Wdnesday 22nd May 2024

And so to the final day of the tour, and a day with lots of miles on the road.

Our target species this day was Irish Marsh, a species with a restricted range to the southern half of the Ireland and mainly in the west.

So, we would have to drive south for nearly two hours, two hours through cloudy, misty weather with occasional drizzle turning to steady rain as we neared the sites.

As we followed a lorry, on either side, in the deep vegetation of the verge, we could see the vibrant purple spikes appearing of the Irish Marsh. We could have stopped but it would have been dangerous, and there was a much safer site a few miles further on.

In the grounds of a former factory, the once neat lawn now managed to return to nature had hundreds of purple spikes: singles, pairs and even a couple of triple groups. And the orchid Gods smiled, the clouds cleared and the sun shone on the scene.

Though the wind did begin to blow, very hard, making macro hard, but I seemed to cope.

After an hour, we were done, so we drove to the nearby Eurospar for supplies, then on to a wetland reserve to look for Red-necked Phalaropes at their only breeding site in the British Isles.

Cloud had returned, the wind redoubled, and it was downright chilly if not cold. We had our lunch, and the twitchers and birders went to try to see the two females in residence.

So, after an hour we drove to the final site of the tour, a low lying verge and picnic area beside an inland lough.

A mixture of mostly Irish Marsh, with some Early Marsh mixed in, hunkered down against the wind. We spent an hour or so photographing most spikes, looking for hybrids or at least interesting spikes.

And then for the two hour drive back, but first, on a tip off, we drove to a field where we could hear the rasping of at least on Corncrake, if not two. But despite sitting there for half an hour, not one showed itself.

But hearing the call is a privilege.

Back to Sligo then in drizzle, but we made good time, getting back just after six. Jools wasn't back from her trip to Tory Island, and the windy and rough conditions made the ferry late, she would be unable to join us for dinner as she would not get back until half nine.

So the rest of us walked to an Italian restaurant where we had a table booked, most feasted on pizza, but I had meatballs with pasta and a bottle of Chianti classico.

That hit the spot.

I walked back to the hotel where Jools was waiting, we swapped travel stories, before going to bed.