31/12/2005
The last day of the year was magical with flat calm seas, warm and typical evocative light in winter. Before 12am we had seen otters, sea eagles, golden eagles and two male hen harriers and lots of divers. At Carsaig which is magical anytime we missed a school of dolphins by 15 minutes but saw an immature sea eagle right over the beach. Two people were kayaking out to sea with Colonsay ten miles behind them and a dazzling silver sea everywhere. Happy New Year to everyone less lucky!!!
30/12/2005
We have all enjoyed a Christmas Break in Derbyshire as usual but have to say that Sheffield United were rubbish. We left in snow to head to Edinburgh initially and then found the A84 in the Highlands closed but what a wonderful scenic and sunny journey through the mountains to the west coast. Here on Mull was the same with snow capped peaks and clear sunset. It was also quite mild after Derbyshire. Good to get away but heaven to be back.
17/12/2005
There is a serenity about the islands at this time of year which is impossible to put into words. The colours around the island are wonderful and the atmosphere is so clear. People may think life is not so great here in winter but I think it is the best.You can still walk on white sand Hebridean beaches like Balfours Bay on a sunny day, only this time of year yours are the only footprints in the sand.
06/12/2005
Another stupendous day with a clear sunrise above Ben More, mirror calm sea all day and a beautiful sunset right now. The perfect day on Mull.
04/12/2005
Truly awesome weather and Hebridean Island scenes just lately. The sea is like glass, its warm and sunny and looking from eastern wing of the house today Ben More is sticking its snow capped peak above a belt of grey clounds like Mount Fuji. Yesterday on the northern coast we had a golden eagle showing off his trousers sitting only about 50m away on a small hillock.
29/11/2005
Lovely calm weather today and I have been dealing with paperwork!! but last night I saw a barn owl, a fallow deer stag toddled toward me late at night and then a red deer stag did the same. Evenings also have lots of wildlife opportunities here. Had a few people booking trips as Xmas presents, so if you know someone coming to Scotland next year!!
25/11/2005
No trips in the last few days which is as well because my vehicle packed up and has been towed to Glasgow! What a great spell of weather we have had though with the island at its best. Today though is windy, cold and a bit like Iceland. However I think it will turn sunny later and definitely tommorrow.
19/11/2005
Bit grey but another really nice day here with sightings of Pink Footed, Greylag and Greenland White Fronted Geese. We had a sea eagle sitting on a small island and then flying across the loch. Another was sitting on a shingle headland and was then off to sit in tree. Two seperate Otters, Porpoise, Hen Harrier but no Golden Eagles today.
17/11/2005
Best day of the year with mirror calm seas, warm sun, fabulous colours and clarity of light. BEST EVER sighting of bottle nosed dolphins also.We had just seen an otter when a bus driver told us about his dolphin sighting an hour earlier. Off we went and found them five minutes later. We proceeded to have amazing views as they jumped, raced along and inerracted for a couple of hours. We had all of them between ourselves on a point and a small islet fifty yards ofshore. Terrific day.
16/11/2005
Fabulous weather here at the moment but it's not unusual in winter and all about wind direction.We have two guests staying who went off to explore Robert Louis Stevensons Island of Erraid but they got hijacked by 4 sea eagles. They are keen photographers and it seems one of the young eagles was standing and feeding on a cormorant and they have great pics of this.
15/11/2005
Lovely day today with really good views of eagles. First two were behind the house, a single was across the loch being chased by ravens. Two sea eagles were sitting on a point 50m away and then took off. Sparrowhawk pestered a buzzard for its prey and we had rock doves, divers and fallow and red deer with another goldie above us and two more 5 minutes later. Finally male hen harrier.
13/11/2005
Just back from holiday in one of the remoter canary islands. La Gomera in fact which is like a sunny Mull but far more mountainous and not as varied at all. Birds were tough to see. Had the wildest day out ever here the other day but very exciting and photogenic. But today was serene and warm, saw golden eagle close, sea eagle and one or two otters. Beautiful day!!
30/10/2005
Great day today with sunny sky and golden eagles over the house. Very wet yesterday but we did get two otters chittering and fighting in the seaweed. Two golden eagles showed as the weather cleared for a moment but best sighting for me was a very late whimbrel.
28/10/2005
Pretty good day with three otters running around on shore and rolling around together in the grass. A distant golden eagle breaking a peak and gliding across a glen and latterly a super shot of a young sea eagle above our heads. Seals, deer etc.
27/10/2005
Loch na Keal was utterly wild and gale lashed today but sunny. What a setting for the two sea eagles there. The female leaned horizontal on a shingle point with Ben More and a wild sky across the sea behind her. Her massive bill made her look like a Stellers Sea Eagle.Very close views of a golden eagle in the south of Mull which was quite tropical and calm compared with the north. Two otters also and wild goats.
26/10/2005
Another wet day but saw an otter across the mudflats, greenland white fronted goose, whooper swans, red throated diver, hundreds of redwings, top golden eagle above us with a younger bird and young red tagged sea eagle from this year.
25/10/2005
A nice day today with a big sighting of the Loch Buie sea eagles miles from home under Ben Taladh. They began low and were then tracked by the male goldie from that territory. We followed them for a few miles to watch tham come overhead and head over Loch Fuaron to home. Great otter too laying head on top of his paws.
