Great Northern Diver

Bobbing on Ripple lake for a few seconds before disappearing having flown in from Iceland this juvenile was fishing.

It wasn't until mid-afternoon that I got the chance to go out. The weather really couldn't make it's mind up; one minute sunny and glorious, the next chucking it down with stormy black clouds as far as the eye could see.

I had to jump out of bed as soon as I woke up as a text had pinged in that my parents grocery order was up the swanny. Bleary eyed I sat up in bed before even my morning cuppa to rectify the situation yet again which was slightly frustrating as it had all been sorted last week. 

My other text was far more exciting: a juvenile Great Northern Diver was in the vicinity and thanks to Andy Warr for giving me the heads up. In the carpark for ages on the phone with the rain hammering the windows there was a window, a rather large window as it happened and I set off bundled under waterproofs. My luck was in as a guy with a scope had been there checking it out and no sooner had I walked past him than he whistled to me and the diver had popped up not too far away! Excellent. No time to check the settings as I knew he would dive again pretty quickly but I got this and am chuffed I did as he decided blip wasn't for him and cleared off to the other side of the lake.