Swimming, mayhem among the puffins, ravens taking eggs

1 May

A lovely day, mild and sunny. So off for an early run and kata practice afterwards.

At the centre, it gets very busy, as it is a Bank Holiday. So we are working from 10 to 5 and do not have much time for breaks. In the afternoon, two new volunteers arrive: Sina, a young German woman who has already done some volunteering with the National Trust in Northern Ireland, and Seamus, a gardener from the south of Northern Ireland. We show them around and tell them all about the work at the centre.

In the early evening, Rick gives me a lift to Mill Bay, where I want to go for a swim. When we arrive, there are sanderling, ringed plover and turnstones on the beach, as well as a blue heron. It’s a beautiful beach with white pebbles, and beyond that, a calm water surface and lovely light grey sand to walk out on. Two seals look on as I swim in the cold but lovely water. Rick meanwhile has gone off to check for interesting sightings along the coast. Then we go to the harbour to pick up a new volunteer, Tom, who is a pharmacist from the Republic of Ireland.

2 May

Another beautiful sunny morning, and I go running with Tom.

From 9.30, the power is off on the whole island, due to maintenance. This means there is no water either. The centre is open nevertheless, Alison has prepared coffee and tea while the power was still on, and we have water in jugs and buckets. Very sunny again, and many visitors come over, on the bus as well as on foot. The day turns very grim for several puffins. We see the two Great Skuas eating one down on a rock. Later we see several of them being taken from their burrows by ravens. Still, there are others well alive and kicking their orange feet about for the visitors to enjoy.  The guillemots are back on the stacks again. I spot quite a few bridled ones through the telescope.

We close at 5 and get back to the cottage (passing by the lough, where the greylags are swimming with newly-hatched goslings!). We all sit in the sun and have tea. I do kata barefoot in the grass, lovely :-)

Everyone takes turns cooking a meal and then sits out in the evening sun. Matt and I have a nice bout of sparring, while Tom and Seamus take a walk and Sina goes off to look for the golden hare.

The Golden Hare (photo by Matt Scott)

4 May

A day off. It’s very sunny and after sweeping the cottage and doing some washing, Matt and I go off for a walk to the remains of the harbour and railway that were constructed and used to bring in the materials for the West Lighthouse over 100 years ago. I want to try and swim there. The trail passes along a field with young cows, and there are sheep on the slopes too. An old, slightly crumbling, concrete staircase remains from the time the harbour was in use. We drop down along chalk rocks with bands of flint to the beach. There is a platform and an old crane there, and  the concrete ramp that carried the railway.

It is wild and beautiful here. I attempt swimming but the waves are rough, being blown in by SE winds. So I walk the boulders instead and catch up with Matt who is taking pictures.

Later on, I cycle down to the island town and go to swim in Mill Bay. A lot of seals there, as well as Ringed Plovers (Bontbekplevier) and Sanderlings (Drieteenstrandloper). Some walkers all wrapped up in fleece pullovers and hats come by as I’m drying off and comment on my bravery. Actually, I find the cold water quite invigorating! After that, into the Watershed Café for coffee and a crepe, and doing some computer work. I say goodbye to Sarah, whose wonderful coffee, sandwiches and crepes have kept me going on my days off!

In the evening, we all go off to the pub, where we meet Una, Wendy the singer-songwriter and Terri who will be working at the seabird centre this summer.

Cleaning the Bird Centre's windows

5 May

Another beautiful day, which I start off by running the Kinramer North trail. The main challenge, once you’ve gotten off the initial tractor track, is to keep finding the trail and not to sink into bogs or get tangled in the gorse. The trail runs out to the north coast and has wonderful views from the top of the cliffs onto the blue sea.

At the centre, it is not really very different from the previous days. Interestingly, we saw quite a few eggs in raven’s beaks, being taken to feed the young or being stashed for later consumption. The last of the chicks is still on the nest, exercising its wings every now and then. In the afternoon, the wind picks up and it gets quite cold on the platform, despite the bright sun. We see a stand-off between a raven and a razorbill. The razorbill bravely defends its egg, but is finally intimated by the raven to move off and give up the egg – it’s how nature is, but it is still sad to see. The razorbill didn’t really stand a chance, especially as it is one of the earliest of the auks to start incubating on the stacks. But it might lay another egg, so all is not lost.

Due to the cold wind, no more visitors arrive after 3PM and we close up early. At the cottage, a lot of fancy cooking happens, as Seamus makes a steak, Sina bakes rhubarb pie, and several curries appear. I have a veggie casserole with Linda McCartney sausages, then go out for a bit of training. It’s a cold wind, so I do just a few katas and quickly come back in.

Though I actually have lost a real sense of weekend, due to the fact that we work through the week, everyone gathers around the cake and there’s wine and beer to make it a festive night :-)

When it gets dark, around 10, several of us go out to find the snipe doing their display flights which are accompanied by a drumming or bleeting sound (created by their wings). I hear it only once, others are luckier.

nice reviews!