24/10/2005
PRIORITY !!!! Watch 'Eagle Island' on BBC2 26th October at 8pm and same on 30th October at 6.10pm. Looks really good.
23/10/2005
No trip today and so a chance to explore the Hebridean side of mulls northwest. No one about of course on the rocky and white sand headlands except an otter giving great views as we looked down on him as he wandered around rocky points. Sunny and very Hebridean today!!
21/10/2005
Beautiful sunny day today warm and little wind. Loch Buie seemed a good choice for a short walk. It was just super out on the sand and grassland island there and we had sea eagle above us golden eagle higher but a really romantic view of an otter playing around little islets and eventually having a nap and filling my telescope.
18/10/2005
There are too many exciting moments to list lately but the peregrine sitting on his breeding cliff well out of season was great. Sea eagles dramatic and on the shoreline, otters that everyone wanted to see. red throated and great northern divers, slavonian grebes and absolutely beautiful skies and colours. Missed the ring ouzels, drat! but stags are roaring and defending ther harems.
14/10/2005
We looked for otters for some time today and eventually watched one swim with a fish onto a rocky shoreline to then give really good views in the scope. But the island is a photographers paradise at the moment with quite fabulous effects of light and shade, shafting sun bursts through clouds onto mountain peaks and flat seas, though today was windy in fact. Every single day here is different.
12/10/2005
Top day today with very good sightings of otter, sea and golden eagle. However all was eclipsed by a spectacular encounter with a school of around 12 bottle nosed dolphins. We picked them up in the middle of Loch na Keal and went round the other side of the loch to try and get closer. After about 15 minutes we were as close as anyone could get to dolphins from land and were within perhaps 40 feet at one time. Inspiring!!
11/10/2005
Forget the wildife for today, though it was very good as usual!! Tonight the sunset is truly stupendous with an orange sky and puffy grey clouds covering miles of ocean. How on earth can anyone choose to live in suburbia when they have the choice of all of this and whales, dolphins, eagles and otters thrown in for good measure.
05/10/2005
Great otter encounter at the end of the trip today. There he was on the top of a tiny rocky islet fifty yards out with about ten minutes before the tide got him and he would have to get off. He stood op and looked down as if to say what's this wet stuff and relunctantly went for a swim. Top but top sea eagle sightings too and golden eagles hunting for mountain hares.
02/10/2005
Lots of eagle sightings again with a big plus as we came north and a sea eagle was flying in from the sea being mobbed by a gull. Atmospheric! Top otter sightings too with one at the ferry point again and he rolled about and groomed himself in full view but another doing similar on Loch Scridain later in the day.
01/10/2005
I hope some of you will consider visiting here in the so called off season particularly those that have a yen to see our big three, because whilst they are around all year they show at their best in winter. The elements are also quite stirring particularly if you come from a city life. In the off season its like being an eagle and a free spirit again.
29/09/2005
This is definitely the time of year for eagles. We had a few today and if we had looked more we would have seen more I am sure. Even on my way home I saw two more golden eagles pretty close on my right but just before that I had another otter very close and rubbing himself on a seaweed boulder just a few feet offshore.
25/09/2005
Forgot the family of adders seen yesterday but today was excellent for golden eagle and sea eagles again. We also had an otter distant and one asleep in the sun on a little island. He was still snoozng when we saw him later but this time he slid off his rocky bed and into the sea.
24/09/2005
Forgot the 18 or so light bellied brent geese a couple of days ago and very close! Today was another spectacular eagle day with big views of two adult golden eagles racing out and after a youngster on their territoty. Also pretty close and interesting sighting of various sea eagles and an otter at the ferry point, another on Loch na Keal and a very close one on the way out.
23/09/2005
I have lost track of the days I am afraid but I know we had another wet one but with 5 male hen harriers and a couple of females!! An otter at the ferry point yesterday, porpoise, seals, deer of course.Great to see a young sea eagle more confident by the day and whos mum and dad I know very well. He is their first youngster and I know they are immensely proud of him but he is looking longingly out to sea and off to another life soon. Also saw TV celeb 'Frisa' today.
21/09/2005
Lovely day today with excellent view of a male hen harrier, distant young sea eagle sittng on the coast but wow, a great half hour in conifer forest with adult and young golden eagles, buzzard and ravens, climaxing with an adult sea coming from half a mile out to fly above us swoop down with legs danggling and alight on a tree just behind us. Big big sighting.
20/09/2005
A diabolical forecast with wind and rain virtually all day turned into a really good day as it cleared about 3.30pm. At least four seperate otters, great sea eagle sitting and flying as it stopped raining, a golden eagle with crows, porpoise etc but all in all a really succesful day that most thought was going to be very bad.
17/09/2005
Each day seems to roll into the next at this time of year with lots of eagle sightings. However I have just come back from the east coast of Scotland where I attended a big and very posh dinner where I was presented with the Excellence in Tourism Award by a minister and TV personality. It's all very flattering butlovely to return to Mull and see an otter coming ashore with a fish on our sea loch.
14/09/2005
I got the previous posting wrong which should have read the 13th!! Anyway 14th was good with the highlight I would think being a male and female hen harrier meeting up to argue about territory. The only time you usually get this is in Spring when they meet up to pass prey to each other and so we were very lucky. Sea and golden eagles of course later in the day.
