Back and out again!

I returned from Tenerife yesterday after spending a great 10 days out there and enjoying the great birds and scenery but I've got a blog post coming for that.
I got back to Shetland at 4:50 in the afternoon and Tommy was already waiting at Scatsta for me, we'd been planning to go south to Levenwick to try and get the Rubythroat that was down there but it had been on and off due to the plane being delayed (by a hour and a half).
But by the light we decided to just go for it, we shot off south at 5:05 and I called up Phil Charleton (I first met Phil in Fair Isle last October and he also took me around his county of Northumberland this April), he had come up to Shetland today and I'd said I'd take him down since we were going.

We shot off and we picked up Phil, we told tales along the way and he also gave me the 2013 Northumberland and Tyneside bird report which I'd asked if he could get for me (some people collect stamps others coins, me well I collect bird reports, preferably ones from the counties I've visited).
It took us twenty odd minutes to get south and luckily there was a couple of birders standing around the garden, three in total, Gary Bell, Newton Harper and one man I didn't recognize, Phil and I got out and joined them, the bird hadn't been since for half an hour so it was time for the waiting game.
While we were waiting I asked Gary if there was any other birds around, they were Olive-backed Pipits and Blue Tits everywhere! dotted around the isles! and two Short-toed Larks at Hillwell and a Radde's Warbler out west so it sounded good.

While looking for the Rubythroat a Song Thrush flew by and a Goldcrest was in the trees with a few Robins at the bases of them.
Though we stood there for half an hour the bird didn't so everybody left and we had a further look around Levenwick, managing to pull up 15 Robins wasn't bad.

Back north we headed and in Lerwick we took one quick stop by the beach at Tesco, to twitch one thing that anybody can get.
The Sea Kale! couldn't resist going to see it, now its looking a bit past its due date though, going all yellow.

But that was the end of our day and I'll be seeing Phil again in a couple of days time as I'm off to Fair Isle on the 13th!

PS: I still have two blog posts to come 1: on Fair Isle in August 2: my Tenerife Holiday.