Slender billed Nutcracker at Mundesley in Norfolk

I was walking the reservoir on Saturday morning when news broke that a Nutcracker had been refound in Mundesley Norfolk having first been seen on Thursday. I called the Jims, marched back to the car and picked them up on my way to the M25. It took 3 hours to get to Trunch road in Mundesley where we found a crowd of like minded fools standing in the rain watching the front garden where the bird had last been seen a couple of hours prior to our arrival. We stood in the rain for a few hours chatting and catching up with birding pals from far and wide but there was no sign of the target and eventually we gave in late afternoon and started the journey home only to see news that the bird had returned to the garden with us no more than five miles out. We turned around and headed back but of course the bird had now gone again and now we had to talk to the same guys as before but now they'd all seen the bird and we obviously hadn't. We stuck it out until it was almost dark still raining and now quite soaked we headed home very disappointed in how the twitch had turned out for us.

Dad had a lunch commitment for Sunday so quickly ruled himself out of a next day return and I was having some real nasty pain from my knee so wasn't if I could do the drive again. I told Jimmy to keep his phone on and if I woke thinking I could make the drive I'd pick him up. I tossed and turned all night both with the knee pain and the thought of missing this much wanted bird. At 3am I called Jim and picked him up at 4.30am having decided despite the pain in my knee I was still going to try for it again.

On arrival at around 7.45am we found an even bigger crowd than yesterday gathered at the house and parking was difficult meaning we had to walk about a mile to get back to the house which I could have done without on a dodgy knee. As we neared the house we noticed the crowd had disappeared so a quick check on birdguides "Nutcracker showing well on Water Lane" and off we go at pace another mile or so down the road to find about two hundred people gathered on a wooden bridge in the local park. With help we got straight on the bird and enjoyed it in view for the next two hours as it moved from the trees to the road to the houses and back looking for food which seemed to be mostly wasps.

What a day, what a twitch and what a bird!

I've wanted to see a Nutcracker since I was a young lad reading bird books thinking I'd never see some of these. Spoonbill had that romance for me and I still remember my first at Minsmere back in the 80's and this Nutcracker is very much a similar iconic bird for me.

The journey home was painful as my knee paid me back for a) all the driving of the last two days, b) the walking to the bird including a short run and c) all the standing around but no amount of pain would take away from the experience of seeing this fabulous bird.

Year list now 234 Life list now 458 and Norfolk list now 301.