Having an unexpected free day last Monday - 1st September - I decided to see what was happening on the west Norfolk coast. It has been a while as it is not the area to see wildlife in school holidays  - too many people around - but worth a try on the day before the local schools return.

I decided to try RSPB Titchwell first but that was a total waste of time. With other sites complaining about the lack of water, there was an excess here - lapping up to the front of Island Mere Hide and surrounded by uncut reeds. Nothing to photograph there, or, in fact, anywhere else on the reserve. Visiting Titchwell RSPB has become a total waste of time for photography.

Photographers must provide a reasonable proportion of the RSPB's income - It's about time that they realised that and provided the facilities that were once available. Rant over!!!!

So I moved on - Lady Anne Drive Holkham was like a motorhome exhibition so I did not stop. Next call was Burnham Overy Staithe - sailboards, small boats and packed with holiday makers so also not worth stopping. This has all the hallmarks of a bad day!!!

So the next call, Brancaster Staithe, just after high tide and not at all busy with people and cars, but few birds either. So I resigned to a bad day and sat eating my lunch in the car before going home. And then I noticed a Turnstone - just about - as it was well camouflaged.

and then others arrived and posed nicely in the sunlight.

A few smaller waders turned up - Dunlin

and a couple of Ringed Plovers.

A Little Egret has been fishing but rather too distant until it decided to fly - straight at the camera.

and several Redshanks also turned up, one catching a small crab.

Then a fight broke out between two of them that carried on for several minutes.

with the loser flying off.

That was an event - a couple of hundred photos taken posing a later problem of which to keep.

So, not for the first time, Brancaster Staithe harbour turns up trumps.

Going home, I called in at Thornham harbour with the usual Curlew feeding before giving me a flypast opportunity.

So what started out as a bad day ended up a good day.