Finland \ Norway 2013 Pt 3: Lapland - A cafe, deep snow and a Bluethroat

Neljan Tuulen Tupa - Pine Grosbeak Heaven so good I visited Twice.

A hostel, Café, Bird Paradise.

It has a reputation with Lapland bird travellers for getting close to Pine Grosbeak. It is true, but add Common Redpoll, Arctic Redpoll, Brambling, Waxwing, Siberian Jay and Red Squirrel. Other well seasoned travellers have used the café window feeders to get close views and to thaw out. No need for me as we arrived in warm un-seasonal weather.

Just before we arrived we stopped at a lake a few kilometres south to get stunning views of a male Smew.

please click on the images to enlarge them



 

meanwhile just down the road at Tuulen Tupa we didn't take long to locate the main target species.... male - Pine Grosbeak.

 

 

and the female

 

 

and some more ...... just because!

Not much snow about but enough to tempt them down to eat it

 

 

taking cover

 

 

ah sunshine

 

 

a return to the mound of snow

this time the female finds time for a preen

 

 

On the second visit there were good numbers of Brambling in superb summer plumage, too many and too active to count the numbers here. The males were very skittish and the females in small numbers.

 

 

 

Certainly one of the target birds of this trip was the Siberian Jay but one that I hadn't thought would cause us any sighting problems on this trip.

 

Well after day 6 it had risen to the top of the "wanted" list. Plenty of locations where these fellas should have been but weren't were visited, with a few locations revisited to try and connect with it. Plenty of other locations were they could have been were visited alas we still didn't connect..... until now. I had given myself an hours time-out here before having to set off on the road south again. With 15 minutes of this dedicated stop left, silently if not a little clumsily it appeared right in front of me. I was startled for a second then took it in for a moment and then remembered I had a camera so managed a few shots before it was gone, so with that in mind I am happy with these record portraits.

 

Maybe, just maybe the possible huge disappointment turned out to be the highlight of the trip......

what a stunner! 

certainly one of my highlights of this trip not only for the run-around it gave but also as it really is a lovely looking species.

 

I`m here ...... Siberian Jay

 

 

what you looking at?

 

 

simply gorgeous!

 

Redpolls galore

 

Hornemanns Arctic Redpoll (Carduelis hornemanni hornemanni)

 

 

Mealy Common Redpoll (Carduelis flammea)

 

 

 

This is Tuulen Tupa

 

 

A brilliant place and well deserving of a post to itself.

 

All was not quite done in this area though as just a few miles up the road we pulled into a layby when we discovered this Bluethroat skulking around a stream, it didn't play ball for 5 minutes as it snook in and out of bushes on the rocky margins only a few feet away but then sat out just long enough to get a single shot, a chance find and a brilliant addition to my life list and the trip list.

 

 

Throw in a wee bit of snow that ensured I could not get to the summit of Mt Kilopaan for Ptarmigan and Dotterel.... believe me I did try, probably too hard

 

 

it started off ok - honestly! the board walk looked navigable

 

 

however once the boardwalk ran out the snow got deeper....

 

 

and only once it reached my waist did I know I was beaten, I am sure Jeff has some images of me waist deep that may or may not find it onto these pages *** update***

 

not a problem from here .....

 

 

Yours truly heading for a dry patch

 

 

and then knee deep in the white stuff (with a polite two fingered salute)

 

 

 

Plenty of water from Jeff's Wellies after the aborted walk

 

 

only 5 minutes later did someone Ski down to the bottom of the mountain and wonder what idiots had made the prints in the snow..... he shook his head in disbelief and probably had a laugh at our expense over his diner.

 

Part 4 we cover Varangafjord in North Eastern Norway