TRANSFER FROM PENZANCE TO ST MARYS BY SHIP - WALK TO PORTHMELLON BEACH - PORTHLOO BEACH - ROCY HILLS TRACK - LER MOORS - OLD TOWN BEACH
WEATHER: dull and cloudy all day, rain from 2-3pm. a cold chilly wind all day.
We boarded the Scillonian III with great excitement and anticipation, hoping to see agood number of sea-birds and perhaps some cetaceans too.
The whole trip was a bit of a damp squib, we saw very little and sightings of anything other than Gannets were few and far between.
At quay we listed Cormorant, Ringed Plover, Sarling and the usual common gull species. A few Kittiwakes appeared distantly as we made our way along the coast. We did find one or two Guillemots sitting on the water and two small groups of Razorbills flew across our bow. Several pods of Common Dolphin were seen well and a single Harbour Porpoise put in an appearance.
It wasn't until we had almost reached St Marys that two single Cory's Shearwaters flew past us. That was the sum total of our Shearwater count.
Once we had disembarked we scanned the rocks below the harbour and found Ruddy Turnstone, Oystercatcher and a Mediterranean Gull. Rain threatened throughout the trip and was even more threatening now. After buying picnic supplies in the town we walked up to our digs and got ready to go birding, our luggage was not due to arrive until much later so we went out without a scope between us!
At Porthmellon beach we found a Grey Heron, more Oystercatchers, Black-headed and Great Black-backed Gulls. Porthloo was much more productive there we found 60-80 Sanderling, probably 30+ Ringed Plovers, a couple of Dunlin, a single Curlew and some Pied/White Wagtails. Other birds appeared too such as Stonechats, Chaffinches and Goldfinches. It started to rain and it steadily got heavier, we retreated to find shelter and after getting a soaking we decided to walk to Rocky Hills Track.
It stopped raining as we walked to a site where an Ortolan Bunting had been seen earlier in the day. After an hour of scanning a field we ended up with Blackbirds, Dunnocks, Robins, SDong Thrushes, Blackbirds and two Pied Flycatchers. We were about to depart when the Bunting suddenly appeard, quite close to us.
Well, we filled our boots with at views of the Bunting and missed a couple of Glossy Ibis flying over us as we did so!
To complete a circuitus route we walked through Lower Moors to Old Town Beach we saw very little along the way which included a diversion into the Standing Stones field. We heard Cetti's Warbler, Water Rail and a Chiffchaff and we saw many Swallows, Goldcrest, Blue & Great Tits and Robins, there was a single bird seen from the two hides that overlook the pools and from Shooters Pool 'blind' we saw 3 Moornhens.
Apart from a single Greenshank there wasn't anything of interest on Old Town Bay, so we legged up the hill to our guest house.