The day of the Short-toed Eagle

As my youngest daughter is so fond of saying "Oh my days...". After my morning WEBS count I thought that it may be a good idea to go and have a look at some dragons and do some walking on Ashdown forest following the report of a Short-toed Eagle there earlier in the week. Anyway while I was pottering around between Camp Hill and Crowborough the beast was refound from Gills Lap no more than a couple of miles from where I was, but alas, there was no phone signal deep in the valley... As I started to climb back to the car park to meet Sharon and the girls the phone went off and it was Nige with news that the bird was being watched just up the road, unfortunately I might as well have been at home in bed as it was going to take me that long to get to the site. Needless to say by the time I got to Gills Lap the boy had drifted out of sight. But all was not lost - it was clearly still in the area. A brief and unsatisfactory sighting and some claims were followed by a phone call from DC, who had just had it in Old Lodge, and then news that it was currently showing up near the old air strip from Long car park. In to the back of PC's van and off past the hatch at what felt like breakneck speed as I bounced around in the back. Then an erroneous message on twitter sent us scurrying back the wrong way before returning to Long in IB's wagon (sorry Paul but I was scared in the back) to find GH and Nige with news that the bird had dropped out of view and had not been seen for twenty minutes. But then what is this, a shout twenty yards to my left, "Its in the top of the tree"! Cue sudden sprint, "in the "v"shaped gap" says PM and suddenly there it is, griffonesque, perched on top of the pines, "s**t the bed"! After I guess about 15 minutes of stunning views through the scope the boy decided enough was enough and time to go snake hunting. Take off was followed by a brief period of low level circling before it drifted out of sight towards Chelwood gate. What more to be said apart from thanks to PM and  IB for lifts between car parks and ND, PM, DC, JE etc for calls on site. Oh and a big wet kiss for PM for going back to his van to get my camera which in my panic I had left in the back and without which I would not have any pics at all!