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Walking Group One 25th April 2024
Five hardy souls collected today at Happy Valley for the first Hill Walk of the year .The temperature was cool with a North Easterly wind blowing and a hint of rain on arrival.
Off we set heading towards Russadale Quarry, spotting a Buzzard on the way.Turning into the footpath we remained sheltered from the wind all the way to the top of the hill.
The sun was out at the Quarry and a Greenshank was feeding at the edge of the Lochan. Then it was up the Peat road to the summit with spectacular views across Stenness and Harray Lochs, plus a view of the Closed Road beyond the Watch Stone. On the other side we looked over the Flow and down towards the Oil Platform and South Ronaldsay
Then it was back down after a stop for a snack and finally a walk around Happy Valley itself. The Daffodils planted by James and others were looking lovely and the Bluebells are days away from opening. Then it was on to a well deserved lunch at the Pier Cafe, having walked 4 miles and gone up 800 feet (and down again )
The next walk will be on Friday 24th May and hopefully more hills and views.
Keep moving.
U3A Botany Group - Aug 2018
by Margaret Rinder - 08:17 on 16 August 2018
Peter, Jean, Moira, Trevor, Fiona ,Rosey and Margaret met in showery weather. We looked at the area around the car park, along the base of the cliffs as far as the beach at very high tide, then along the main track through the dunes, ending at my house for refreshments. Folk commented on the build up of the dunes over not many years, the current sand deposition on the beach, and the commercial sand extraction. We were dismayed by the amount of dog pooh, but amazed at the number of snails we saw, of many sizes and colours.
The area was mainly colonised by Lyme and Marram grasses, with a few patches of Sea couch grass.
Plants identified were:-
Sea and Ribwort plantain Sea rocket Curled dock Smooth and Prickly sowthistle Sea mayweed Pineapple mayweed Red poppy, Silverweed Catsear Scots lovage Shepherds purse Cow parsley Hogweed Angelica Common chickweed Sea sandwort Red and White clover Knapweed White bindweed Meadow sweet Flag iris Coltsfoot Lady's bedstraw Sainfoin -not a native plant, probably deliberately planted below the Viking, Red campion dandelion daisy Meadow buttercup Common and Frosted oraches Tufted vetch Meadow Vetchling Ground elder Rosa Rogosa Rosebay willowherb Common nettle Sea thrift Spear thistle Creeping thistle Yarrow Birdsfoot trefoil Oysterplant -3 patches- one damaged by a camp fire, but starting to recover Horsetail Ragwort.
Damp conditions prevailed at 4th Barrier Beach
Common orache & sea mayweed
Sainfoin flower rare to Orkney - seed must have blown in somehow
Flower heads of angelica plant
Yarrow
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