The early birder...

...catches the fog.

After a couple of big travelling days, stayed local today. Mrs L was having a catch up at home day, while I went into Bedfordshire to find three Tundra Bean Geese that were reported at Cainhoe Gravel Pits. Hadn't been there before, so didn't know what to find and to be frank once I got there I wasn't much wiser as it was just a wee bit foggy. In the above picture you may be able to just make out an island - that's the gravel pit where the geese were meant to be. I could certainly hear geese, just not see them.

Had a wander round exploring and hoping the fog would lift, but it wasn't looking hopeful. Returning back I met a couple of Bedfordshire birders, Francis Buckle and Roy Nye, who were also killing time and hoping the fog would lift. Maybe an hour after I arrived visibility improved slightly, and we could make out geese. Canada geese and Greylag Geese, but no Tundra Bean Geese.

The sun came out and visibility was now perfect. Standing on the hill overlooking the main gravel pit with the warm sun on our backs was actually quite pleasant, just a shame the geese we were after weren't there. Then three geese fly overhead, our three Tundra Bean Geese, they circle the pits four or five times before landing right in front of us - all's well that ends well.

Check out RCB for the Tundra Bean Goose blip.