The wind on the dunes felt unpleasantly sharp as it whistled through Algy’s feathers, so he decided to move to a more sheltered spot. During the winter months, excessive rain had caused the normally shallow burn to carve out a deep channel as it wound its way across the beach to the sea. In the process it had created wee sand-cliffs, which formed an ideal sun trap, exactly the right size to provide warmth and protection from the biting wind for a fluffy bird. Algy could see that the “cliffs” were already beginning to collapse in places, and no doubt they would soon be removed by the rain and the tides, but for the time being they were just about perfect. So Algy leaned back comfortably against the tiny wall of sand, and settled down to watch the light ripple across the gently flowing water, as the burn completed the final stage of its journey to the sea.

Advertisement