A selection of testimonials from 2008 onwards. Please refresh the page to see more.
Thanks Martin for a wonderful holiday. The itinerary was exactly what we wanted. Saw loads of the stunning Northumbrian coast, nature reserve ponds and North Pennines, and Martin was incredibly knowledgeable about finding wildlife for us to spot. The Swan rooms were comfortable and spacious, and the food excellent.
Really enjoyed the day. Martin’s knowledge of the area and the wildlife really added to our enjoyment. Although otters and stars proved elusive, we had a very rewarding experience.
We had a great day out with Martin, but the highlight was certainly the trip to the Farne Islands. The boat got us really close to the cliffs and you could see and smell the birds! Landing on one island let us see and be attacked by the Artic Terns (apart from Hannah, who remained untouched!). The female Eider ducks were so well camouflaged that you had to look really carefully to see them. Everybody’s favourite were the Puffins, which came in and out of their burrows. Hannah overcame her fear of boats and Ben took lots of great photos with guidance from Martin.
Lovely to have the day arranged and someone so knowledgeable as Martin to tell us what we were looking at – a highlight of our holiday.
Another really enjoyable day. I never ceased to be amazed by the amount of bird life one can see in 5 minutes by the River Coquet! Watching the Great Crested Grebe catching fish four out of every five dives was fascinating.
Great evening stargazing. Martin is knowledgeable, friendly and did everything possible to make sure we got the best out of the experience.
I speak for all three of us in saying that the 29th was one of the most fabulous days we have had in a very long time. Just everything was so great – the weather, the sea, the birds and the seals and .. our tutor / host for the day. Your tuition on the island’s birds and their behaviour allowed us all to get the pictures we wanted of puffins on the wing, the interaction between puffin and gulls and the terns and their aggressive behaviour. Many, many thanks. I have been able to sort out a few of my photos and I attach a couple for the blog / whatever – I am really pleased with the gull one and the terns on the wing. I have no doubt that all future visits to the Farne’s (and other similar sites) will benefit from our day with you.
We had a fantastic trip, and have some wonderful memories of Jon's birthday. Martin was hugely knowledgeable and made the trip really accessible for our daughters. And he was very patient with our random questions! I'd heartily recommend a Northern Experience tour as a special birthday present.
It looked so nice as we peered through the curtains a bright sunny day full of possibilities. Martin knocked on the door and upon opening it the wind rushed in. Winnie still the smallest dog in the world almost took off but was to excited to notice.
Wrapped in extra coats we set off. After visiting several windswept sites we were rewarded with sight of an Otter which played and hunted in front of us until we were too cold to stay any longer.
Thanks to Martins patience and knowledge we had a cold but rewarding day.
Thanks again for a wonderful weekend. The Black Grouse were great to watch, followed by Short-eared Owl & Peregrine! Butterflies & insects, and a bit of moth-trapping in the evenings ensured that there was something for all our members. And then there was the marvellous landscape and flowers of Upper Teesdale on the Sunday.
The guest house at Saughy Rigg deserves a mention as well - the first class food was a fitting end to the days out.
The drive over to Kielder and then further north across the borders into Scotland helped me appreciate how much human-free space there is in this part of the U.K; no wonder there was such an abundance of wildlife for us to marvel at on this trip. Merlins and mandarins were a first for me, and it was equally pleasing to get so close to the wild goat herds. Newcastleton moor was a stunning setting to take a ramble through after an eventful lunch in terms of raptor activity overhead.
We had a very atmospheric and informative experience on the Druridge Bay star gazing trip. Meeting at dusk, as the light faded and the sounds of the nearby roosting geese filled the air, we waited as one by one the stars appeared. We were amazed by the sheer number of visible stars, constellations and satellites that were visible on such a clear night. Martin guided us through the names and formations of the constellations that we saw and we had a very clear view of the Milky Way. It was a very peaceful evening of learning that both children and adults enjoyed and we would definitely do it again. Wrap up warm.
We had a fantastic day out, feel very lucky to have seen the young otters playing. I hope the seal is ok and manages to get back to the sea at some point! We'll definitely be back to Northumberland at some point, so we'll maybe see you again for dolphins or puffins next time.