Osprey Hide in the making

[speyghillie]

Hi All,
It is a bit of a dig but helps work off the xmas excess, beautiful day here today and i hope to have the hide finished by next week, then on to cleaning out some weed, my Loch has a clay bottom and is not very deep, fish stand out so clear for the Osprey's.
I also have Peregrine's flying around everyday , they nest on the Rock face right in front of my hide, but at quite a distance.
They are quite vocal as the daylight fades and they settle down for the night, this morning they moved to a ledge that had the sunny was hitting, getting some warmth from the low winter sun i guess.
Thanks Gordon.

[RoyW]

I'm assuming that the water level in the loch doesn't flunctuate much?

It would be a shame to do all that work and then have the hide flooded out when the Ospreys come back!


Good luck with the project!

[speyghillie]

Hi RoyW,
I can control the water level in the Loch so hopefully that won't be a problem, i built the Loch by hand, (160 tonnes of clay) with a wheelbarrow and spade really as a little kids trout fishery, part of the reason why its not very deep and not very big, as it turns out i seem to have built a breakfast bar for all the Osprey's in Cairngorm....... and a late night restaurant for my Otters.
Thanks Gordon.

[pressld2]

Otters too? You can go off people you know!

I spent a wonderful two weeks touring Scotland last August, including a week's volunteering at RSPB Loch Garten, and never once saw an otter. Not so much as a ripple on the surface.

I'm back up there for a week in March though so wish me luck!

Dave P.

[speyghillie]

Hi pressld2,
I am ten mins drive time from the reserve at Loch Garten, give me a shout where your up this way and i'll show you some otters hunting at night i get them to within 2ft of the hide.
The end of March is a tricky time for seeing Otters as they are feeding like crazy on the frogs which are gathering in all the ponds to mate and spawn, easy pickings for the Otters and they don't have to travel far.
Let me know when you are here and we can meet up for an evening or two watching the Otters.
Thanks Gordon.

[pressld2]

Many thanks for the invite Gordon. I'll be there with friends - PMG who posted above, her husband Ian and Neil (Ukwildlifeo) - so as long as it doesn't clash with their plans I'll gladly take you up on that!

Dave P.

[speyghillie]

No Problem,
you are all more than welcome to come along, i can get 6 people in the Otter hide.
Thanks Gordon.

[tom w w]

I guess that diging the hide will be easy compared to creating the loch.

You must be doing the wildlife a favor.

We have otters down here, but never see them. I go to Mull to photograph them. I was born in Nairn and sometimes wish I was still there for the wildlife.

[GTH]

You`re very fortunate Gordon. As yet I`ve never seen an otter let alone photographed one. There were a couple on Lock Slapin on Skye last year we were told, but we were`nt lucky enough to see them no matter how hard we tried.....also to live near Abernethey Forest (my personal favourite forest) with it`s multitude of wildlife, including the beautiful "Crested Tit"....and to have your own Loch.....pure heaven....but you sound the kind of person who truely lives it and puts back as much as you get out of it !!

Well done you !!

Geoff

[glsammy]

How I'd love to have the chance to experience that!
First I've got to get the confidence to travel more then 20 miles from home!