24 July 2012

Twenty four degrees centigrade, after weeks of rain, hurrah!! We parked at Morston Quay
early, with our intention of a short walk over the boardwalk for some bird/wild flower
spotting.The boardwalk was grey and glupping and we were quickly told by a boatman the tide
was rising and we were about to get cut off! We headed back to explore the information centre
and then found a seat to wait for our boat. We had close ups of bees on thistles
and distant red sails (which looked black), and a background of Americans’ chatter
while three queues formed for the trip. The tide had five hour turn-around, trips
squeezed into this outward and back journey – about an hour sailing time and half
an hour to an hour on Blakeney Point.

Seals and Sandwich Terns

We were last to board our boat, but with retrospect the design of the boat gave everyone
a similar outlook: I loved the cut of speed in water (the waves and white spray);
the heads of seals swimming above water; the line of seals on the shore, scratching,
flapping, rolling, lolling, head bobbing and waving. Sandwich Terns dipped and dived
and came up with silver fish, they cried so proud. The boat went back and forth so we
all saw the seals for photo shots. Grey seals can dive to a depth of 70 metres when
feeding and have sensory whiskers to detect movement of fish in the dark depths.
What they make of the stream of boats seems a mild interest and familiarity. Something
startled the birds on the point and they rose together in flight and fight...

We landed on the point and while people wandered and paddled I turned to the marshland
and watched oyster catchers spying and flying, little egrets preening, skylarks delighting
in summer, sun, and song. The sun caught me out, sun factor lotion 15 was not strong
enough for protection; I had a red nose, cheeks and swelling around my eyes (as I used
my sunglasses to keep my hair out of my face).

Bull Seal

I reflected on the parts of seals I’d found earlier in the year and other sea-mammal
parts washed up on the coast line, these were blamed on sightings of killer whales.
At home I did more research and found a similar occurrences happened in 2010,
post mortem results showed they had been caused by a ducked propeller.