I know: I take the same photos each time we do this walk, but it really is so good!
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| Heath Spotted-orchids. |
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| A Frog Orchid (next to the daisy) - well spotted! |
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| Oystercatcher eggs about to hatch. |
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| Choughs. |
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| Buttercup machair. |
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| A quick paddle. |
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| Otter prints. |
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| Hebridean colours. |
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| And there were plenty of rabbits, of varying colours, to keep Rocky on tenterhooks. |
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| White-tailed Eagle. |
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| Golden Eagle. |
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| And a hare. |
Rather than just walk along the beach and then back, we headed off through the dune slacks on our outward walk...
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| There were many Pyramidal Orchids coming into flower... |
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| Early Marsh-orchids...and below. |
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| But what we were really looking for ...Frog Orchids. |
And with the arrival of our son Tom, the weather changed as a heat plume plunged Europe and the UK into unbearable heat; while we enjoyed perfect weather! Our destination for the day - Killinallan and an exploration of the dune slacks, before a long walk out along the beach.
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| Pyramidal Orchids - just coming out. |
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| Six-spot Burnet Moth. |
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| Common Blue. |
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| Dune slacks. |
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| Frog Orchid - not easy to find, but when you know where they are and you get your eye in... |
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| Across the dunes... |
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| ...and onto the beach. |
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| A Cockchafer on Sea Rocket. |
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| And one of many Painted Ladies. |
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| The beach to ourselves. |
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| And the far end of the beach. |
On the way back from our damp walk, the weather began to clear and dry up, enabling a closer look at the superb roadside orchid display.
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| Lesser Butterflies...I have never seen so many! |
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| Early Marsh. |
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| Heath Spotted. |
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| Northern Marsh. |
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| Northern Marsh x Heath Spotted. |
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| The first Grass of Parnassus was just coming out. |
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| And more.... |
Plan A for the day had been to walk from Kintra to Soldier's Rock, however the recent rain led to the burn that you cross, being far too high to cross safely, so we had to head back. As you park near the beach for this walk, we made Plan B: a walk along the beach, but again a deep paddle would have been required to ford the first stream that crossed the beach, so Plan C came into action: a trip to the Oa.
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| A curtailed walk along the beach. |
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| A nice Flapper Skate egg case. |
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| Dreich! |
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| Heading to the Oa ...and a decent pair of horns! |
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| Roadside: lots of Ragged Robin. |
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| Probably Northern Marsh-orchid. |
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| Lesser Butterfly Orchids - there were lots of roadside orchids, but it was raining too much to risk the camera anymore! |
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| Spectacular coast... |
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| And you'll have to trust me, but it is a Golden Eagle. |
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| Waterfalls in full flow. |
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| The weather was supposed to improve at midday - you can just about make out the pale blue of the incoming decent weather above the far horizon. |
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| Goats. |
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| The mist/cloud was coming off the sea... |
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| Damp Hares washing and drying... |
