Yesterday with Fiona, I went to Saltholme RSPB bird sanctuary at Teeside near Middlesbrough. The weather was overcast and the light not so good but there were literally thousands of birds around particularly Plovers and Golden Plovers. When they all flew into the sky it was like great clouds of them swishing around. There were also hundreds of Canada geese. Best of all was a Hen Harrier had parked itself on the site for a few days and when we went to the highest point and looked over the hundreds of acres of reeds I actually saw it rise very briefly over the reeds and then dive back down into them. Total magic. Fiona did not feel so good with her sinusitis and was positively dizzy at one point but it did not stop her enjoying her RSPB lunch and the many exciting birds.