14/09/2005
Todays most exciting moment amid some misty moody weather was two golden eagles meeting up and then the male racing across the sky and covering most of his territory. Every now and then he rushed high above our heads and portrayed the sheer wonder of natural flight and unfettered freedom, covering around 10 miles in total.
11/09/2005
Recording sightings is all well and good of course but its easy to forget the quite stupendous natural environment that our creatures exist in. This morning Ben More looks dark and moody and big shafts of sunlight are beaming down onto its surface as if alien craft are descending and puffy grey and white clouds are rolling around its peaks. This has to be one of the most beatiful places in the world.
09/09/2005
A very cold day today but predominantly dry made Golden Eagles stay down. For some reason they never really like a very cold easterly wind but do any of us? We still saw two though soaring and then streaking down to land behind a mountain top but views of the two adult sea eagles was really good as both came virtually over us from different directions.
08/09/2005
Fabulous eagle day with three sea eagles tallon grappling and calling above us on our coastal national scenic area. But best of all was first off with a school of around 14 bottle nosed dolphins off the seal colony at Salen Bay. Of all the dolphins bottle nosed have what it takes because they are big, very close inshore and the most acrobatic of all.Missed 6 minkes, some breaching, off our own house and coast yesterday!!!!!
07/09/2005
Another dodgy weather day but still got sea and golden eagles. But I had a first today while we were waiting for the weather to clear. We looked onto a sandy beach with small waves crashing on shore when suddenly there was the otter surfing along and catching butter fish and being rolled around by the small waves then walking waste deep along the beach catching more fish. Tops!!
06/09/2005
With people keen to sea eagles we had really exciting views particularly of two golden eagles sitting and flying with ravens and then gliding along the sea cliffs but I personally think that the highlight was very early on when we had truly atmospheric views across Loch na Keal with shafts of light and mist reflecting on the sea.There was the otter in silhouette walking around on a small islet. Great.
05/09/2005
Otter straight off today just north of the ferry point and one actually at the ferry point in fact AND another late in the day as we dropped people off at Aros. Perhaps a hundred porpoise acting like dolphins today and big sea eagle views with one sitting on top of a conifer. It then flew right and surprised us by joining its mate to give super views in the scope.
04/09/2005
A good eagle day but the otter was very teasing and it wasn't until we had left everyone else and were on the way home when we had a really close sightng of an otter alseep with his head across his paws looking very cute about 15 feet away on a seaweed point. Top view and pity most people missed it.
03/09/2005
Lots of different eagle sightings in the last few days which is typical of this time of year because young eagles are looking for territories and upsetting adults. Most interesting today was two adult sea's going miles out to sea for no apparent reason, only to lock tallons with another bird in mid ocean, tumble and separate. They obviously saw him as intruder but so very far away.
31/08/2005
A dodgy weather day but a long list of sightings with otters, sea eagle,hen harrier,manx shearwater,gannet,black guillemot,porpoise,whinchat,stonechat,twite,golfinch,meadow pipit, sparrowhawk,greenshank.redhshank,rock pipit,turnstone,common seal,atlantic grey seal and more.
30/08/2005
Otter, bottle nosed dolphins, great view of sea eagle, golden eagles and hen harrier and the usual red deer seals and a lot more. A very good and happy day for everyone.
28/08/2005
Wettest wildlife day of the year but I had a good and jolly crowd. We just about saw an otter in the waves and a sea eagle above a sitka forest but the best was on the way home when we had a small window of weather. Having looked for some minutes for sea eagles we were about to go when there they were above us giving really good views.
25/08/2005
Too many good sightings to detail lately. Including a number of this years young sea eagles with adults, six otters today included two galloping over the hills,very interesting shot of kestrel and sparrowhawk going into a peregrine like stoop. Goosanders, greenshanks, hen harriers, twite, rock doves and three red throated divers today. Best of all probably a barn owl by our house ten minutes ago.
23/08/2005
It was a wild forecast today but with a possible window around lunchtime and as I often suggest the bad days can be the better ones for sightings. I was out first to see a golden and sea eagle tallon grappling but all had a great view of a golden eagle sailing over our heads, an otter coming ashore within feet of us and a sea eagle in a forest clearing.
18/08/2005
A big eagle day when everything was where I said it would be and doing what they should be!! Also porpoise and a really close otter eating a conger eel after we had searched for some time for a sighting. This one was very close indeed. Forgot another sea eagle with an arctic skua round its head and peregrine in a tree nearby.
17/08/2005
The wettest wildlife trip of the year so far and yet we saw Itchy flying!! and Mum sat on a fence post and then came across to see us, giving very close views before going back onto a small hill. Otters were also very wet and wild, as we were down on the shore with them. There was also a dog otter rolling around on a seaweed bank offshore. Also another young sea eagle sitting in a tree and then flying.
15/08/2005
A really good golden eagle day today though it did not seem so when the day started with low mist and drizzle. But as it began to clear it felt good for the eagles to show and spot on up came the female on that territory gliding along the hillside behind us to alight on a small rocky outcrop. Then dad and the new youngster to dry off too. Another flying and sitting eagle rounded the day off.
14/08/2005
My spotting was pretty good today as an empty hillside turned into an adult sea eagle sitting near the top, anothe on an outcrop below and their youngster under some trees!! A similar empty hill produced a family of golden eagles. Sunny and roughish sea turned into an otter fishing a hundred meters offshore and another twenty feet away and watching us from the seaweed. People learned how to look properly today.
