26th June. Problematic Pork Pies

For the last few years I've been birding in denial. No denying the fact that actually I'm a fairly average - or even below average birder - who occasionally gets lucky with a few scarce and the very occasional rare. No. Denial that I am getting old (er) and that my eyesight is rapidly failing. Whilst you can pay for the finest optics in the world there's not a fat lot you can do when your eyes - the finest pair of optics you will ever own - start to pack up.  Recently it's got worse. Without bin's birds now appear as fuzzy images and after just 10 minutes of birding my distant vision gets frustratingly bad to the point where birding really isn't enjoyable. Digiscoping is difficult even when wearing my 'readers' and I suspect my degrading vision contributes to my generally crap photos. So having to accept that my eyes are pretty crap, and will get worse, I now have to learn to combine binoculars with glasses!

Should have gone to Specsavers!

Despite my near myopic state I've still managed some birding, but not much.  Seemingly, and no thanks to the wet weather, the waders on the patch are not doing too bad with Lapwing, Redshank, Oystercatcher and LRP all enjoying suacess. A few signs of return passage with Curlews,Dunlin and Ringed Plover moving through hinting that it won't be long before things start happening again. Hopefully my corrected vision will help me get the sites first and much awaited (and deserved) proper rare!