Tag: sea

The building which still stands on the bink at the base of the Whaligoe Steps is nothing more than a ghost of what it used to be. The architecture of what is standing today shares with the witness a potential of what once was and hints at the industry which took place over a century prior.

The remains of this old building are the remnants of a time when the herring fisheries were rife and full of activity and industry. It was used as a salt house or curing house and had several names and uses during its prime. Fish that were brought in to this modest and rustic commercial port would be gutted and packed, protected within salt to last their journey. Once this process was finished, the fish were ready to be transported seven miles northwards to the main area of operations, the coastal town of Wick.

A John O’Groat Journal newspaper article dated back in 1838 mentioned the curing stations in both Whaligoe and Clyth had been completely destroyed during snow storms that lasted about eight weeks. The author of the article also exclaimed how important the two curing houses were and had no doubt they would be rebuilt so they could withstand such weather conditions in the future.

Despite the building being fairly sturdy, danger lurked around the corner. For example, in 1853 a woman was killed by falling rock whilst she packed herring in a barrel. A year later, more rocks were falling from the cliff above around the area where women were packing the fish. Two fishermen attempted to make the situation safer by knocking away loose and dangerous overhanging coastal sections due to the evident prospect of more fatalities, but were sadly placed in the Sheriff’s Court for “wanton and malicious mischief”. This was due to the results of their endeavours damaging the Whaligoe Steps and a curing bench.

At the very beginning of August, 2021, I saw a seal down at Whaligoe Steps. Naturally I felt thrilled with this observation but would not dare to hope that it would become a resident. Over the many years, sightings of seal at Whaligoe Steps have been fairly regular and commonplace, so to guess that this latest sighting would be something special was a little too much to hope for.

To my utter glee and astonishment this sighting of a solitary seal was just the beginning of a new chapter for me and my wildlife observations. Undertaking my trusty research I found out that both harbour seals and grey seals were not unusual to these coastline regions, but the more common sighting and presence belongs to the grey seal.

Two grey seals were sighted a few weeks later which has filled me with real enthusiasm that they could well be here to stay! At the time of this blog entry, October 17th, 2021, I can honestly say that regular sightings of a third grey seal has sealed the deal that at least for a while, Whaligoe Steps has resident grey seals which are putting on a beautiful natural display for the visitors.

Thanks to The Wildlife Trust I can remind you that grey seals are protected in Britain under the Conservation of Seals Act 1970 and the Marine (Scotland) Act 2010. Grey seal | The Wildlife Trusts

According to OneKindPlanet – Animal Facts, Education & Inspiration the grey seal is the largest land breeding mammal you will find in the United Kingdom. When out seal-watching I can safely say the statistics regarding their activity is accurate too as the grey seal can remain underwater for around fifteen to sixteen minutes, but more often surface after anywhere from five to ten minutes.

Despite the tourist season normally being all over by now, the visitors to Whaligoe Steps remain steadfast. Even today as I stood watching the seals going about their business, I observed many individuals wrapped up warm in various Winter-themed attire coming and going.

The seal stone that was hidden at Whaligoe Steps on October the 6th, was found yesterday and moved to a new location where more visitors were likely to stumble across it. From that location on some coastal rock which jutted out and utilised as a popular position in which to watch the seals, I have observed the seal stone now out and about on a journey to somewhere else!

If the family or individual who picked up the seal stone had a spare moment to let me know where it is now, I would love to hear about it. Many thanks in advance.

As always, please take care and be safe. Thank you for your time.

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My imagination is running rife since setting up a Twitter account and finding many likeminded creative souls. At the time of assembling my thoughts with this blog post, my @floodland08 account has around 340 followers of varying backgrounds. Each and every one is an individual with an identity unique to them, and each individual has their own level of sensitivity, life experience and perspective on what unfolds around them.

Thank you so much for taking the time to follow a guy who likes to daydream, likes to think, likes to express and likes to share what he likes. You have made an individual living on a remote part of the northern Scottish coastline very happy by spending a second to click ‘Follow’.

My creativity has identified something this very morning and through a lens of art-driven narrative, describes the sight as “Metal Orchids Bathed in Gold”

Energy is a ‘hot’ topic right now for so many reasons. The engineering behind such a challenge is also worthy of respect and recognition. Welcome to the north sea and a distant wind farm situated within view from the Whaligoe Steps.