12/08/2005
A real eagle day today with the highlight a whole 'collection' of them at one site in Glen More. It was the corvids that as usual gave the clues as they danced around a mountain peak and a young sea eagle! Best was probably a female golden eagle sliding behind the peak to then glide though a cloud of at least a hundred crows and straight over us. Its mate followed and sat on the ridge behind us.
10/08/2005
Another misty start to the day but it cleared to be spectacular.We again saw Itchy with dad and very good views. No otters today but the focus was golden eagles and we had a couple of distant sightings with sea eagle also but then got a super sighting of a golden eagle gliding along a ridge alighting and eventually crossing over to soar against an inland cliff.
09/08/2005
Dodgy weather to start but good sightings of seven sea eagles, porpoise, otter, sparrowhawk and golden eagles. Top of the day was really good views of the TV sea eagles Frisa and Skye and one of their youngsters called Itchy!!! We had two more sea eagles on Loch na Keal and another of this years youngsters on top of a mountain in Glen More.
07/08/2005
Fabulous weather here and back in the swing of things with top sightings of species. We had a young peregrine above us for some time on the coast and in the last bay to check for otters there he was coming ashore with occasional fish and pleasing everyone. Adult sea eagle and young sea eagle also and view of the same with golden eagles. Porpoise too.
04/08/2005
Weather was tough and windy today and never really cleared. We saw a distant young sea eagle, a very quick young golden eagle. Otters were nowhere to be seen UNTIL I had dropped everyone off and within 10 minutes I saw an otter on a small rock being pestered by crows, within 30 seconds a golden eagle to my right 100m away and off to my left an adult sea eagle!!!!!!!!!!!!!
02/08/2005
Could have been a tough day today but with two enthusiastic children in the front with me it had to turn sunny!! Off we went with a distant adult sea eagle on a hillside. On to Loch na Keal where the weather cleared and we got a male peregrine sitting on a ledge and off he went. Then a female which we followed along the cliffs. A golden eagle sitting on a mountain which flew off but had given good views. Also a harrier and lots of smaller birds, seals and red deer of course.
01/08/2005
Right place right time today with distant young sea eagle and harrier. Adult goldie and youngster. Spectacular views of male golden eagle overhead and racing along a forest edge. Up came female harrier to fly over us, sparrowhawk, buzzards and ravens and then stirring views of two otters on an islet that looked like they had disappeared.
31/07/2005
Sun is fine because we humans enjoy it but remember so does wildlife and today showed that they can keep their heads down on sunny bright and windy days. But we still had sea eagles and golden eagles but the otters were sunning themselves somewhere secret today.
24/07/2005
I am getting lots of everyday sightings at the moment with nothing major standing out but its great to see the young sea eagles sitting out and enjoying the 'SUN' up here in the Hebrides. Probably best for me is to see male harriers carrying prey again and meeting up with the females but its absolutely certain that the climate and strange seas are confusing many creatures here at the moment.
20/07/2005
Good day again with two otters sleeping and then moving around a shoreline to groom and then sleep again. Top views of a sea eagle gliding over the otters and away across the sea. The golden eagles were very elusive again today but I caught two heading out to chase a sea eagle off to then return and sweep onto a hillside where it sat, but despite getting closer we could not find it again.
19/07/2005
Good day with sightings of otters, golden eagles,harriers and a sight I have been waiting for from a pair of sea eagles that are rearing young succesfully for the first time. The wind was right and the sea eagle was up over a forest and coming toward us to give big views as it sailed over our heads. Inspiring moment for all.
18/07/2005
A day with lots of sea eagle sightings culminating with one bird which was sittng on a mountain peak whilst its mate sat in a tree by the shore. The mountain bird was up and looking huge while the bird in the tree was off over the water and went in but did not catch anything and sat back in the tree again.
16/07/2005
This time of year brings humans more unusual than the wildlife!! Problem is that they bring out the Hebridean Basil Fawlty in me. TIPS.. Try to look a little bit interested and bright,you will not enjoy the trip if you are just looking for something to do, beg steal or borrow binoculars and practice and wear sensible footwear because it's a give away if you do not!!
13/07/2005
It pleased me no end to wait optimistically for a possible male hen harrier and then see him gliding over a forest carrying prey!! Which means?? Well that he is off to his mate to pass her the prey which is one of Britains great willdife sightings, and it was!
12/07/2005
I can't do better that to find a golden eagle soaring on one hill and then to turn round and find a sea eagle on the opposite hill. Off we go to find the otters and there he is lying on his back like a small bear and off he swam to another little island and then to shore with a fish and another nap.
11/07/2005
Nice crowd today who enjoyed a close view of sea eagle and then lunch by a freshwater loch as we watched a young golden eagle cross behind us and then an adult fly along a ridge and over sheep and then over more sheep and then off and on his way skyward. Good views but best was a male redstart close and hugely colourful.
10/07/2005
Highlight of today I think was a really evocative view of a golden eagle which was first spotted by one of my guests as it circled against terraced ridges and eventually alighted on a small outcrop and gave really super views in the telescope. This was a proper golden eagle sighting of an eagle in its domain!
08/07/2005
Lovely views of otters today with one five minutes after I had picked everyone up which came ashore with a fish. Then a female with two cubs, initially asleep on a little seaweed island. But the highlight for me was a school of dolphins in our loch early morning. I whipped our two guests up the road for an elevated view of them and then back for breakfast.
