GULLFEST 2012, PHOTOBLOG (ENGLISH)

During the Gullfest 2012 a wise man learned me that there are at least 200 different ways to bend a paperclip. It was a very big mistake to take this lesson too literally. But it was a big relief that the docter told me yesterday that the bandages will be removed somewhere in the coming days and with a bit of help from a physiotherapist there might be a fair change that my fingers will fully recover.

Although I misinterpreted his lessons at first, the man learned me among others that it could be possible to find Siberian Snowbuntings in Vardo. Only one day later Mike Robinson and I indeed found two birds with features of this eastern subspecies Plectrophenax nivalis vlasowae. Thanks Martin, that was a good one!

The Gullfest 2012 was about birding. And indeed it was, birding with a capital B! Already a lot has been written about this Gullfest 2012 and for good stories and even better pictures I would like to direct you to websites of some other birders. Check out www.biotope.no were you can read a lot and also find directions to the beautiful websites of for example Martin Garner, Tristan Reid and Vincent van der Spek.

I take the famous way, nr 201 to bend the paperclip, yet another way to show the attractiveness of Varanger. One day the light on the water was perfect and I kept on zooming in. Sorry for the Long-tailed Duck in the first picture (lol), but I really liked the mixtures of the colors of the tiny waves in the harbour.

Above Vadso I took the following picture a few days later: a pattern on the rock, most lickely some kind of Crustose Lichen. I like to zoom in and take pictures like this one, but you should always take care that you don't miss a good bird.

When I took this picture we were looking for a Willow Grouse and indeed one flew over my head just when I made the shot. Happily Tristan Reid shouted that I had to look up and I was just in time to see the bird flying over. Never underestimate the importance of a few friends during birding! The flying Willow Grouse looked a bit like a picture I took in the beginning of May 2011, near Skaftafell, southern Iceland, but that bird was a Rock Ptarmigan.

Another bird, but a close family member, which I could approach quite easy.

Birding in the arctic: it is something really special. If you are a birder don't hesitate to join the Gullfest 2013!!