A wild, wet start to the day, with steely waves exploding against ‘an iron coast’, sending spray high into the air – quite a contrast to the last few days!
Walking through the gates at Sunnydale feels like stepping into a different world, as you are suddenly surrounded by every shade of green imaginable! On the woodland floor, Ramsons, Cow Parsley, Herb Robert, Jack-in-the Pulpit, Jack-by-the Hedge (or Garlic Mustard), Bluebells, Lesser Celandine and Hartstongue Fern form a dense carpet.
19 Gannets cruise by, powering into the wind, close enough to see their creamy-yellow throats and bright blue feet, as well as their dazzling white plumage as they past just inches above the waves.
Nearer the cliffs, a pair of Fulmars display effortless mastery of the gusty winds, as they take turns in swooping up to a high ledge and balancing on the air just inches from the cliff-face, before swerving away again. It looked almost as if they were ‘daring’ each other!
Below them, Guillemots and Razorbills whir in and out from the cliffs, with a handful sitting on the sea, bounced around by the waves.
Shag, Great Black-backed Gull and Herring Gull also on the wing, with a Rock Pipit being blown along the clifftop.
More and more plants are coming into bloom by the day. This morning, the first patch of flowering Pale Flax I have seen this year – its tall, slender stems tossed by the breeze and blue flowers tightly furled. At the top of the Gully, ‘dusty blue’ Wild Clary is starting to bloom, with Ox-eye Daisies almost (but not quite!) in flower.
Elsewhere around the Downs, Early Spider Orchids are having a great year, with plenty of Green-winged Orchid, Chalk Milkwort, Common Mouse-ear and Birdsfoot Trefoil.
Still plenty of Cowslips to enjoy in the meadows, along with Early Purple Orchids and Bulbous Buttercups, while in the hedgerows, Hawthorn blossom (or ‘Mayflower’) is just starting to open it’s buds.