04/07/2005
Everything is behaving wierdly because of the climate and we have house martins just building a nest under the eves of the house. My best sighting today was another wierd one with little sighting of nesting harriers but we saw a male take prey and skip over the road where he suddenly passed prey to a female and where I have had no sightings at all for weeks!!
02/07/2005
Another missing posting of late. We followed a sea eagle with prey for some time travelling a few miles to rest on a mountainside and eventually rise above us and head for a south coast sea loch where I know they are nesting. The female golden eagle tried to get into wind with prey as the male led but they had to go back and tack over us and try a different route against the wind to feed her young. Great and was it the day I had an otter cross the road a mile from the sea?!?
01/07/2005
one or two of my postings seem to have gone missing lately, in particular a strange sighting of two bottle nosed dolphins in what appeared to be stealth mode on Loch Scridain. I first saw them when we were looking for otters but all they did as they scythed into the loch was rise together and then go down for perhaps 8 minutes or so each time to eventually disappear completely on a calm sea!
29/06/2005
Another whale day with distant views of animals lunge feeding near Little Colonsay but one of my guests had been close to them the day before. Dolphins are around and seen by a few people and today we also had lovely views of a female otter with cub and after fleeting views of both eagles we had top views of both above us.
28/06/2005
A beautiful and warm day today and undoubtedly the highlight for me was elevated views out over the Firth of Lorn and a Minke whale sliding through the water and lunge feeding once amid hundreds of shearwaters,auks and porpoise. We did see otters and eagles but the whale stole the show.
27/06/2005
Mull was beautifully moody and photogenic today as we travelled through clouds and blue sky. Wildlife was also exactly where it should be!! Two sea eagles sitting in a tree swept to sea level and landed on an island, shearwaters and auks were wheeling offshore and orchids are everywhere now.We had a male and female hen harrier three golden eagles, two otters, two red throated divers and a host of smaller birds.On the way home we checked for porpoise and duly found them.
25/06/2005
someone recently made the observation that I do not report on every single trip and that is true because an endless list of the same species could be pretty boring!! No I prefer to concentrate on a day or a sighting that is somewhat away from the norm. Before a trip the other day I saw a tawny owl on a fence outside our window, a merlin then wandered along. I went out to see the tawny and a short eared owl flew in and took its place. So the actual trip was only part of that days interesting sightings.
21/06/2005
We see lots on the trips that I do not record here of course because I only have space for the higlights and we had two today with a soaring sea eagle and initally the call of a peregrine which is pretty haunting and then the sight of him swooping and divng at ravens before tracking off along the coast.
19/06/2005
A biggish list today in fine weather. First off our TV sea eagle personalities sitting on a fence on a small hill. Male hen harrier nearby, seals and golden eagle,pergerine falcon sitting, Sea eagle sitting with a dramatic backdrop of misty glen and mountains,goshawk,three golden eagles and finally another otter eating a fish on a small seaweed covered rock.
18/06/2005
It was the birthday of a lady who is staying with us at Torr Buan and she was mad to see an otter. Well we had top views of one of the biggest otters I have seen. He swam out and came ashore with at least 7 crabs and maybe more.We also had various views of different white tailed sea eagles and so a good day in poorish weather.
17/06/2005
Excellent day today with two golden eagles gliding around sea cliffs,peregrine falcon sitting and sea eagle flying out over one of the best views on the Island. three further golden eagles interracting, a male hen harrier, two further golden eagles but I am told the highlight was fragrant orchid!!
14/06/2005
A pretty wet day today after a reasonable start when we saw two sitting sea eagles but along came the rain and I was surprised to see a golden eagle alight on top of a crag in the wet. Two hours later he was still there in the rain! Meantime we had seen a sleeping otter and a further otter swimming just offshore near seals and a distant red throated diver.
12/06/2005
Nothing major to recall in the last week but of course the usual sea and goldie sightings. The lighting and weather have stolen the show with the region around the house white with cotton grass which looks like it has snowed. Lots of sun lately and crystal clear landscape and colours.
08/06/2005
Mull has to be the best place in the world for eagle sightings and today was no exception with many views but a big sighintg of a golden eagle on a hillside eating what was probably a dead sheep or lamb. In the telescope you could easily see its golden head and wool flying in the air as it tore at its prey while another flew overhead with a sea egle sitting 500m away.
06/06/2005
Beautiful day. I had one of my gut feelings in Glen More today but intitally there was nothing about. Within ten minutes we had two adult sea eagles rising and going over us. A few minutes later we saw a female hen harrier quartering a hill and then, calling Ravens!! which produced a golden eagle that raced over us and chased a group of hooded crows to then rise and follow the sea eagles.Best sighting though was another osprey!!
05/06/2005
No trips today but my wife has asked me to mention that we still have accommodation vacancies for the first two weeks of August and so if you want a really lovely stay on the west coast of Scotlands most magical Hebridean Island please get phoning.
04/06/2005
Another excellent day with lots of sightings but I do wish people visiting Scotland would bring binoculars!!! What else are you likely to need?? Highlight was probably the two otters that we tracked to a rocky outcrop and were rewarded with very cose and playful views but the peregrines and short eared owls were good too.
