Dinefwr Badger Watch
Monday, August 28, 2017
Adam Tilt
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Monday, August 28, 2017 Adam Tilt 1 Comments
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More Mumbles Meds and Kittiwakes
Saturday, August 26, 2017
Adam Tilt
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Saturday, August 26, 2017 Adam Tilt 0 Comments
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The Two Faces of Angle - Part 2
Friday, August 25, 2017
Adam Tilt
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Friday, August 25, 2017 Adam Tilt 0 Comments
Surrounded by lush woodland we were led directly to the water’s edge, a cool and shaded enclave which opened onto Milford Haven itself. Any signs of the choppy seas were gone to be replaced instead with something resembling a giant millpond. Gulls called as music and laughter drifted towards us from a busy pub across the water whilst beyond, dominating the scene, sat the jarring sight of Pembroke Refinery.
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The Two Faces of Angle – Part 1
Wednesday, August 23, 2017
Adam Tilt
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Wednesday, August 23, 2017 Adam Tilt 1 Comments
The fort which now dominates this small speck of land was completed in 1854 with the sole aim of deterring any invasion from those pesky Europeans across the channel. It and the other Napoleonic forts evidently did their job and went untroubled, this one being sold in 1947 and converted into a hotel. By all accounts the accommodation was basic but must have offered its occupants something of a unique experience, particularly on stormy days. Sadly the hotel closed again in the 1990’s and has lain dormant ever since despite changing hands on at least two occasions. The latest sale went through just a month or so ago and with maintenance already being undertaken perhaps the future is starting to look a little brighter for Thorn Island.
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Evenings by the Sea
Monday, August 21, 2017
Adam Tilt
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Monday, August 21, 2017 Adam Tilt 0 Comments
We usually have this place mostly to ourselves bar the occasional fisherman or dog walker, and that suits us fine. It means there’s no distractions between us and the wildlife, be that chattering Sand Martins at their breeding colony or roving flocks of Oystercatchers chasing the tide out only to be pushed back in the face of its relentless rise. A couple of Great-crested Grebes are not uncommon along with the more regular Cormorants, nor Gannets which sometimes venture this far up channel. Regrettably not every visitor males it back out alive and the sad sight of stranded Barrel Jellyfish has become ever more common.
At this time of year there’s the added attraction of Sandwich Terns which summer here before moving on. We had pretty good views of a pair just after our return from Mull but that encounter was well and truly knocked into the long grass by a trio of birds which we found fishing literally just beyond the breaking waves. Alerted to their presence thanks to that distinctive call they couldn’t have been entering water more than a couple of foot deep but that didn’t seem to deter them as dive after dive produced a plethora of fish. I just had to try and get something on camera and ended up coming away with this as the best of a bad bunch.
Of course there’s plenty of commoner species about too including the ubiquitous Gulls of which Black Headed and Herring are most numerous. Crows and Magpies can often be found patrolling the tide line for insects feasting on rotting seaweed whilst the combination of woodland and pasture beyond is home to everything from Whitethroats and Stonechats to, if you’re really lucky, Grasshopper Warblers in full song.
To top it all our return journey just happens to pass the best fish and chip shop is our area and, well, it would be rude not to really, wouldn’t it?
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Chris Packham's Fingers in the Sparkle Jar - A Review
Sunday, August 20, 2017
Adam Tilt
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Sunday, August 20, 2017 Adam Tilt 0 Comments
I’ve never read a memoir before but Chris Packham’s “Fingers in the Sparkle Jar” seemed as good a place to start as any. After all I’ve been watching Chris on television since I was a child, have met him numerous times in the wild and even attended one of his talks. I felt I knew the man pretty well.
"Happiness, that's it isn't it, that's the big problem.....because it's the same old paradoxical recipe for misery, Over the years I've seen people's cravings for stability yield squalor rather than sparkle, their too-easy contentment gives them none of the excitement of a struggle against the odds, none of the allure of being plagued with uncertainty or teased by the appalling option of giving up. Their so-called happiness has turned out to be a promise of emotional and experiential poverty, and that's' why it, and contentment, must be avoided at all costs."
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Trefil to the Chartist's Cave
Saturday, August 19, 2017
Adam Tilt
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Saturday, August 19, 2017 Adam Tilt 0 Comments
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Pembrey Terns
Thursday, August 17, 2017
Adam Tilt
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Thursday, August 17, 2017 Adam Tilt 0 Comments
Even as we watched the water level continued to rise, moving with a surprising turn of pace as it crept first up to the edge of its normal containment before spilling over. Footprints left from the day’s visitors were consumed one after another until the harbour looked fit to bursting, as indeed it was. This of course left very little space for any birds, the majority having been pushed over to Pembrey Burrows and out of sight. There were still gems to be found however which included at least thirteen Mediterranean Gulls loafing out in the Burry but I’d estimate that you could safely triple that number with ease and still not be near their true population. An impressive increase when I think back to even a couple of years ago.
