An overcast misty morning with a light drizzle of rain, sounds unpleasant but turned out to be quite pleasant. Heading down the long meadow path, Daisies and Cow Slips dominate the verge with Forget-Me-Nots and Buttercups interspersed creating wonderful pallet of colour. Out in the meadow I notice a long Pale Flax in flower swaying gently in the wind towering over the grass.
In the hedge rows Hawthorn can be seen in flower, clusters of little white flowers dusting the tops of branches. A Horse Chestnut is also in full flower clusters of flowers forming a candle like arrangement at the end of branches, a shore sign summer is near. Along the bottom of the hedge row patches of purple indicate Ground Ivy, now in flower the purple leaves hiding the smaller lighter purple flowers. Near the end of the path a Bird Cherry can also be seen in flower, flowers in a similar formation to the Horse Chestnut but they droop down instead of standing up right.
Heading down the steep path to the cliffs, a rowers in a rowing boat paddle there way along the bottom of the cliffs their chatter floating up to the path. Looking out to sea from the glass observation point, only a small raft of Guillemots floats on the water, while above the graceful Fulmars soar in and out of the cliffs edge. As the rowers pass the below a sudden explosion of Guillemots leaving the ledge above, passing their tiny boat all around. A Raven patrols the tops of the cliff while other pecks around in the grass towards the top of the cliffs.
Further round I look over the wall to see a group of 6 Razorbills sitting on a small ledge towards the tops of the cliff, below them another perches. Two Guillemots can be seen below the single Razorbill, side by side like this its easy to see their differentiating features. The Razorbills has a chunky beak compared to the slim pointed beak of the Guillemot, while the Guillemot is more of a dark chocolate brown compared to the dark black colour of the Razorbill. Above a large group of Herring Gulls all head round to Durlston bay, perhaps word has got round of some food in the area.