03/06/2005
Very good day with sightings in order.Immature sea eagle,otter and seals,golden eagle sitting,great northern diver,peregrine falcon sitting,distant golden eagle,goldie being mobbed by crows,short eared owls,male hen harrier, two adult sea eagles sitting. Lots of smaller birds.
01/06/2005
Stealing the show are cetaceans lately with a strange sighting of two bottle nosed dolphins coming into Loch Scridain in a killer whale stealth like mode yesterday. They came up only to beathe and disappeared for minutes on end as they progressed down the loch to then disappear altogether on a very calm sea. If I did not knw my stuff I would have said pilot whales.
01/06/2005
A very mizzly day today which made eagles very difficult to find but we did spot one golden eagle sitting on the side of a crag. However we had romatic sightings of three short eared owls amid the mist and high mountains of Mull. One sat about twenty feet away and preened and winked at us. No otters strangely for wet day.
30/05/2005
Another brilliant eagle day with lots of sightings both flying, sitting and interracting with lots of other birds. Also fabulous weather and I hope you all saw the sea eagle footage from Mull on BBC tonight but ours was far better and far more dynamic!!!
30/05/2005
I have been in hospital on a false alarm for a week, hence the lack of postings but trips have continued with my son and a driver. Watch the BBC tonight because our sea eagles are on for a week!! Since my return to action we have had lots of eagle sightings in one form or another and today is glorioulsy sunny and calm.
16/05/2005
Lots of our usual sightings lately but today will sum them up with sea eagles flying, sitting and one in the mountains carrying big prey. In more or less the same sweep we had short eared owl, male hen harrier and golden eagle and finally an otter asleep on an island and of course whinchat,stonechat,redpoll,seals and deer etc. Very dry and sunny still but maybe rain soon.
10/05/2005
Another terrific sunny day but with very little wind for a change. No otters today but an excellent view of two adult sea eagles that had obviously just got hold of a conger eel but where from? Then as I suspected I caught sight of the otter whom they had pinched it from. At least 250 pink footed geese flew close overhead and we had excellent views of male hen harrier and two short eared owls, distant golden eagle today.
09/05/2005
May is shaping up to be its usual sunny and reliable self as we had a fenale otter with two young on the way out and a further dog otter later in the day. Sea Eagles in between along with golden eagles, hen harriers and more good weather.
06/05/2005
Only two people on the trip today, amazing!! But we still had otter, sea eagle,golden eagle and male and female hen harrier. Higlight though was my run home when I saw three adult sea eagles interracting together and in one of Mulls most spectacular localities. Two alighted on a shingle spit for a while until the gulls gave up pestering them.
04/05/2005
Another day in my beautiful Hebridean office!! with sea eagles, otter, hen harriers, peregrine falcon, golden eagles, tree pipit, stonechat, whinchat, wheatears, willow warblers, redpolls, cuckoo, great northern and red throated divers and etc etc!!
03/05/2005
An exciting day today for as we set off toward Lochdon lots of gulls were up and I felt it was probably the sea eagles, maybe a peregrine, or outside chance of an osprey. Sure enough there was the osprey which gave us long term views as the sea egales came out and eventually chased it off but we found it again sitting on top of a tree and it then rose and gained lots of height before heading north. Otters and golden eagles were seen but the early part of the day was high drama.
02/05/2005
A challenging day today when the weather patterns and the tides for otter spotting were never quite right but its all relative!! We still had a two pairs of hen harriers coming together on different territories and one pair were having trouble with another adult female. Sea eagles and loons gave good views and the coastal walk was lovely.
01/05/2005
A difficult day chasing the weather but we had a sea eagle sitting, great northern divers in summer plumage. I had a a merlin on the way to get everyone and a golden eagle coming home but the higlight for me was an adult male sea eagle gliding along a craggy slope to alight a mile away. After stopping and searching I found it wandering around a grassy slope about a hundred meters away before it lifted to give big views!
29/04/2005
I had a keen crowd today and a group of chaps that wanted to see eagles. We had good views of a young golden eagle flying and sitting preening and an adult golden eagle hanging in the wind on the opposite side of the same glen. We also had a sea eagle flying back toward its nesting area and it may have previously been with the golden eagles. Good sightings!
28/04/2005
Wow its a wild day today and I would not want to be a sea eagle chick in the nest! But it's been very good lately and after three trips for our own Torr Buan Guests we finally got a family of otters playing and fighting around a small islet. But lots of eagle sightings as usual and a 'gang' of three youngsters talon grappling and interracting was entertaining in Glen More yesterday.
26/04/2005
We have had beautiful weather here in the Hebrides for a few days now. In fact it has been almost too sunny and most birds of prey have been lazing around and not prepered to do much. However we had sea eagles carrying big prey yesterday and one romped off toward a small bay and showed its flying skills as it hovered over the sea looking for prey. Otters are quiet but will see them today!!
21/04/2005
Nothing major stands out in the last few days but what is not major here may be very major down there!! So yes otters, sea eagles, golden eagles, porpoise, short eared owl, hen harriers, common sandpipers arriving, cuckoos calling, divers now in summer plumage, sparrowhawks in the open, gannet, turnstones, guillemot and razorbills etc and very sunny weather!!
19/04/2005
Today is glorious with snow on the top of Ben More and clear blue skies and sea. Yesterday was prettty drizzly but we still saw otters on the east coast with seals and an otter on the west. Golden eagle sitting, plus a sea eagle doing the same, male and female hen harrier, porpoise, divers,slavonian grebes,first common sandpiper and lost of other things!!
