Nosterfield, and Pickering

At first light there was no sign of the drake Canvasback at Nosterfield on any of the Quarry Pits there, though it must be around that general area somewhere. However looking over the other Pits, there looked to be a distant Pectoral Sandpiper, later with Dunlin it soon flew off high, without being properly IDed.

Giving up on this bird after a couple of hours searching, we then moved on to Pickering, driving through the Moors with Red Grouse showing generally well close to the car. Once at Pickering (the set of Heartbeat). We made our way into the valley, to photograph Dipper. A certain individual showed well, but because of the light, and mobility of the bird made photographing it considerably harder than expected.

A few Red Grouse were viewable from the car in the freezing cold through the Moors (c) Ashley Howe

An hour or so spent with this bird, and still no sign of the Canvasback, we decided to go home, just in time for a Halloween party.