This offshore wind farm is located approximately thirteen kilometres from the Caithness coastline, and goes by the name of Beatrice. In June, 2019, after seven years of development and three years of actual construction, Beatrice is operated and maintained from its base at Wick Harbour. ​Consisting of eighty-four wind turbines, this offshore entity is capable of providing enough wind powered electricity for up to four hundred and fifty thousand homes!

These wind turbines are mighty in size and power. They stand proud on the horizon when you look out from the bink at the base of the Whaligoe Steps looking out across the north sea. They may be bothersome to some, but they are also fully functional and providing invaluable energy to the grid which supplies many homes with electricity.

It is a feat which is currently recognised as the second largest wind farm in Scotland.

The sunrise which beckoned me down the Whaligoe Steps on this morning provided me with a new perspective on these amazing metallic structures, and once again I sincerely thank the Steps for inviting such breath taking views. A fine example of nature and technology merging to create a vision of synergy.

Welcome to the Beatrice offshore wind farm. Welcome to “Metal Orchids Bathed in Gold”

The stonemason working on the restoration of the Whaligoe Steps at the time of this blog entry, has been a true and authentic example of an individual learning his craft throughout the decades. Charlie Juhlenski told me that he has been working this trade for around forty three years and loves working with the stone steps here. The pride in his work is evident for all those who descend the Whaligoe Steps, as the results simply speak for themselves.

Due to the volume of visitors, the work can be hampered. I have observed the stonemason dropping by at late hours of the day and night gradually making additions and adjustments to his prior workmanship, as progress of his maintenance continues after several months.

Stone is a fascinating and essential ingredient when surveying the Whaligoe Steps region. Not only is it prominent obviously within the cliffs around this area, and makes up the material of the steps, but is found on the small pebble beaches near the Bink at the base of the Whaligoe Steps.

In a previous blog post, I stumbled across a stack of pebbles balanced and beautiful on the pebble shore I just referred to. Check out this wee reminder: A video clip I filmed at the time of the discovery.

Since that find of stacked pebbles, within about two hours the north sea had knocked it down and there was literally no sign that this ever existed. Nature does not take prisoners!

Now then, take a look at this next photograph below… What do you think?

They are not just pebbles, but pebbles which have been scribed on using sharp objects. These pebbles have then been placed on to thin shelves and grooves within the shallow cave walls and subsequently resemble what can only be described as a stone gallery.

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According to www.britannica.com, cave art dates back from 40,000 to 14,000 years ago with examples found in Russia, Indonesia to England and France. The first acknowledged piece of Paleolithic (Stone Age) cave painting was discovered in the Altamira Caves, located around the Spanish town of Santillana del Mar, Cantabria.

It would seem that Homo Sapiens have instinctively been motivated to express themselves utilising the environment as a blank canvas in which to scribe, paint or showcase letters or images.

On each visit down the Whaligoe Steps, I see signs and symbols in and around informing me that visitors from far and wide have left a symbolic signature behind. What will you find when you visit?

Thanks as always for your time, take care and be safe.

It has been a busy few days here for Whaligoe Eye. Time to share with you a few bits about some observations and activities. Hold tight as those waves can provide quite a rollercoaster ride!

Caithness Seacoast Caithness Seacoast – Thrilling Sea Tours around the Caithness Coastline (caithness-seacoast.co.uk) have gained a great reputation for bringing some truly great insight to a piece of the north-easterly coastline in these parts of Scotland, in conjunction with dramatic views, wildlife encounters and moments of adrenaline. The word ‘thrill’ is readily to mind when reflecting on a generous hour and a half of adventure.

Whaligoe Steps from the north sea is a unique opportunity to see them from a refreshing perspective. It is one thing to be descending and tackling the ascent afterwards on those stones underfoot, but to see them in relation to the landscape which embraces them is something else.

Not only did we witness the coastal caves which lurk beneath the Bink, or maybe a little to the side, but we witnessed the waterfalls sprinkling a delightfully fresh cascade down on to the surface of the sea.

With a narrative regarding historical facts, wildlife and significant individuals to what was witnessed regarding the trip from Wick Harbour to the Whaligoe Steps, there was no room for a break. The eyes were taking in the views, the ears were listening to trivia and all the time the brain was bombarded with stimuli.

This adventure was an experience which was very welcome, insightful and I will be doing again. The knowledge of the crew, the attention to health and safety and the overall detail provided made me feel confident in them and their abilities, and subsequently relax and enjoy the ride. Highly recommended.