16/04/2005
Things are warming up here as they do this time of year, with lots of eagle sightings, many now having young at the nest. Peregrines on our sea cliffs are giivng noisy and dynamic views. Short eared owls on one territory are reliable. Slavonian grebes are in summer plumage, great northern divers are a regular and we are now getting otter sightings every day but yesterday we only had a glimpse as one dashed off to the sea. Harriers are around the house every day. Looking forward to May.
10/04/2005
A good day today with enthusiastic people. First off was an immature sea eagle in Glen Aros, two seperate otters on Loch na Keal, one behaving like a small bear. Golden Eagle sitting and flying, peregrine calling, Adult Sea Eagle very close and hugging the hill because of the wind.Two short eared owls sitting and flying, finally female hen harrier and of course the usual Divers, Slavonian Grebe, Seals, Red Deer etc.
09/04/2005
Lovely elevated view of a female otter with her cub today but we had yet another 'gorillas in the mist' sighting to follow our short eared owls in the cloud the other day. This time it was a distant adult sea eagle coming toward us from a mountain range as a large snow shower enveloped us and the eagle but it kept on coming to give dramatic views.
05/04/2005
A great eagle day today with lots of varied sightings and also good hen harrier views too. Probably best moment of all was three golden eagles belting over our heads us to talon grapple while three sea eagles looked on. I was excited about the peregrine sightings too because they are far rarer here than a golden eagle and ours always live on spectaular sea cliffs.
02/04/2005
A week ago a girl kindly took some shots of my new vehicle and the rest of our party but she has not sent them to me as agreed. Can someone else on the trip remember the moment at Loch Uisg? If so please let me know the date because I could probably track her down from that. Thanks.
01/04/2005
The days most dramatic moment was when we went into a cloud on out highest road and two short eared owls were swirling around in it and alighting on the hillside. We were steadily consumed by the cloud and the owls disppeared into it but we were soon ahead of the cloud again. Every single day on Mull has some magical moment.
31/03/2005
Whilst everyone else was excited about otters and eagles I was pretty excited about a bird that I had not seen on Mull for maybe twenty years and that was a Magpie which we saw at Grasspoint. It's a bit like seeing a Sea Eagle in Sheffield I suppose.
29/03/2005
Another great eagle day with one young goldie repeatedly passing prey to himself!! Two male harriers fighting, golden eagle being attacked by two peregrine falcons and still more eagles.
28/03/2005
Gosh it was wet today but there cannot be many places like our national scenic area where you can watch a black throated diver in summer plumage [Britains most beautiful bird] and pan left to see a barn owl in the middle of the day posing on a small rocky crag about 25 yards away.
27/03/2005
Plenty of eagle sightings lately, otters are tough!! divers everywhere, short eared owl, barn owl and tawny owl. Great weather which I am told will continue all week.
23/03/2005
A lovely day today with plenty of sun and lots of eagle sightings. Great views initially of two adult golden eagles gliding over our heads in the mountains. Then sea and golden eagle together. More golden eagles and my first view of our peregrines on territory that live across the sea from us, Excting for me!!!More sea eagles tallon grappling.
21/03/2005
My previous posting should have read 20th March. Today we had pretty bad weather but two very distant golden eagles, slavonian grebes, black throated and great northern divers, turnstones,redshank, golden eye, widgeon, teal, deer and seals of course but the weather dominated today.
21/03/2005
Lots of eagle sightings today and each sighting got better than the last. Personally I was really pleased to see two new youngsters tallon touching and obviously showing an interest in Mull.
19/03/2005
Mull is like a tropical island today and shorts are the order of the day. Yesterday was a very good trip and I christened my new vehicle but it was wet and cold most of the day. However top sightings in the form of black throated diver in summer plumage, sea eagle sitting, barnacle geese and whooper swans, otter trotting along the shore, male and female hen harrier and a very white barn owl.
17/03/2005
Well the weather finally broke here after super weather and we have now had a couple of days of rain. I have a first trip out tomorrow in my new vehicle and by the way I know lots of people have a fondness for my old landrover and so if you want it you can have it for £3,900!!!! for a quick sale as they say but you will have to collect it yourselves. So come by train and drive it back!
13/03/2005
I have been looking forward to getting my new wildlife vehicle and I am really pleased with it. It's a really nice brand new people carrier and very comfortable, great visibility all round, very quiet but powerful. lots of storage space and the exterior artwork etc looks very impressive and professional. It got plenty of admiring looks when I was collecting it in Yorkshire. So get booking early!!
05/03/2005
No trips at the moment but I do get my new vehicle next week! I am not sure about losing my Indiana Jones image and the landrover but everyone will have more room and more comfort. No matter, its wall to wall sun here, though cold and has been for a few weeks now. With all this glass around the new house it's like being in a very nice greenhouse with a terrific view.
26/02/2005
More glorious weather here and solid sightings of our wildlife. First off was two adult sea eagles sitting in a conifer. Next we had two otters just arriving onshore to settle down and have a nap in the sun. 5 golden eagles at range but the highlight was finding an adult sea eagle on an old nest and looking very settled!!! The island was wonderfully quiet.
