As I entered the woodland this morning, a Woodpigeon erupted from a Holly Bush, whilst others cooed from above. The woodland feels quiet, silence only broken by the sleepy but tuneful song of a Blackbird. Occasionally a few bickering Gulls can be heard in the distance, but no sound of cars, dogs, or footsteps at all.
It’s a cloudy day. The area around the Sunnydale bridge feels very enclosed; sheltered from any light that has made through the clouds, by the towering leafy canopy of Sycamore, Beech, and Lime.
I wind my way up through the Pleasure Grounds, following the dry stone walls which straddle the path. Flowering Woodsage, Privet and Bramble creep their way up to the height of the walls as they compete for space. Further along the coastpath, the purple and yellow flowers of Woody Nightshade can also be seen growing alongside Jack in the Hedge, with their curiously shaped seeds pods poking up to the sky.
On my left I can see the bay is calm. A lobster pot buoy bobs softly on the surface as gentle ripples roll across the water. Two Black Backed Gulls fly above, their wings fixed in an outstretched position allowing them to slide effortlessly through the sky.
More pretty flowers are on show around the Castle. Red Valerian creeps out of the walls around the Globe, guarding a small hole where two Blue Tits had been nesting a few weeks earlier. Sunny Yellow Mustard flowers sprout around the Seachart, and nearby Mullein has grown to great heights from their greyish-green rosette of large leaves below.
From the seacliffs the Guillemots can be seen flying from their ledge, joining the rafts of them afloat on the water – with new fledglings likely amongst them. Just two days ago, our cliff camera managed to capture some of the chicks taking their very first ‘leap of faith’ down to the sea. This video can viewed on our website www.durlston.co.uk – you can really feel their nerves as they step warily close to the edge and build up the confidence to jump!