PORTHLOO BEACH - BOAT TRIP TO BRYHER WITH VISITS TO STINKING PORTH - GREAT PORTH - HELL BAY - PITCH AND PUT/ TENNIS COURTS - RETURN TO ST MARYS WITH VISITS TO PORTHCRESSA - OLD TOWN BEACH AND VILLAGE
WEATHER: clear blue sky for 80% of the day, light winds.
Our first full day was magical, the sun was shining all day, the winds were low and everywhere we went the exqisite light made everyting look superb, if I was an artist I would have been in heaven. However, despite our good fortune with the weather we had bad luck with the birds, you can now calls the un-twitchables!
The morning started off fairly well, we set off walking to Porthloo via Porthmellon, there was definitely a cold chill in the air. At Porthloo we found a Curlew Sandpiper with dozens of Sanderling, there was also Ringed Plovers, Turnstones, Oystercatchers and a couple of Curlews.
Two Curlews at Porthloo
Scanning the beach area we found Meadow and Rock Pipits, Stonechats and White Wagtails. On the rocky shoreline and the small islands we found two Whimbrel, Cormorants and Shags and 6 Little Egrets.
We took a short detour to search some fields along a track called Rope Walk, apparently a Wryneck was seen there a few times over the last couple of days, but we saw ziltch.
these two Whimbrels and two Ringed Plovers were quite distant from the beach at Porthloo
We made it to the quay in the harbour and boarded our boat to Bryher, the journey took about 20 minutes. Once on Bryher we made our way across to Stinking Porth and along the way we saw Common Redstart, a Spotted Flycatcher and many common species.
I wonder what direction the Semi-palmated Sandpiper was last seen???
We joined the small group of 'twitchers' who were scanning the shoreline in at least three different bays. We noted Sanderlings, Ring Plovers, Turnstones, Curlew Sandpiper, Dunlin and a couple of Northern Wheatears. The SEMI-PALMATED SANDPIPER was nowhere to be seen.
Curlew Sandpiper with Sanderling
After an hour of searching we quit to eat our lunch, we walked to Great Porth and after eating we scanned some more, but still there was no sign of the Sandpiper. We did find two more Common Redstarts, two more Northern Wheatears, Stonechats, Wrens and Greenfinches. At one point two Glossy Ibis flew over Tresco, we could scope them from where we were standing!
At this stage my mobile phone ran out of battery life, so no more photos were taken! Doh!!
We followed a track around the Great Pool and headed for the Tennis Courts where we saw very little, but just beyond the courts we found Pied Flycatcher and another Spotted Flycatcher (a very distant bird). We ended up at Fraggle Cafe where we enjoyed coffee and cake.
The only bird of real interest on the return journey was a sighting of a Common Scoter, the boat flushed this bird which flew a 100 meters or so and dropped back onto the water.
Back on St Marys we walked to Porthcressa Beach were we found a dozen Sandwhich Terns out in the bay, not much else was present. At this stage we split up bacause 'Denis the Menace' took a fall as we alighted from the boat, he took the skin off some of his forearm and two of the girls marched him up to the hospital to get a dressing put on it.
The rest of us walked down to Old Town Bay and then up to the Old Town Inn where a Rose-coloured Starling had been seen an hour ago. We searched high and low for the Starling, but our bad luck continued and we never saw it.
We got back to the guest house and found Denis had been bandaged up and all was OK.