Short - toed eagle 15/6/14

After missing this bird last weekend down at the New Forest,  I was chomping at the bit to have another go, and with the bird relocating just an hours drive from home on Sunday (fathers day) it was an opportunity not to be sniffed at.

After receiving the usual ''best dad in the world'' card and cooking the Sunday lunch, I done what every normal good father does on fathers day and desserts his family in search of a rare bird!!

Good job I have an understanding relationship with my Wife and Son that sees me selfishly sod off when needs must!

Arriving down at Ashdown forest some one hour and fifteen minutes later (6pm), curtesy of my sat-nav taking me through every possible country lane through Kent and west Sussex, I duly arrived as many a birder were making there way back to the car park fully satisfied of there views of this Mediterranean mega
.  It looked like I was gonna be out of luck as the bird had flown some distance up the valley.

Luckily the Bradnums were on hand to save the day and led me to where the bird was last seen to land, but with no joy we split up along the valley and just as I was about to disappear into a dip a passing jogger (my hero!) calls out to me to look up behind me, and there was the SHORT-TOED EAGLE looking down on me before heading off down the valley.  BOOOOOM