Mama Beech

On Sunday we grabbed a boat to Bryher. This island is long and slim and a twin to the more famous Tresco. We went to explore the wildlife and enjoy beach and woodland, plantlife and fauna. The boat trip was in glorious sunshine with sparkling water and blue skies. We got off at Quayside and started a clockwise wander, hugging the coast. We sought out grasses and fungi to ID, as well as  plants and trees to test our knowledge on. It has been a joy to see so much elm around. Obviously, we revelled in the scenery! It cannot be ignored! We also enjoyed a Forest School activity or two... It was lovely to see the subtle differences between the islands, and the bigger differences between the Scilly Isles and the Mainland. On Monday we seized the opportunity to get up close and personal with the wildlife. Namely, seals! We snorkeled for an hour with some very playful creatures who liked to surface alongside us, nibble at the flippers we wore, bump our tummies, and even sit on top of us if ...

Tomorrow will be the penultimate day. Forest School with the 3 - 8 year olds, I'm really looking forward to it, watching the children enjoy the woods and exploring the environment. Today, however, was my last full 'day off', and it was glorious! The sun shone, the sea sparkled, the white sand glittered, the green of the trees and gold of the broken was vibrant. A few volunteers and I headed off to St. Martin's, the 5th inhabited island here at the Scilly Isles, and the 5th one we've visited. This wasn't the usual boat trip chugging over to a sister port, we took the long way, the wildlife tour around the Eastern Isles, and looked out for seals! The water was very calm considering we are nestling in the British corner of the Atlantic. The breeze was warm. Seals lazed on the rocks or bobbed their heads out of the water to watch us pass by. It's never entirely certain who is the voyeur! The people holding mobile phones aloft or the water creatures watching us w...