This morning I decided to film my descent down the main set of six flights of steps which make up the Whaligoe Steps.

Fairly spontaneous thing to do I guess, but my gosh was it a good cardio workout! Sporadically, I have done this wee jaunt down the steps for over thirty years now and felt relatively empowered to tackle the challenge. Please do not try this, especially as on this fine morning the steps were slightly wet underfoot.

During this rather overzealous undertaking, I became aware of some cobwebs which held droplets of rain and moisture. They looked so elegant reminding me of thin but robust threads containing small natural crystals.

It was a simple nudge for my brain to process as I began thinking about all of those little things we take for granted. It’s the little things on various levels that I often miss. So on this slightly misty morn’, I began to rummage amongst the grassy banks of the Whaligoe Steps to find those little things.

Many thanks for your time as always, it means a lot and remember those little things.

My stroll down the Whaligoe Steps this morning provided a thought-provoking discovery. On the pebble shore was a stack of stones which has been a hot topic amongst tourists and environmentalists in recent times. I filmed my discovery which you can see in this blog and found myself speaking about what I came across. Apologies if you’re not a fan of commentary – Just turn the volume off.

The stacks of stones which appear in all manner of locations from popular tourist destinations on the Orkney Islands right around the globe to Australia, are examples of humans physically changing a natural environment where varying types of wildlife inhabit.

If you and I put our feet in the metaphorical footwear of a species of wildlife to imagine what this stack of stones was like, it might be comparable to you finding your home rearranged one day to the point that it resembled a pile of rubble!

When you delve in to the rabbit hole which is the debate about whether they are good or bad, you stumble across inspiring associations related to spiritual or religious belief and the symbolism connected to mental health wellbeing. In the moment an individual or a group assemble and balance such a striking structure, the process itself quite possibly feels cathartic.

Personally, I see them in the moment as an artistic expression but do understand the significance regarding the sensitivity of the natural world.

It is good to wonder. Take care, be safe.

Words failed me this morning when I took a wee stroll down the Whaligoe Steps. I saw what looked like a shiny, wet smooth boulder peaking through the surface of the water within the inlet of this immediate coastline. But something in the back of my mind was telling me that no such smooth item existed in that specific bit of sea.

On closer inspection this smooth object was something else and to my utter glee, my internal self reacted by leaping around with ecstatic abandonment and the endorphins were having a party! I was looking at a member of the sea world which was not an oystercatcher, herring gull or a cormorant, but was in fact a seal.

The clip shows the seal having a tired yawn and being quite at peace with the environment. I stood as still as I could on what is known as the bink (the flat base at the bottom of the Whaligoe Steps). The whole experience was special and highly cathartic.

On occasion we talk about the ‘wild’ life, and what it was like walking amongst the ‘wild’ and that sort of thing. When in reality during times like this one, it was anything but ‘wild’ – It was a calm and serene, gradual awakening to a brand new day.

Thanks as always for dropping by and sharing your time watching this seal with me. According to the experts, in this region of the United Kingdom the common seal sightings are of grey seals, but their counterpart is known as the harbour seal – They are rare. I am no expert, but I think this is a grey seal.

Take care and be safe.

I will admit that over the last eleven years especially, each and every day I find myself on a steep learning curve. Whether this is applicable to food, health, people or animals and plants.

For some reason it had sneaked in to my subconscious that a ‘Shag’ was some sort of nickname for a Cormorant. So after hanging out this morning with what I thought was a ‘Shag’ watching the overcast grey skies and feeling the gentle tingle of light drizzle on my face, I filmed it for posterity capturing this special moment.

Once I was back in the dry, I reached out for my trusty British bird handbook and flicked over the pages to find that a Cormorant is a separately recognised bird. They both possess different latin names for example: Cormorant – phalacrocorax carbo, Shag – phalacrocorax Aristotelis.

I think the fellow that was happy to sit on the ledge to my left was indeed a Cormorant. I shared a tweet on Twitter which said it was a Shag, but now I am thinking I was wrong. Do you recognise this bird?

Before I go, this morning reminded me how slippery underfoot the Whaligoe Steps can get. Two photographs below show how slippery and wet it can get – Please tread carefully if you visit here during or after rainfall.

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Here are the six sets of steps which make up the zig-zag formation of the Whaligoe Steps, with each section of the ascendency clearly shown – 23rd of August, 2021.