The castle woodchip path had been scoured by water flow. Doug’s drainage works were good. However, we forgot about the occasional surged caused by the unblocking of one leaf fall from one surface drain. A tiny Great Tit visited the castle bird feeder, which will need topping up! At the crossroads in the castle woodland path Robins were having verbal battle. From an Ivy cloaked Hawthorn my passage sent up half a dozen Wood Pigeon. A neighbouring Hawthorn has been gradually been creeping down lower over the diagonal path. With wet ground conditions, wind and a moving root plate I thought this one will need to be felled soon.
From the coast path I was just able to spot that the Guillemots crammed into their cave ledge. I kept the correct side of the safety barriers due to resurfacing works ongoing. At least four Greater Black Back Gulls glided west against the wing holding their wing tips bent inwards. Due to their high flight above the water it appeared to be two Cormorants that head east along the coast. At the gully mouth there were occasional giant bellows like sounds followed by a cloud of spray drifting inland. This was the blow hole in good action send a plum of spray metres into the air! Back on land the Lighthouse “winked” as I walked around Anvil Point uncertain whether it was sea spray or light rain wetting me.
On the inland side of the gully the Hereford cattle were on the correct side of the electric fence! A couple of the beast were pushing their way through the scrub beside the bridge.
Winter Heliotrope only flowered at the margins of the Small Copse and not under the canopy. This was despite light reaching the ground. Above the wind had the branches of Holm Oak, Sycamore and Ash as vocal chords. When I entered the Large Copse the alarm calls of a Blackbird and a Magpie rung out as they flew off. On the Taskers field edge of the Copse it was calm in the lea of the wind. Stepping into Skipworth Meadow a pair of Blue Tits and a Great Tit briefly perched in an Elder wearing orange crust Lichen. Beside it a Blackthorn caked in a grey green branching Lichen held a few shrivelled Sloes that were appropriately prune like. Not bad for an overcast morning!