THE OUTER LIMITS in SUMMER

SAT 17 JUNE – SAT 24 JUNE 2023

SAT 8 JUNE – SAT 15 JUNE, SAT 15 JUNE – SAT 22 JUNE 2024

PRICES: £1795pp

Early Birder Prices from £1645pp (subject to availability). Contact us before booking! No single supplement. Full details and a Trip Report are on our website. Please read FIELD NOTES on page 9.

An exciting summer itinerary to see the birdlife of mountain, moor, forest and coast, with special attention paid to the rugged beauty and desolate vistas of the islands of Harris and Lewis in the Outer Hebrides, voted as the best island destination in Europe!

On this two-centre holiday we enjoy glorious scenery, long evenings and some of the best summer birding in Britain as we combine the summer birds of the mainland with a three-day, two-night visit to the northern Outer Hebrides, one of the most spectacular island destinations in the world!

During our time at the Mountview Hotel, we comb all the special habitats, including tranquil pinewoods and the vast Cairngorm mountain plateau. Target birds include Crested Tit, Scottish Crossbill, Osprey, Dipper, Buzzard, Goldeneye, Red Grouse, Black-throated Diver, Lesser Redpoll, Peregrine, breeding waders and Slavonian Grebe. Capercaillie are increasingly scarce, and we no longer look for them at this time of year, though incidental sightings are possible. We spend a full day on the Cairngorm plateau for Ptarmigan and Dotterel, and at the inner Moray Firth seek fishing Osprey, Eider, Goosander, Red-breasted Merganser, Red-throated Diver, Yellowhammer, Sandwich, Common, Arctic and Little Tern, Gannet, Guillemot and Razorbill, and waders may include Turnstone, Bar-tailed Godwit and Red Knot in breeding plumage.

On Harris and Lewis our activities will suit the weather and any known rare birds. We visit the Butt of Lewis to search for seabirds and vagrants and explore the remote west coast and the peatlands, checking a few hidden lochans that hold nesting waders. White-tailed and Golden Eagle, Merlin and Hen Harrier are realistic targets on the vast moorlands, with Golden Plover and the occasional Greenshank and divers on the peatlands. Our last morning may be spent looking for eagles, Otter and perhaps Cetaceans from viewpoints such as Tiumpan Head. Two very different ferry crossings promise varied and exciting birding, with Manx Shearwater, Great and Arctic Skua, Black Guillemot, other auk species, gulls, terns and Gannet to entertain. A great birding adventure!

Total species for the holiday approx. 110. Other wildlife should include Red Squirrel, Red Deer, Roe Deer, Grey Seal, Common Seal and Otter. Mountain Hare, Minke Whale, Basking Shark, Bottlenosed Dolphin and Harbour Porpoise are possible.

Five nights at Mountview Hotel. Two nights at a comfortable hotel on the Outer Hebrides.