Date
Cost
Availability
Deposit
Single Supp
| 01 Nov - 08 Nov 2025
£2215.00
12 Spaces
£400.00
£200.00
Book Now
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| Leader | Julian Sykes & Ailie Brown |
| Day 1 | Arrive in Castle Douglas in time for
our evening meal, followed by a chat
about our plans for the coming week. |
| Days 2-7 | Wildlife and birdwatching exploration
including Caerlaverock WWT
Reserve, Ken-Dee Marshes RSPB
Reserve, Cairnsmore of Fleet NNR
and Red Kite feeding station. |
| Day 8 | After breakfast we shall say our farewells. |
| Weather | The weather can vary enormously
at this time of year. Typically we can
expect a mixture of sunshine and
showers with temperatures in the
range 0-15ºC. Some sites are
exposed, so wind will be a factor |
| Walking | We shall walk on a variety of wide
and narrow paths, generally in good
condition. Some walking will be
on boardwalk and some will be on
rough coastline. Walking boots are
recommended |
| Meals | All included from dinner on Day 1 to breakfast on Day 8 |
| Insects | Not a problem. |
| Accom | A comfortable former Coaching Inn offering double, twin and single rooms all ensuite. |
| Group | 12 |
A bird-rich winter retreat, with thousands of geese, swans,
raptors and waders, plus a fabulous Red Kite feeding station
in this beautiful, historic, but often ignored part of Scotland.48uep6bbph|00000E4E|Spey_BESQL3|HolidayTypes|Subheading 48uep6bbphidval|SOLWAY
| * Six species of goose, including Greenland White-fronted Goose
|
| * Great close up views of Whooper Swans being fed
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| * Chance of Golden Eagle, Merlin, Hen Harrier and Goshawk
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| * Visit to Threave Castle, plus look at Caerlaverock Castle and Sweetheart Abbey
|
| * Impressive flocks of Barnacle and Pink-footed Geese on coastal marshes
|
| * Red Kite feeding station giving spectacular views
|
| * Diversity of waders, gulls, ducks, divers, auks, grebes and more at Loch Ryan
|
| Day 1 | We meet at our hotel in Castle Douglas,
with time before dinner to chat about the
week ahead.
|
| Days 2-7 | The Solway now hosts approximately
40,000 wintering Barnacle Geese -
the entire Svalbard population!! This astonishing
number is all the more remarkable when you
realise numbers crashed to just 400 in the 1940s,
before WWT bought land at Caerlaverock,
instigating the start of their recovery. We hope
to see several thousand on our visit to this iconic
Reserve, alongside other species such as Greylag,
Pink-footed and perhaps even rarities such as
Snow Goose, that have occurred here.
The trumpeting of Whooper Swans is a constant
soundtrack, but becomes especially loud just
before feeding time and as they fly in to the feeding pool. In the hides we’ll get good views of duck
such as Pintail, Gadwall, Wigeon, Teal and maybe
even Green-winged Teal. Waders in the pools and
surrounding fields include Golden Plover, Lapwing,
Oystercatcher and Black-tailed Godwit and distant
flocks of Knot and Dunlin on the coast, where
Peregrine, Hen Harrier or Merlin may fly through.
Along the coast, the RSPB Reserve at Mersehead
is another fabulous spot for wintering wildfowl,
with flocks of Wigeon, Teal, Shoveler, Shelduck and
Pintail and more flocks of Barnacle and Pink-footed
Geese. Perhaps we’ll find one of the small number
of leucistic Barnacle Geese here - almost white,
but with faint markings just visible. There is a good
chance that Hen Harrier or Short-eared Owl are
using the area to winter. Nearby coastal areas such
as Southerness Point and Carsthorn Bay, can be
a good sites to see wintering waders, with flocks of Oystercatchers, Dunlin, Bar-tailed Godwits and
Grey Plover, while rocky areas host Turnstone and
a few Purple Sandpiper. This is a good place to
look for Scaup and there may be flocks of Pintail
offshore and perhaps a few Common Scoter. We
also drop in to see Sweetheart Abbey.
We’ll visit Loch Ken and RSPB Ken Dee Marshes,
to search for the small number of Greenland
White-fronted Geese that winter here. This is
one of the few places where Willow Tit are still
doing well, perhaps coming to the feeders, while
Red Kites soar overhead. Nearby is a Red Kite
feeding station and we’ll time our visit to see
these mesmerizing birds swooping down for
tit-bits of meat and eating on the wing, almost
within touching distance.
Peregrines now nest on the church tower in
Castle Douglas and stay on territory all winter.
On the neighbouring Nature Reserve is a
wonderful location to look for wintering
Pink-footed, Greylag and Greenland White-fronted
Geese. There should be a variety of duck, including
Pintail and Wigeon, while Hen Harrier regularly
quarter the ground in search of prey.