Four Dunlin were also present briefly along with a small number of Common Gulls but there was no sign of the hoped for Ringed Plovers roosting on the inner breakwater. Probably too much disturbance. Not a problem for the colony of Sea Holly which also grows there and which was looking in fine health on this balmy summer’s eve.
We finished off with a juvenile Linnet which briefly had us shouting Twite before our location brought us to our senses. It may take a few days to get my birding radar back into Welsh mode.
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The Curtain Call - Isle of Mull
Tuesday, August 15, 2017
Adam Tilt
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Tuesday, August 15, 2017 Adam Tilt 1 Comments
As we’d seen elsewhere Black Guillemots seem to be doing very well this year with at least another nine individuals out on the water and likely more hidden up in the cliffs. Wheatears were about as well even along the rocky shore though I must admit the sight of a female Pheasant down here did cause us a degree of surprise. Something which was by now almost expected however was the view of a Common Sandpiper’s rear end disappearing off into the distance, one species which no matter how hard I tried I just couldn’t get close to this time. Out in the loch a trio of Commic Terns were hunting not far from a small flock of at least ten Kittiwakes who as one would periodically dive down to the water’s surface. An impressive sight for sure.
Taking far longer than normal thanks to the slippery conditions we did eventually make it to the still cave. So called thanks to its association with the illegal distilling of alcohol back when these valleys used to be inhabited it now sits abandoned to the birds, a small raised level and a couple of old barrels the only hints to its illicit past.
And of those old communities we passed two on our way back out, first Crackaig which we visited on our first walk here two weeks ago and then Glac Gugairidh nestled over the rise just a little higher up the valley. The network of stone walls and well preserved buildings there make this one of the most evocative abandoned villages on Mull. It’s not hard to imagine what it must have been like for people living up here, a hard life of course but one with a great sense of community.
Back at our house it was as if all the valley birds had come out to pay their respects. The feeders were packed with two families of Great Tits and a variety of Chaffinches, fledgling Robins and Dunnocks littered the ground whilst juvenile Blackbirds and a very active Willow Warbler were constantly flying back and forth. The ever cautious Rock Doves even dropped in briefly before the sight of one another sent them into a blind panic and heading back the way they’d come. Our resident Song Thrush and pair of Swallows were also about as was the young Rabbit which has spent each evening carefully chewing its way through the daisies and buttercups outside our window as I’ve been writing these blogs. I’ll miss them all but I’m confident they’ll be waiting for us to top up the feeders next time we find ourselves on the glorious, Isle of Mull.
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Calgary, Caliach and Croig - Isle of Mull
Sunday, August 13, 2017
Adam Tilt
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Sunday, August 13, 2017 Adam Tilt 1 Comments
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A Valley Day - Isle of Mull
Friday, August 11, 2017
Adam Tilt
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Friday, August 11, 2017 Adam Tilt 0 Comments
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Tobermory Kayak and a Sunset - Isle of Mull
Wednesday, August 09, 2017
Adam Tilt
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Wednesday, August 09, 2017 Adam Tilt 4 Comments
After the long carry at Torloisk it made a nice change to be able to park right next to the slipway in Tob meaning we were on the water in no time. Behind us the colourful high street looked resplendent whilst ahead lay a bustling marina complete with at least one yacht which must have easily stretched its owner’s pockets to seven figures. Our vessels felt slightly inferior when surrounded by such craft but we had one key advantage, a very shallow draft. This meant that unlike them we could stick closely to the steep sides of the bay as we headed across to Aros, enjoying dappled shade from the overhanging trees as we went. After a period of mixed weather (to put it mildly) we were now experiencing the hottest day of our trip so far. British weather, you’ve just got to love it.
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Kayaking With Added Comb Jelly - Isle of Mull
Monday, August 07, 2017
Adam Tilt
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Monday, August 07, 2017 Adam Tilt 0 Comments
Hitting the water we immediately struck gold with a family of four Red-throated Divers just off shore, their quacking calls still an unexpected sound despite having heard it several times over the last few days. A couple of Arctic Terns were also doing the rounds flying right over our heads on occasion as we got down to the serious business of exploring all the nooks and crannies of this rugged stretch of coast.
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Ulva at Last - Isle of Mull
Sunday, August 06, 2017
Adam Tilt
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Sunday, August 06, 2017 Adam Tilt 1 Comments
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Eas Fors - Isle of Mull
Saturday, August 05, 2017
Adam Tilt
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Saturday, August 05, 2017 Adam Tilt 1 Comments
Eas Fors is Mull’s most spectacular waterfall enjoying an unhindered drop directly into the waters of Loch Tuath. Even during a dry spell it makes for an impressive sight but after a full day’s rain? Thunderous is the word.
