Meeting old friends

I've been revisiting tetrads that I surveyed during the national atlas survey, in the Llangybi/Llanfair Clydogau area. Most of the summer migrants seem to be back though numbers still seem rather low for many of them. I've not heard a Garden Warbler yet which is surprising but did see my first Swifts this morning. I've seen two small groups of passage Wheatears feeding up in recently ploughed fields, suggesting a lot of birds are still on the move. Willow Tits were singing at regular sites in Llangybi and along Nant Clywedog Ganol. Single Sedge Warbler and Whitethroat were good local birds as were 2 or 3 pairs of Starlings nesting on the edge of Llangybi village. This morning, in the same area where I see Willow Tits at Llanfair, a Grasshopper Warbler was reeling loudly. I approached quietly along the lane and then there it was creeping through a bare-stemmed bramble patch next to me. No more than 3 metres away. I've never seen one so close before. It then threw its head back and burst into song! Awesome!