Today the 21st June 2011 will be a date that will stay with me for the rest of my life. The day started off with breakfast at Sveta's house and then the morning was spent sorting some bits out in the base. Then in the early afternoon Martin and Myslef decided to head out and do some surveying of the morane hills. We decided to take a short cut and cross the marsh and rivers as the water levels have now dropped enough to enable to us to wade through the rivers and marshes. We had only been walking a short distance when Martin located a Spoon Billed Sandpiper flying up and as it did a Peregrine was close by and for a split second we watched with stress but luckily the Spoon Billed Sandpiper dropped away from the Peregrine. Then we waited and shortly after we saw the Spoon Billed Sandpiper returning giving a short busrt of display song to the same area and land nearby. We waited a while and then we located the bird walking in the grass but loosing the bird to view and then relocating it close by. Martin went in a south direction from the bird and I went west and we scanned trying to locate it in amongst the grassy area. Martin moved closer and I scanned closeby with my scope. It was then when I watched the bird walking with its head crouched down and then stand in the same spot for a short while, looking around before it crouched down and I witnessed the rear end go up as it "hunkered down on to the nest"! "Boom" I said to Martin Ive got a nest and Martin had also witnessed this from a different angle. Photo below shows the Spoon Billed Sandpiper that Just watching this bird hunker down on the nest with side on views in good light was just the ultimate moment for me. 
View below shows the marsh in which we were present this afternoon. After dinner I took the quad bike out with Nigel and we went down to another area where we went and had a look at a Red Knot on the nest, another truly remarkable sighting of another great species of wader.During the evening we talked about the fact it was the "summer solstice" The view of the sky at night has been impressive of late but tonight after a rare day of sunshine was truly impresive. So much so I decided to change the lenses on my camera and take a few photo's of the view. It was whilst taking in this view as I lit up a cigarette I began to become aware that this place does have some kind of power, "a force", I don't know and maybe I will never know but there certainley is something very special about this area of Meinopilgino with the panoramic scenic beauty but also fiercly brutal and hostile all rolled in to one. It is now 03:20 and I am still awake admiring the view of the sky at night and I think you would find that even Patrick Moore would appreciate the view below.
