Posts by Stuart Line Cruises

Today saw the final birdwatching cruise of the 2025-26 season. It was a beautiful, spring-like day, although the stiff easterly wind made holding binoculars steady rather difficult. Many of the estuary’s wintering birds have taken advantage of recent fine weather and headed off towards their northern or eastern breeding grounds, so birds were sparse in…

The weather was dry but very murky; visibility was poor with reports of an improving picture for the duration of our cruise, but it turned out to be murky the whole trip! This didn’t dampen spirits, however, and we were all good to go. With the Pride of Exmouth and Captain Will at the helm,…

The light was mostly excellent for this afternoon’s cruise, which progressed slowly on a very low tide. There was evidence that some of the wintering birds had already started to move back towards their breeding grounds. For example, we saw only 3 Great Crested Grebes and fewer Shags in the estuary than in recent weeks.…

This was my last trip of the season and what a glorious day to end on. The sun shone and, despite gathering clouds, the rain stayed away. Spring seemed truly to have arrived. Birds were not present in mid-winter abundance, but there were enough of most species to make the trip interesting and to whet…

A fresh breeze, sunny intervals, and an absence of rain made for a most enjoyable trip today. Our winter visitors will soon be returning to their breeding grounds, and indeed some have already departed, leaving bird numbers a little sparse. But there was still plenty to enjoy, especially three Spoonbills which landed on the mud…

With the weather dry but overcast and a blustery Northerly breeze, we set off along the seafront with Captain Will at the helm. A few Oystercatchers, several Herring Gulls, and a lone European Shag were spotted fishing on and near Pole Sands. As we headed up the estuary, our first views of several Dark-bellied Brent…

The weather for this afternoon’s cruise was not perfect for birdwatching, with heavy and intermittent rain; however, everyone stayed warm and undercover. Visibility was reasonably good for the conditions and the birds seen in the lower estuary were easy to spot, though fairly distant as the floodwater pushed the waders away from the main channel.…

The weather for this afternoon’s cruise was perfect for birdwatching: even light from a milky sun – and no rain for once! A Grey Seal showed its head a few times at Exmouth, while later we glimpsed similar views of a Harbour Seal near Topsham. It was nice to see scattered groups of Turnstones in…