The Boston Belle Boat-trip.................................................... Eddie Bathgate

The Boston Belle Boat-trip

As a way of saying thank you for volunteering, the RSPB East invites its helpers to attend a variety of events. I was delighted to hear that there was still space on their Lincolnshire trip out into The Wash for an autumnal waderfest. Four of us SOG Turtle Dove volunteers headed up early, stopping off initially on the way at SWT Micklemere for an hour to enjoy the Lapwing flock, then onto Gedney Drove End on the south side of The Wash. We set our scopes up on the sea wall and enjoyed the birds and the vista of mud flats, tidal channels and coastal lagoons. Unfortunately the tide was right out, so bird life was distant but we were soon to be on board the Boston Belle for the afternoon, surely one of the best ways of viewing the UK’s most important wintering wader site. WeBS data shows that over 345,000 birds, mainly waders & wildfowl, overwinter on The Wash. This far outnumbers the 189,000 birds on the Ribble Estuary, the second most important area, with Morecambe Bay being the third most important site in Britain. With a Buzzard and Peregrine flying overhead we met 30 other volunteers from a variety of RSPB projects on board the boat. I chatted to local RSPB group leaders and both Little Tern and Stone-curlew helpers. It was a fun crowd with plenty of room to both birdwatch and socialise. Wildlife sightings Boston Belle were called out by all and the boats tannoy system announced the bird species, with directions to help everybody see everything. Heading down river Kingfishers and Grey Wagtails were seen and once we were past the old industrial wharf, with its ironic ‘Boston-Gateway to Europe’ sign, the mudflats opened up and the waderfest began. In all 65 species were sighted during the trip, not an enormous total but the numbers of birds seen were vast. We saw huge flocks of Dunlin, Oystercatchers and Black-tailed Godwits. Curlew Sandpipers and Bar-tailed Godwits were in amongst them for comparison. Distant clouds of Knot swirled like will o’ the wisp over The Wash, Common Seals were on the mud banks and Little Egrets in the channels. Sparrowhawks were seen hunting along the sea wall and two Marsh Harriers flew in off the sea, while Buzzards were up displaying over the farmland too. With hot drinks available, a superb buffet lunch and licensed bar, The Boston Belle was a superb venue and a wonderful way for the RSPB to show its thanks to those who help. I would highly recommend The Boston Belle as a day trip and Gedney too as a vantage point, especially if the tide is in.