With gale force winds and torrential rain showers Fly Flatts would have been unworkable so with a good chance of maritime birds being blown in I headed for Fly Flatts sister water Leeshaw Reservoir, Oxenhope which I use as my reserve patch.
Leeshaw lies just 2 miles to the NW of Fly Flatts and is on the same flight path so any moving birds that pass Fly Flatts in a north or north west direction also pass Leeshaw. It is an ideal water for Osprey as the reservoir is well stocked with Trout thanks to Bradford Waltonians Angling Club and Ospreys have been reported fishing here in previous years as well as Kittiwakes present on the water.
It is slightly lower than Fly Flatts so escapes the worst of the fog and is flanked at three sides my moorland ridges giving it a slight amount of shelter.
This morning the westerly wind was blasting at W>7 blowing at 33 m.p.h. with heavy showers but managed a dog walk before the weather deteriorated . From there it was get behind the tailgate and watch the water.
Gulls were piling over with several Herring and Common moving into the wind whilst Black Headed were staying on the water. I had to take photos of the small gulls to check for Kittiwakes as they were very hard to see in the large waves and white horses but nothing exotic appeared although it was an interesting watch in such severe conditions.
Oystercatchers, Lapwings, Canadas and Greylags were plentiful in the fields but still no sign of Redshank there.
Getting near the end of the watch everything suddenly left the water, including the 3 Cormorants which seemed strange until a few minutes later when the worst hailstorm I have ever seen appeared. The whole area was blanked out and after a few quick shots I threw everything in the back of the car and got out quick while I still could with the track rapidly turning white.
Getting back up the hill to TMR was a slow slippy task but I then ran out of it as I approached Denholme Gate. A real wild upland birding morning but enjoyable to be out in the adverse conditions and see the water at its worse.
BS