Getting Rained On For Fun. Pt. 1, If You Watch the Sea For Long Enough...

It Will Start Watching You Back.....

 

Eventually something will pass by. This is known.

 

 

Friday.

The day before had seen some serious seawatching from The Boss at Berry Head. Friday's weather seemed less hopeful, but stuff it I was going to the Nose!

Lots of rain meant TSWBCM would be working, and forecast strong SW to WSW winds would blow the lovely reek out into Lyme Bay. If it was gunky enough - and showers were forecast - who knows what tiny dancers might come in?

The nice thing about offshore winds is the shelter you get on the Steps. Makes seawatching a most genteel experience, with a gale blasting the rain past above you.

This wonderful effect evaporates once the wind gets past SW. Once S is passed, The Steps become increasingly blasted, until even a maniac wouldn't watch there [hard to see through the waves, you know....]

Anyways, I arrive and set up there.  Guess what the wind was actually doing? 

SSW to SSE, with vicious gusts around to ESE. Bursts of sunshine did not grant a let up on the constant rain, just some variation in the intensity of it. 'Showers' my ar posterior.

Fun times.

Hit the numbers, boy;

In 7.5 hours from the Steps,

Manx  563

Gannet  276

Kittiwake  196

Fulmar  78

Puffin  7

Stormy  5

GND  3

Sarnie  1

Whimbrel  2

Purple Sand  5

Turnstone  3

Ringed Plover  1

House Martin  5

Swift  2

Let's break the Manx numbers down to hourlies [yes I take hourlies]

71-121-45-149-46-62-48-(42)

Kitts and Fulmars highest in hour 2, Gannets in hour 5

All the petrels were picked up in the outer fringes of the slick, during squally showers. The hordes of almost entirely Herring Gulls [no small gulls inshore at all] feeding inshore seemingly keeping them at bay [the weather wasn't nasty enough to let them risk it; gulls swallow them whole, you know....]

 

Herring Gulls

 

From up the Second Slope, you can see better the pattern of the slick; wind and tides and varying rain levels combined.

 

Pick a gull;

 

ID Challenge!

And more than just 'Well, it's a 2cy large white-headed gull, isn't it' !!

ID Challenge 2!

Is that a dark eye..?!?

:)

Whimbrel

SumPlum Turnstones

Count the Purple Sands!

I had a couple of visitors, and while you've seen Trouble, this little one is new;

Solitary Wasp

Also of note,

Common Vetch

Woo!

Only the gulls and waders were close, and the weather was a right git [it was not fun at times...] but oh that wasn't bad at all! Would have stayed longer if I could, but life gets in the way, what can you do?

Be Seeing You...