NORTH DOWNS & BEYOND

As a family we have a great affection for the north Cornish coast and recently spent a week in the sleepy hamlet of West Pentire, east of Newquay. The area is well known for the wildflower fields that are under the stewardship of the National Trust, full of Common Poppies (largely over when we arrived), Corn Marigolds and other assorted arable plants. The image above gives some flavour as to the colour-scapes that such flowering can create. Corn Marigold is a fast disappearing species in my part of Surrey so it was a joy to see thousands of flowers in their pomp (below). Although not a holiday that had natural history as a central theme I did wander off on a number of occasions, taking advantage of the warm, sunny and settled weather plus the coastal footpath that takes you on a journey through some of the most stunning scenery the UK has to offer. I ventured as far as Perranporth on foot, via Polly Joke, Kelsey Head and the imposing sand dunes of both Holy Well and Perran. Considering...

The 'insert image' tool is still disabled regardless of my efforts to correct it, so until the fault rectifies itself (which apparently it can do) my blog posts will have to do without images to brighten up an otherwise unbroken sea of words. To be honest that doesn't bother me as much as I thought it would, as this blogging lark has always been more about the words to me - just as well with the current situation. So, where was I?... Ah yes, there was going to be a post about my recent long holiday in Cornwall. What started as a two-week family holiday became one of three-and-a-half weeks, due to a happy set of circumstances that you needn't be bothered with. It was very much a family holiday, but as usual I took along the optics (and the camera, which is being made largely redundant as far as blogging is concerned, although if you follow me on X, WhatsApp or even that quiet place for the more elderly - Facebook - you will still see the results of my automatic point-and...

Two weeks on the north Cornish coast in November? To me, that suggested plenty of wind, chilly temperatures, rain, wet clothing and plenty of reading indoors to escape the weather. Our ‘postponed’ family holiday could not have been any different - apart from the odd flurry of drizzle it was dry; the temperature was never anything other than remarkably mild (I even found myself dressed in a t-shirt whilst sitting on an exposed headland one balmy morning); and the wind did not get up above force 4, many days remaining in the 1-2 region. Although not a birding holiday, the bins, scope and tripod came along, and every day saw me wander off to do a bit - on a few occasions more than just a bit. 80 species were recorded in our 12 days, not bad for the time of year and all seen within walking distance from our base. I went everywhere on foot, exploring the coastal headlands, valleys, set-aside fields and winding lanes that characterise the Porth area, a small town east of Newquay. We were sta...

Katrina and I are down in Porth, a small Cornish town due east of Newquay. Some friends of ours have just moved down here and we are availing ourselves of their hospitality. They insisted that I bring my optics along and have a bird watch and I am happy enough to oblige! An Internet search revealed little about the general area for birding. It is easy to assume that any part of the British coast, particularly one this far down in Cornwall, will have a rich ornithological history. My arrival was one of not knowing what to expect. It certainly has potential, with a rocky coast punctuated by sandy bays, cliff tops with discrete areas of Tamarisk scrub and ribbons of hedgerow. Today saw two highlights in my couple of hours of birding - a low-flying and vocal Chough plus a second calendar year Mediterranean Gull. A modest but pleasing start.