beach and moors

So today, being the last of the really good weather, we really made the most of it.

730 am and we were on Wembury beach (I say ‘we’ obviously our son the teenogre was still comatose) and the beach was all ours.  The tide was out, the sand un-footprinted, and there is something just magical about that morning light.

We ambled,we peered in rock pools, we beach combed.  We lit the barbecue and had sausage bacon and egg and fresh coffee.  I did some drawing, and it really has been far too long, and we snoozed and read our books.

By 9 the sporty folk had arrived, carrying their sea kayaks and surfboards (and paddles, no wind, no surf) , and launched and set off to sea.

By 10 folk were determinedly marching across the sands armed with coolers and fold up chairs, and the beach filled up with the sounds of hammering as unnecessary but territory claiming windbreaks were set up, and inflatables being filled.  The tide wandered in and people claimed their pitches above the tideline.

We packed up at 1030 – three hours really is plenty on the beach – and a grateful Dad and his kids asked if they could have our spot.

Home, and back to work, we took apart lots and lots of pallets.  And wore ourselves out completely

Then we headed to Haytor, which we had virtually to ourselves, despite the wonderful weather(apparently there was something tv)  had a picnic – well ok it was a takeaway we picked up on the way, and we sat, the three of us and  watched the sun set.

So very tired, but worth every minute.

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sowing, planting and harvesting w/e 27/7

harvesting

spring onions

raspberries

wild strawberries

new potatoes

broad beans -

blueberries

blackcurrants

peas

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beesands

It’s becoming a how many south Devon beaches can you fit into one blog moment isn’t it.. but whilst the sun shines, we are making the most of it it.

Today we took a huge delivery of scrap wood.  Then rushed out to Beesands for a hasty cream tea lunch, some beach combing, before rushing back to the fold.

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and then there were two (ducklings)

We are not, as I have said before, having a lot of duck luck this year.  But on one cheery note we have got these two new little Muscovy ducklings now.  Against the odds.

Their mum abandoned the nest pretty much on the day we expected them to hatch.  I saw her off the nest at 10 am and then when I was cutting logs at 2pm, realised she was still off the nest.  So yes, the eggs had been left that long.  It was a warm day though, which might have made a significant difference.   We took 7 of the eggs from the middle of the nest and slipped them under a broody hen. We left the remaining eggs (just too many to fit under a hen) but she never went back to the nest.

Four days later we decided the eggs under the hen would come to no good, but at the last moment decided to check just one rather than removing them all to go cold.  And sadly that one proved to be a viable duckling, so we left the remaining 6 eggs under the hen.

And today I noticed when checking on her that she was ‘talking’ to her eggs.  A little poking revealed 2 ducklings.  She was still sitting tight firmly, so we left her another day, but it has been so hot, and one of the eggs was clearly bad and broke, and the smell…   so we called a halt and moved adoptive mother hen and her two new charges to another coop.

One (a boy I’ll bet) decided to lessen his chances further by going walk about, squeezing through a gap in the pen and walking the entire length of our big hen run (which is big!) and into another pen and he was found settled in the sun with some junior chickens.  Fool. He was put back with his sibling and mother hen.

They say ducks make bad mothers, and it is true, even though Muscovy ducks are better than your average duck, they don’t compare to hens.. but I think ducklings are pretty poor compared to chicks.  Chicks naturally stay with their mum, and obey her orders.. but ducklings seem to do what they want..

I hope we manage to raise these two at least!

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mothecombe

We are making the most of the wonderful weather now it is finally here, and squeezing in all the trips we can.  Sunday finds us, as a large family group of three generations on Coastguards beach at Mothecombe.

Such an idyllic place, so much space when the tide is out, pools of warm water, and the river Erme gently making its way to the sea.

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fishing

I’ve done some fishing in the past, but always from a boat.  The family attitude to a lack of wind filling the sails, was to drop some feathers over the side and occasionally we would haul in the mackerel.  But. following the realisation that sea sickness is something I wont be growing out of, I have vowed not to go to sea anymore.  A vow I break occasionally to go to the Isles of Scilly, but not one I am willing to break for fish.

So the solution is shore fishing.  And here we are beginners.  So we bought the basics and early this morning went down to Slapton sands and had a go.

We came home without fish, but with all the equipment we took out and no injury – so I think that’s a positive!

It was good fun – we  learned how to cast, we interacted with someone packing up after a nights fishing (he didn’t catch anything either) had the beach almost to ourselves, and as we had the sense not to rely on any potential catches, and had brought bacon sausage and egg to cook on the bucket barbie, along with fresh coffee.. it was all pretty idyllic.

Yup I could get into this fishing malarky.

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sowing, planting and harvesting w/e 20/7

harvesting

spring onions

raspberries

wild strawberries

new potatoes

broad beans -

blueberries

blackcurrants

peas

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single duckling

Over the weekend, the broody hen that has been sitting on a clutch of Aylesbury duck eggs emerged from her nest with her pride and joy – a single duckling.

We are not having a lot of duck luck this year.  A single duckling is not ideal – although it does have it’s ‘mum’ for company for now, I’m not sure how that is going to pan out in the future.

Meanwhile Chloe, our Muscovy duck, abandoned her nest on due day.  Once again – I think she heard ducklings (the other brood) and left her nest to find them.  We are going to have to think of a way to separate them properly next year….

Anyway, I am aware that the eggs can cope with going cool towards the end of incubation, so we gathered the eggs from the middle of the nest (the ones we thought had the best chance) and rushed them under a broody hen we happen to have, and she is sitting tight. A few days later we decided they were not going to come to anything now, and took one away to check. and sadly it had been alive, so fingers crossed that sacrifice was worth it for the others…

Meanwhile the five older mucovy ducklings are doing well, are gaining their proper feathers and the two mother ducks and Captain Speck the drake look after them well.

and the fluffly single yellow duckling is doing well, it charges about himself calls it ‘the yellow peril’ whilst I refer to is as ‘Crispy Duck’ – least we forget where we are going with this.

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