When the morning sun filtered through the soft white curtain of fog, the beautiful, warm colours of a Highland moorland in autumn started to emerge in patches here and there. Algy leaned back comfortably against a wee ledge on one of the numerous rock outcrops, and watched the colours increase in intensity and begin to glow as the sun gradually lifted the fog from the hillsides.
The fog had decorated every tiny blade of grass and every delicate seed head with pearly drops of water which hung motionless in the unusually calm air. Algy was surprised to see that there were still a few wee heather flowers blooming here and there, although it was nearly October, and the bees were still buzzing busily, despite the excessive dampness which not only descended from above but oozed up squelchily from below to soak Algy’s tail feathers whenever he perched on the ground…
When autumn took hold of the wild West Highlands of Scotland, the wind dropped down to just nothing at all, and a dense sea fog crept in from the Atlantic ocean, slipping silently across the moorland and soggy peat bogs as it smothered the mountains in a soft grey blanket.
And as a million or more spiders hung their webs across the gaps between a myriad of tiny plants and looked out at the September morning, they were astonished to see a rather large and surprisingly fluffy bird, perching quietly on a clump of damp grass…
After a long, dreich non-summer of almost endless rain, Algy has finally returned to his old haunts 🙂
When the gales moved away to visit Algy’s friend @funnyful in Sweden, the wind started to swing round and the weather began to change. Before long the world was full of colour again, and as Algy relaxed on the hard, storm-hammered sand, he could detect fresh new autumn scents and tastes in the air, mingled with the usual sea salt…
It had been exceedingly windy, and even after the storm had passed the sea still seemed to be quite angry, battering the rocks and the beach with considerable vigour. But at least it had stopped raining for a while, so Algy tucked himself in flat against the rock, holding on tightly with both wings, and spent a happy hour or two just watching the waves pounding on the shore.
It was positively cosy at the foot of the sheltering cliff, where the burn from the hill cut through the sand and the rock to the sea, but Algy knew that soon it would start to rain again and he would have to seek more adequate cover…
Algy hopes that if you are experiencing stormy weather this weekend, you will be able to find yourself a warm and cosy spot to relax in 🙂
Algy flew back to the big beach, where the waves rolled in with great enthusiasm, tossing the seaweed and shells around on the sand to create ever-changing patterns. The beach sloped very gently here, and Algy loved to sit near the water, waiting for the waves to come and tickle his toes as the tide rolled in. Sometimes an unusually big wave caught him by surprise and he got a great deal wetter than he intended, but it was all part of the fun 🙂
It was a fine September afternoon, and although the south-westerly wind felt cold, the sun was bright and the sea was full of colour. Algy decided to fly over to a spot which he especially liked – a tiny beach on the headland, which was better suited to the scale of a fluffy bird than the big beaches across the bay – and he perched there on a rock, watching the ripples wash backwards and forwards across the pale sand as the tide came in. From time to time, a shiny silver head emerged from the water, not far from his perch, and a seal smiled at him for a few moments with the light flashing off its wet skin, before it dived again and continued to explore the underwater beds of seaweed.
Algy leaned back on the rock and watched the waves swirling all around him, pulling the sand and the seaweed backwards and forwards with a delightful, gurgling, swishing sound. He wondered how long it would take for one of the waves to splash his feet… It was a pleasant game to play on an idle Sunday afternoon 🙂
After another dismally grey day, the sun came out once more, and Algy flew down to the sea. Although Algy is certainly not a sea bird, nor indeed a water bird of any kind, there is nothing he enjoys more than perching on a rock by the edge of the ocean, listening to all the sounds it makes, and relaxing as he watches the waves roll in…
Algy hopes you will all have a happy and peaceful weekend, and will be able to perch somewhere pleasant and relax 🙂
The Adventures of Algy 