Sticky toffee pudding walk

The mouse in the house seems to have died as there is a terrible smell in the house especially when the heating comes on. It seems to have died under the floorboards by the heating pipes in the hall and we have no way of getting to it. It has happened before and eventually the smell will go but it doesn't half smell in the meantime.

Monday 9th and we headed over to the outlaws house on The Barbican to drive them down to Newquay airport for their flight to Gatwick and on the walk over I saw a chiffchaff feeding in a tree by The Three Crowns pub.

Driving back from the airport we cut across Bodmin Moor passing Dozmary Pool and Siblyback Reservoir to see if there were any goose eggs for sale at a small farm where we have picked them up (cheaply) before but we were out of luck. Bird wise I saw a small flock of fieldfares flying overhead.

Tuesday 10th and we had a quick walk along the coastpath at Wembury, my first visit there for a while. 3 adult winter plumaged Mediterranean gulls were feeding amongst the rocks at low tide, looking ghostly white in the strong sunlight. 2 adult lesser black backed gulls were roosting on the rocks amongst the usual herring, great black backed and black headed gulls. A flighty flock of cirl buntings were flitting about in the HMS Cambridge hedgerow, 2 males were seen together and at least 5 females. A cormorant in summer plumage was seen flying out to The Mewstone with a beak full of nesting material. Rock and meadow pipits and pied wagtails fed along the beach but I couln't find a water pipit amongst them although there were a lot of walkers along the beach due to the muddy path and the tide was low.

Wednesday 11th and we headed out to Stoke Point for a walk, something we haven't done for ages. It was a beautiful sunny day and the coast path was stunning in the sunlight. 2 ravens flew over honking and 2 buzzards soared overhead mewing while a male kestrel perched on some telegraph wires. The woodland part of the walk provided a sighting of a noisey nuthatch in the treetops and a coal tit was seen on the peanut feeders by The Ship Inn at Noss Mayo along with blue and great tits and chaffinches and greenfinches. With the tide low a greenshank was feeding on the mudflats with a redshank and 2 little egrets. We had lunch in The Ship Inn and really enjoyed a large slab of sticky toffee pudding which was delicious.

The view from Stoke Point

And so back to work on the Thursday for a busy run of shifts with not much opportunity for birdwatching but my year list now stands at 90 species, all seen in Devon, so I am doing quite well.