O Glorious Patch

Managed to get out this morning after an absence of a few days due to working abroad. Does Scotland count as abroad? Some people would like it to be it appears. Anyhow, naturally knowing I was away the lads had a fine time, racking up double figures of Wheatears, another Pied Flycatcher, heaps of Redstarts and other good stuff. I enjoyed these vicariously of course, but was somewhat itching to get out there as soon as possible. That was this morning, and happily it was still on fire. My short 45 minute amble produced up to six Whinchat, a couple of Spotted Flycatchers and Garden Warblers, as well as the real target of Redstart, with somewhere between one and four seen. Two were seen well, the other two I have no idea, they might have been Robins for all I know. But seeing as the patch is so ludicrously good at present I expect they were indeed Redstarts, However just one was enough to break into the magic three figures, the stuff of patch year-listing dreams, and is now the seventh year on the trot that I have managed it. Given how little I am sometimes able to bird the place, it makes the patch seem even better than it actually is. I really am very fortunate to have it on my doorstep.