Although the morning had started a little grey we managed to time our visit perfectly as a lengthy spell of blue sky and sunshine barrelled in on strengthening winds. We’d taken the decision to head down to loch level in order to make full advantage and had the place to ourselves, not that you’d have noticed had an entire brass band piped up. You see the sound of crashing water was just immense, amplified by the fact that there was so much of it coming over the lip that instead of pouring down the rocks as usual the torrent was leaping fully clear only to smash into a rocky outcrop roughly halfway down. This coming together was producing a huge amount of spray, some of which was being blown straight back up and over the top before carrying inland for fifty meters or more. Really quite spectacular, as I may have already mentioned.
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Fogbound - Isle of Mull
Thursday, August 03, 2017
Adam Tilt
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Thursday, August 03, 2017 Adam Tilt 0 Comments
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Beinn an Lochain and Carn Mor - Isle of Mull
Tuesday, August 01, 2017
Adam Tilt
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Tuesday, August 01, 2017 Adam Tilt 0 Comments
Setting off from the main road (single track lane) we passed through a deer fence and into an area optimistically marked on the maps as woodland. Now I’m no expert but scanning around I’d have expected to see trees, even one would have been nice, but very quickly drew a blank. In defence of Ordnance Survey there was indeed a woodland planned for here but like so many Millennium based projects it hasn’t quite delivered. Yes trees were planted in their hundreds but I couldn’t help feeling at the time that expecting small saplings to suddenly flourish in this boggy ground might be asking just a little too much. And so it has proved to be. In fact the only real achievement so far has been to provide the Red Deer with a handy nursery for their young, despite the aforementioned fence designed to keep them out, as well as making the area a complete hazard to walk across. You see planting involved using a digger to scoop out a single buckets worth of dirt into which the sapling would be planted. This left behind numerous deep holes, irregularly placed, which have since filled with water and grassed over just waiting to catch the wary off guard. You need your wits about you to make it through here unscathed but we managed it and were soon out into more open countryside where the hazards were at least natural. As a few brief showers powered through it was clear that we weren’t going to be treated to much in the way of sunshine but there were still a few Dark-green Fritillaries on the wing as well as Small and Large Heath, all the while the views behind us beginning to open up.
Every stride took us higher, crossing off the contours via distinct steps in the landscape revealing layers of larva and ash lain down during Mull’s formative years. Along the way we’d occasionally startle a Hare or small herds of Red Deer, a mixture of females, juveniles and stags sporting velvety new growth antlers. Often they’d hear us long before we spotted them but every now and again we were able to gain the upper hand and sneak in, undetected.
There were birds here too. Meadow pipits and Skylarks being by far the commonest but also Ravens and even a passing Golden Eagle. Judging from its plumage I’d have said a younger bird, perhaps two or three years old, soaring a couple of levels above us just a few meters off the deck. It wasn’t long before we were up there too, looking over the waters from which Beinn an Lochain gets its name.
As far as summits go Beinn an Locahin’s is surprisingly indistinct. Normally I like my mountains to deliver a large cairn or even better a trig point, hell I’ll settle for just being able to tell where exactly the highest point is. Not here though where a wide plateau of eroded peat and bog is all you’re going to get.
Standing off in the distance however was something more like it.
The only trouble was that we seemed to have lost some of the islands which we’d previously been able to see. Had Tiree been gobbled by rising sea levels perhaps? I’m sure its residents would be glad to hear this wasn’t so. What it did signal however was that the weather was starting to close in and with it we decided that an attempt on our third summit of the day would prove foolhardy, so instead started our return.
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About Me

- Adam Tilt
- Hello! I'm a thirty something lover of the great outdoors, currently based in Wales but spending an ever increasing amount of time further north, particularly on the Isle of Mull. This blog is the place where I share my adventures be they walking, birding, kayaking or basically anything else that involves getting out there and exploring.

Archives
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2017
(102)
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August
(18)
- Kenfig - Little Owl at Last
- Dinefwr Badger Watch
- More Mumbles Meds and Kittiwakes
- The Two Faces of Angle - Part 2
- The Two Faces of Angle – Part 1
- Evenings by the Sea
- Chris Packham's Fingers in the Sparkle Jar - A Review
- Trefil to the Chartist's Cave
- Pembrey Terns
- The Curtain Call - Isle of Mull
- Calgary, Caliach and Croig - Isle of Mull
- A Valley Day - Isle of Mull
- Tobermory Kayak and a Sunset - Isle of Mull
- Kayaking With Added Comb Jelly - Isle of Mull
- Ulva at Last - Isle of Mull
- Eas Fors - Isle of Mull
- Fogbound - Isle of Mull
- Beinn an Lochain and Carn Mor - Isle of Mull
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▼
August
(18)


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