Travelling further afield, the sheltered waters of
Loch Ryan may be teeming with birds. Waders
include Dunlin, Redshank, Ringed Plover and
Turnstone, alongside feeding Light-bellied Brent
Geese. This is one of the best sites for Scaup and
we’ll check through them for Eider, Red-breasted
Merganser and Common Scoter. Red-throated
Diver and Slavonian and Great Crested Grebes winter here, plus Black Guillemot and small
numbers of Long-tailed Duck. Black-necked Grebe
used to winter and occasionally still appear. If we
have time, we may visit Corsewall Point, where
Gannets are often close to shore. We may also
visit West Freugh for more chances of Greenland
White-fronted Geese and the possibility of Hen
Harrier or Barn Owl coming to roost, if we time
it right.
The interior of Dumfries and Galloway has rivers
and lochs and expanses of rolling, rugged hills,
woodlands, forests and moorland. We shall visit
sites with high hills where, if luck is with us, we
may see Golden Eagle soaring and there should
be Ravens galore and perhaps Peregrine or Merlin.
The extensive forestry has Common Crossbill,
Siskin and Redpoll. The oak woodlands are home
to nuthatch and treecreeper and in the beech
trees we’ll seek out Brambling. An exciting feature
at this time of year is the arrival of Redwings and
Fieldfares, so we’ll be hoping to enjoy the spectacle
of them feasting on the autumn berries and who
knows, we might strike it lucky and bump into
Waxwings!. Buzzards are a common sight and we
shall keep a sharp eye out for soaring Goshawk,
while marvelling at the drama of this beautiful,
historical landscape.
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| Day 8 | After breakfast we’ll say our farewells before
setting off on our journeys home.
|
Just some of what we hope to see..
| Red-throated Diver | Barnacle Goose | Scaup |
| Slavonian Grebe | Pink-footed Goose | Long-tailed Duck |
| Black Guillemot | Whooper Swan | Barn Owl |
| Hen Harrier | White-fronted Goose | Willow Tit |
| Red Kite | Goosander | Crossbill |
| Golden Plover | Peregrine | Black-tailed Godwit |
| Turnstone | Merlin | Roe Deer |
| Purple Sandpiper | Short-eared Owl | Red Squirrel |
| Pale-bellied Brent Goose | Pintail | |
"Holiday highlights included the best close up views of Crossbill I can remember and watching small flocks of Starling gather together into one large murmurating mass before descending into the reedbeds at RSPB Mershead - pure magic!"
Joan Hunter
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"For me it was very personal as my family lived up there and visiting many of my old haunts was quite nostalgic! However, I particularly enjoyed the Ravens canoodling at Cairnsmore of Fleet as I have never witnessed that behaviour before - and the sight and sound of the Barnacle Geese at the Mersehead plus the Starling murmuration made the visit special"
Judy Dunworth
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"I enjoyed visiting areas and reserves that I hadn't been to before and particulalry liked the RSPB Merse Head Reserve. There were a number of highlights for me, including seeing Hen Harriers coming into roost, Red Kites swooping in front of us at the feeding station and, despite the rather grey day, seeing Crossbills land in a tree in the car park at Big Water Fleet Visitor Centre. However, my best highlight was the sight and sound of hundreds of Barnacle Geese taking to the air just after a wonderful display of a Starling murmuration. A wonderful end to a lovely week"
Lynn Osborne
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"Watching a Starling murmuration on our final walk back to the minibus. A grand finale"
Liz Piper
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"Holiday highlights were an unexpected sighting of a Golden Eagle, a very obliging Merlin who sat in a tree quite close to the vans, Golden Plovers wheeling in the sunshine and large groups of waders and ducks"
Melanie and John Parker
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"The whole week was full of interesting experiences and despite the wet weather we managed to see plenty of my target birds. A very friendly group of guests and, as a single traveller, I was, as always, made to feel totally part of the group. An excellent week"
Margaret Mowbray
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"Merlin sitting in tree only yards away and the flocks of Golden Plover and Lapwings not seen by me in a long time"
Katherine Drake
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"Many! Probably the family of Crossbills feeding on cones closely followed by 2 gaggles of Barnacle Geese walking around in an amusing way"
Alison Pattinson
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"Having the opportunity to see huge flocks of geese and to see 6 species of bird for the first time including beautiful Grey Plovers"
Elaine George
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"I did not expect the holiday to be so good and I thought there would be industrial areas. A mixture of lovely countryside, castles and coast, plus sheep, cows, etc. The wonderful experience of the feeding station for Red Kites, the swans, geese, etc, all brilliant - thank you to Duncan and Roy."
