The beast from the north

Having checked out the fish quay at North Shields at least twice a week all winter for a white winger I had just about given up hope of seeing one this time around. Low & behold a cracking 2nd winter Glaucous Gull turns up BUT it fails to show for me on my following three visits. I'm a morning birder generally and all those visits had been early in the day and it was noticeable that most folk had seen it later on particularly late afternoon.
I headed down early on Sunday, as usual, and scanned the quay roofs from up on high by the High Lights but again out of luck. I dropped down to the quay and spent a further two 30/45 minutes sessions freezing my nuts off as the extremely chilly wind was coming straight down the river from the west. In between I visited a relatively balmy Tynemouth without any success with either the Black Redstart or Kestrel pair but I did get a rather nice Grey Wagtail under the Priory at the end of the pier. So I had 20 minutes at the quay again before I had to return home and two smiling birders pointed to one of the shed roofs and there was the Glauc. …… for all of two seconds before it lifted and headed immediately over towards the south side of the Tyne and drifted towards South Shields ferry landing before being lost to view !!!!
I couldn't return until Friday afternoon having frustratingly seen daily images of the gull on Twitter but was finally rewarded with some brilliant close encounters with the brute. A fine specimen indeed. Mission accomplished !!!!!! HOOOOORAH.

and finally …. a bit of beauty after the beast.