Yes that time had finally come. We have been meaning to visit our friends Tracy & David for some time, but what with lack of funds & one thing or another, it got put back......till now.
The thought of not waking up to a screaming cat, or freezing as you go to the loo, was too tempting to put off any longer.
So arrangements made, fuel in the tank, food in bags, well I do have a few dietary problems, Yak pee packed & of course me bins, and off we jolly well went.
They live in Pazartsi, near the Turkish border, that's about two & half hours drive away. But warm, sorry, hot weather guaranteed & some good birding to be had, makes it worth the trip.
Waving good bye to the cats, we left our 2 teenage boys in charge of the guest house, ( It's alright they are very responsible) yer right, plus there was no new guest's arriving, I felt a slight pang of guilt, which lasted around 10 seconds, great freedom.
The drive down was uneventful, long, but uneventful, until we got to within spitting distance of their house......Red-backed Shrike, Lesser Grey Shrike & Golden Oriole......it took me longer to drive the last kilometer than the first 170km.
Oh come on, you cant expect me not to stop and look! and look and, ok yes I was in birding heaven. Alison (Ali) my beautiful but suffering wife, said nothing, she was happy watching them also, she is brill, one in a hundred million.
Finally parking at Tracy & David's, they were there to greet us, hang on a mo, Whats that....only a Crested Lark on the drive! bloody hell we are never leaving!!!!!!
So.. we eventually unpack, Tracy made us a nice welcome cup of a different yak pee! I mean how many are there?
As we sat on the deck, in 31degs of blazing sunshine, Tracy asked me look at a photo she took earlier of a bird on the wires in her garden, ok I say, not at all expecting anything other than what we just saw, BUT NO.....a beautiful male Roller! wow.
Trying hard to suck back my drool as it dripped from my mouth. When, er where did you see this?....not that I was excited in anyway.
After much explaining, I told them this was a lovely bird to have on your door step. Well said Tracy I think he's trying to get to a Sparrows nest up there, that's not nice! Where they first saw the Roller, is an old concrete lamp post with a broken top, this is the Sparrows nest site.
So I set myself up in a garden chair, bins round neck, another yak pee on the table, ready for anything. I didn't have to wait long....the male came back, in all his summer glory, Wow! I had about 10 mins of perfect observation, plus he did not get the Sparrow's young out.
After catching up with all the news, Ali & I went for a short walk around the outside of their land. There were three male Nightingales in full volume, really going for it. A glorious sound of musical magic. Nightingales are more often heard than seen, not here they're not. Right out on perches from low tree's, in full view, not long mind you, but long enough to get great sightings. Then with a flash of a red tail into deep cover they went.
On our return Ali spotted a Hoopoe in the garden. Ok is this ever gonna stop. No, as soon as we sat down to talk some more David pointed up and said EAGLES!!
Bins up, not Eagles I pointed out but a pair of Long-Legged Buzzards, excellent!
The day had been brilliant, hot, but brilliant.
We stayed outside, ate dinner, talked till dark, then had Nightjar's jizzing, just outside the fence & a Little Owl that kept us all amused till very late.
And so to bed, slept like a log. We were only staying overnight, dont trust the boys that much!!! So I got up, dressed and was out at 6am. I wanted to get the most out of our trip, plus I didn't want to wake anyone, apart from Ali that is.
I only intended to walk back up the lane and along the road out of the village. I had some really early bird surprises, with Woodchat Shrike, Corn Bunting, Buzzard, Sparrowhawk chasing a Marsh Warbler, Nightjar skipping over a fence, Whitethroat, 2 Rollers, Nightingale, Cuckoo, Green Woodpecker, Starling, Kestrel, Black Stork in flight, Red-Backed Shrike, Greenfinch, Lesser-Grey Shrike,Skylark, Sombre Tit, Blackcap, Olivaceous Warbler, Cetti's Warbler and finally the bird I have wanted to see for the past 3 yrs a Male Black-Headed Bunting.
I really cant believe what a mornings birding I've had. Back to the house, breekie & yak pee inside me then we had a walk with Tracy down to the Ravine.
It's a lime stone valley, really lovely, but devoid of bird life, except for a pair of nesting Black Stork. The huge construction was wedged into a double fork of a massive old oak tree, about 15mts high off the ground with a parent bird sitting. Another first, my first wild Black Storks nest & another wow!
We finished our trip with a journey to Studen Kladenets, where we had Griffon Vulture, Golden Eagle, Greylag Goose, a 2nd year juv Herring Gull, Buzzard, Bee-Eater, Rock Bunting, Black Stork, Raven & White Wagtail.
To say we, I, had a great time is so way under estimated.
We had to say goodbye around 1300hrs, with such memories in my head that will keep me fulfilled for a long time to come, I say a very huge thanks to Tracy & David, for their hospitality, patience, humour and very dear friendship.
Arrived home to the usual grunts from the boys that pass for hello, and the scream that only our cat Balkan can do to say he wants feeding. I cant wait to go back!!!!!!!!