21/02/2005
Today is awesome. The whole landscape is orange and brown with light grey rocks protruding through. Across the sea Mulls highest mountains are covered with snow.We have doors and windows open because it is too warm and we are heading for a superb sunset when all of the mountains are going to turn pink. This is not really countryside here in the Hebrides, it's wilderness at its most evocative. How on earth can anyone live in the city??
20/02/2005
What an absolutely stunning scene from the house today. We have such a vista of mountains and islands from here and the sea is flat calm,the sky is blue with the odd cloud, tht whole sweep across the lansdcape is red and brown and there is a very light icing sugar dusting of snow all around us. Great day for a stroll. My big tip for a holiday in western scotland is wait for easterly winds.
19/02/2005
Warm and very sunny here on ther west coast of Mull today and its easterly winds forecast for the week and so I would get my binos and get off to the Hebrides!!
17/02/2005
Good weather today and it seems that we are in for easterly winds!! which as we all know means sunny in the Hebrides!! At least 15 eagles today but it could have been more. no harriers which was odd, an iceland gull, otter being very shy, red throated and great northern divers, slavonian grebe and always seals and deer of course. Ambre Solaire tomorrow.
16/02/2005
Mizzly day today but we managed to juggle the weather and got two golden eagles, an otter,a few porpoise, goosanders, really close iceland gull, greenshanks and latterly just as it cleared a sitting sea eagle that then flew pretty close to us.Lovely sunset!!
09/02/2005
Dodgy weather today but good sightings still. An otter, sea eagle sitting, golden eagle over our heads in very strong winds, at least 160 barnacle geese on a beach and grassland. great northern divers, a male and female hen harrier together, three glaucous gulls. Lots of usual things of course like red deer, seals, sea ducks etc.
08/02/2005
What's great about living somewhere like this is that nature is literally all around you if you bother to look. Not for the first time I was up collecting our dustbin from the end of our track and two golden eagles were directly overhead. I have come to the conclusion that eagles are over the house every single day of the week but I can't be staring into the sky all day. Its tough enough concentrating when my office has one of the best views in the world.
06/02/2005
A visually stunning day today from a walk on our sunny beaches in the south where we saw lots of Barnacle Geese to Ben More capped with snow. The sun is setting out over Iona and the other islands now and the Hen Harriers are getting closer because one just flew wthin 10 feet of the lounge window.
05/02/2005
A nice day in The Hebrides today and even better tomorrow when with my optimists hat on I hope that one of the Snowy Owls on Coll or Tiree might move a few miles south to the southern tip of Mull, because I intend being there to capture the moment. Or a Gyrfalcon maybe. Or maybe not!!
04/02/2005
No trips just lately but the views from the new house are like watching an endless nature programme. A harrier drifted 20 feet in front of me 10 minutes ago. Though its very painful looking across toward Coll and Tiree where there are at least three snowy owls at present!!!!!!
27/01/2005
Back to doing wildlife trips today and within 10minutes we had an otter heading to its holt. Lots of divers, a young golden eagle, a sea eagle alighting on an island to me mobbed by gulls while a few hundred barnacle geese looked on. A glaucous gull, two more golden eagles, two more sea eagles and two female hen harriers. Finally two close otters.
26/01/2005
We are currently in a dry, calm and quite sunny spell. The light shafting down onto the islands offshore is quite beautiful and I feel like checking the sea every moment in case I am missing something big! I have a trip tomorrow which should be very good and it will give me a chance to check on sea eagle sites and we may get the odd rarity around.
22/01/2005
Well we and Mull had a good plug in the Daily Mail yesterday when Bill Oddie recommended us as one of Britains top ten wildlife destinations. But the day was really stolen by the weather again because as we drove down through Glen Coe with mountains dusted with snow and across to Mull on a flat sea and a great sunset, it was good to be alive and away from the cities. Nice day again today.
16/01/2005
Its a lovely Hebridean day today with the odd cloud and lots of blue sky and sea. I was on the roof fixing a slate and a sea eagle drifted overhead. Probably looking for prey of course and often carrion but my cold is not that bad just yet thank heaven.
15/01/2005
Well I have this dreadful cold which I picked up as usual in the city!! Of course its a bit like living in the Amazon rainforest here where you easily get bugs once you meet other people! The other day was like living in a twister for 24hours and most say it was the worst weather ever here. But a day later the sea was calm and the sun was out and it was very mild and like living in Samoa!!
05/01/2005
Keen people today wanting to see a golden eagle. It started very wet but cleared to be sunny and very windy. On a sheltered section of coast we had very close views of an otter. Above the highest road on the island we spotted a golden eagle struggling against the wind. Within five minutes it was just 100 feet above us and givng top eagle views as we all got buffeted by the wind. Great moment with an eagle and pulsating elements. Lots more as usual and another glaucous gull.
03/01/2005
A couple of otters again today, low cloud and so no golden eagles but a good view of a sitting sea eagle, black throated diver, at least 250 barnacle geese, fallow and red deer, dipper and two hen harriers.
02/01/2005
No trip today but I forgot to mention the group of porpoise seen on the last trip, but taking friends to the ferry this afternoon we saw two glaucos gulls together, a couple of otters and . we all watched a white tailed sea eagle drifting past our house
Sightings from previous years
2008
2005
David Woodhouse
Isle of Mull Wildlife Expeditions
Ulva Ferry, Isle of Mull
Argyll, Scotland
Tel/Fax: 01688 500121
Mull Eco-Charter
