What a fantastic afternoon, clear skies, high tide with water lapping into the rock pools. Deep blue and green waves with white foaming tops, a real joy to be out…and as if that wasn’t enough in mid-painting I felt like someone was watching me and when I turned around, there was a big Atlantic Grey seal looking right at me! No binocluars or scope with me though and he/she was at least a hundred feet away so unfortunately no sketches. The gulls were flocking overhead and obviously very uneasy at the intruder in the bay, it very quickly made its way around the coast to the south side, diving down periodically looking for a meal. Only the third time I have seen a seal off the coast of Sark.
All the rain we are having at the moment is good news for the frogs which are busy spawning in the ponds, this one I found sitting on my doorstep. Sark’s only resident amphibian as there are no toads or newts on the island. The females which are usually larger than the males will lay between one and two thousand eggs.
A very changeable afternoon, with large cumulus clouds being blown in from the west. On the way to Pilcher’s I had to shelter at ‘Hunter’s Lodge’ before setting off again for the cliff below the monument. Incredibly dramatic rain showers all around, this one over Jersey really silhouetted the Coupee beautifully. Still a cold wind blowing but signs of spring starting to show.
Wind NW force six, gusting more in the sleet/snow showers. Clear skies slowly gave way to dark clouds and as I sat painting on the south side of the rocky outcrop the wind picked up and I had to take shelter as the snow really blew in. As quickly as it had come, it was gone and the sky and sea turned the brightest of blues. During the blizzard there were flocks of small birds rushing to take shelter in the gorse and bracken. A totally exhilarating hour’s painting.
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For the first time in a while the weather was good enough to go out painting. I sat sketching out of the cold northwesterly wind, in the sunshine by the window in the rock, even one or two visitors about. Good to be back out with my paints and just seeing what comes along. Stopped at a tree on the way home to photograph and draw some lichen but a cat came along and thought it would start walking all over me and my drawing so I packed up and went home to warm up. It’s a start!
