Took a trip round to the Broads for a day out with my nan and grandad. On the way we got the message about the Red-footed Falcon flying SW so we diverted to Hickling. Here, 2 Hobbies were seen around Canterbury hide and the highlight was a Spoonbill, which did a few laps of the main marsh before flying right overhead. Moving on to Horsey, we were pleased to hear that the Falcon had been seen again, but we soon got caught out by a torrential downpour. We sheltered under some trees before moving onto the beach to try and get less rain and wind-blown! Whilst standing on the beach with another guy, and to our complete amazement, the 1st-summer male RED-FOOTED FALCON soon swept past at point-blank range, presumably having been resting on the beach or rocks, it spent the next 15 minutes giving spectacular flight views as it hunted the dunes and fields just inland of here, before spending the rest of our stay sitting about on fence-posts and giving very good views. Smart bird all round. A nice showing of Southern Marsh Orchids added a bit of colour nearby.
