin, just holding on here as a breeding species. If migration is underway we may find almost anything in the fields around the bird observatory, while at sea it is a prime time for passage seabirds including skuas. On the following day we will visit other sites close by such as Radipole Lake and Lodmoor fresh marsh. Early mornings may find us looking for White-throated Dipper, on the eastern edge of its range here.

On our last day we will move east to the ancient royal hunting estate of The New Forest where there is still a western influence to the avifauna with birds such as Wood Warbler, Common Redstart, Dartford Warbler, Woodlark and Hobby.

Our final night will be spent back at the Holiday Inn where the tour concludes.

What is included

All accommodation, breakfasts and evening meals, transport, trip list log and entrance fees for reserves where required.

What is not included

Lunches (we will stop each day at suitable places where a variety of light lunch items will be available), drinks with meals and any items of a purely personal nature.

Cost for the eight day tour: £850.00 per person based on two persons sharing a room. If you require a single room, this would be an additional cost of £150.00. If you are willing to share a room we may be able to find a suitable partner, if this is not possible the supplement would apply.

If you would like to join us, please download and complete our booking form.

Please make sure you read out terms and conditions. It is stressed that suitable travel insurance is required by all participants.