Janette Foster
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"Whooper Swans, incoming geese by the hundreds, Red Kites, so many others, Great Northern Diver seen off a very large old jetty, so incongruous and Roy screaming with wonder that it was there at all!!"
Irene Phippen
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"The Red Kite experience was as impressive as hoped. The large flocks of geese flying low over us at Mersehead was amazing. The Great Northern Diver in summer plumage in the harbour at Stranraer Railway Station was totally unexpected and a fantastic bonus."
John & Melanie Parker
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"We were all delighted to find that whilst on a loo stop in very unpromising surroundings at Stranraer Railway Station, a beautiful Great Northern Diver, 3 Red-breasted Mergansers and a Little Grebe all showed up in the harbour alongside the station............a really unexpected treat. Skeins of geese arriving at the RSPB reserve, out of clear blue skies were an unforgettable sight."
Barbara Dunn
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"Watching 18 Red Kites come down to roost one at a time against a setting sun. Superb views of a Peregrine Falcon perched on the top of Threave Castle, the sound of Skeins of geese approaching Mersehead reserve then swirling down to settle in the fields close by."
Jan Walshaw
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"Spotting a Great Northern Diver outside Stranraer railway station was a real delight (he was in the harbour, not waiting for a train!). Thousands of geese flying over our heads and coming in to land in front of us, after their long migration, was breathtaking."
Joan Hunter
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"At Mersehead RSPB Reserve we had really close views of a huge flock of Barnacle Geese in a field, then flocks of Pink-footed Geese were spotted coming in, first far off and only visible as a spot in the sky. Watching them getting closer and hearing their calls as they came into land was so beautiful and an experience I will always remember. There was also a totally unexpected sighting of a Great Northern Diver very close to the Station in Stranraer. Stunning!"
Ruth Messenger
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"Red Kites at Bellymack feeding station with their new viewing centre - easy and so close. Flocks of Twite wheeling beautifully in unison at Loch Ryan. Huge flocks of geese covering the fields - Pink-foot at Ken Dee Marshes and Barnacles at Caerlaverock. We were in one of the hides there, when we heard an incredible noise and a great flock of Barnacles soared over our heads calling loudly. During a walk in the woods at Gatehouse of Fleet, we noticed some wisps of moss falling gently from above. There were large clumps of ivy at the top of the trees and eventually we found two Nuthatch foraging along the branches and dropping moss as they fed. There were very large groups of Pintail, Shoveler, Wigeon and Teal at most of the venues too and we had good views of surprising numbers of Greenshank and Snipe at Garlieston."
Morag & Norman Rea
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"Red Kite feeding. Smew, Turnstone, Swan feeding at Caerlaverock."
Gabrielle & Franc Chadwick
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"The highlight must be seeing 95 species in 4 days, some of which were new additions to our list."
Gina & Andrew Jenney
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"Red squirrels sunbathing on a tree by the woodland path at Ken Dee Marshes. The group of us trying to read the neck ring numbers on the White-fronted Geese so chrissie could send them in. The sight of flocks of Golden Plover and Twite twisting and turning in the autumn sunlight over the shores of Loch Ryan. Such fantastic views when eating our sandwiches at lunchtimes."
Penny Anderson
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"Seeing the Golden Plovers wheeling in the sky, flushing a Woodcock, watching Red Squirrels, finding places we have not seen before despite visiting Solway many times on our own."
Carole & Robin McDermott
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"Golden Plover and Twite flocks, Geese at Caerlaverock, Red Squirrels playing in the woods, 11 Greenshank all in one place Red Kite feeding station."
Dorothy Hutchinson
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"I had been wanting to visit Caerlaverock for years so that was a highlight for me and it did not disappoint. Wonderful views of Barnacle Geese, Yellowhammers, and at other sites Pink-footed geese and Red Kites were memorable."
Gill Jones
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"We had been in the hide at Ken Dee for a while, just quietly watching and enjoying the activity and view, when suddenly a kingfisher appeared and sat on a low stump. Always good to see this gave us a fantastic display. It flew a short distance, then hovered for a while before moving on and repeating and then finally diving for a fish, giving us great views. None of us had ever seen a British Kingfisher hover and fish, it had always been from a perch. But in the absence of perches it seemed to have adapted its behavior."
Steve Foster
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"Excellent holiday with well varied locations and superb autumn colours from the beech and larch woods. At Ken Dee Marshes we were all delighted to have good views of a Kingfisher hovering repeatedly over the reeds and then on to close views of masses of Red Kites at the feeding station. Loch Ryan produced Grebes, Divers, Scaup, Godwits and an immense flock of Twite wheeling and changing colour in the winter sun. Caerlaverock was full of Whoopers and vast noisy flocks of Barnacles and finally Wigtown Harbour, tranquil waters full of life."
Morag & Norman Rea
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