He who would vigilant be

A week to go until the launch of my 'meteorological autumn birding blitz' and since I committed myself by announcing it on social media I have been humbled by the response - OK, maybe not hundreds of correspondents but at least a dozen birders have commented on the undertaking and all have sent words of kindness and encouragement. In fact one of them (north-Kent's very own Kevin Thornton) even wrote a poem/hymn in its honour, which I share with you below - with the author's blessing.

Something that I am eternally grateful for is that even after 50+ years of birding I can still get excited and enthusiastic about local, simple birding. I know plenty who cannot stomach time with their optics unless they are at a hotbed of ornithological action. I do get it, I have slipped into this mindset myself in the past. That I have chosen to plough a relatively lonely and local furrow rather than hit the Kent shingle this autumn was actually an easy choice in the end. In all honesty I was going to head south this autumn but timelines would not align and once my harebrained scheme was cooked up I knew it was the right choice for me. FOMO has been removed from my mindset and RESOLVE taken its place. I find myself counting down the days, have reminded myself that it is a marathon and not a sprint, am planning on night-time sessions in the garden to try and pick up waders and wildfowl, will be evaluating sites to suit the month and the weather, continue to identify places where I can skywatch in the dry if rain should rule and, am picturing in my mind's eye, the footpaths that are to be walked and the vegetation to be checked across the downland, farmland, woodland, heathland and parkland across the uberpatch. I will, of course, keep you posted.