SS2:EB, The Solway Coast

[Apologies in advance: this will be a short entry as I have limited access to the interwebs and I still have a good bit of Scotland to sample.]

When most people think of Scotland, they imagine windswept moors covered in bracken and heather, or gently rolling green hills peppered with bleating sheep and fuzzy orange cows. Sure, Scotland has plenty of both, but it also has stretches of white sand beaches reminiscent of the tropics.

I planned a trip down to the Solway Coast to collect from its estuarine soils, as there are a number of halophilic chytrid species. I chose a wetland/shore bird reserve to collect from, because it had several miles of trails for me to explore. The reserve encompassed a large swath of brackish wetlands that resembled the peat bogs of the central region of the country.



Less than half a mile away, however, the path suddenly changed from high grass to dry, white sand.


I was still within the confines of the nature reserve, but had stumbled upon one of the coastal stretches. Crossing the sand dune, I was met with this:



Holy crap. I've mentioned in a previous entry that I prefer rocky, volcanic beaches to the sandy beaches of the islands, but I think I may have to retract that statement (or qualify it, at the very least). This small bit of coastline, at the end of an unmarked country route, was a wee slice of heaven. The air was thick with salt from the sea, and heavy with the perfume of the flowering gorse bushes that dotted the beach. The wind whipped around, a brisk 11 C (52 F), and the calls of the seabirds surrounded me. It. Was. Awesome.



The tide was out, leaving an enormous portion of the low-lying shelf exposed. I puttered around, looking for limpets, barnacles, and bivalves.


The sea creeping in, capped with foam from breaking waves.


In the few hours I spent walking around this site, I saw one other person, no less than 1km away. I took advantage of having the beach all to myself and took hundreds of photos, only a few of which I've uploaded here. I'm not really a photographer, I just play one on tv.


Easily my favorite image from this visit.


Finally, as I began my hike back to my car, I happened cross this illegally parked log.

(Get it? Because there's an orange boot next to it! You know, like a parking boot? I'm funny, damn it!)