The high tides of the last two days (9.8 and 10.3 metres) have been an enjoyable spectacle for the many people who turned out to view.
On Bank Holiday Monday the high tide was due at 1.57pm. It was a day of glorious sunshine with very little wind - perfect for leisurely viewing. For possibly an hour before the high tide, long lines of Oystercatchers and small groups of other waders, Gulls and Duck could be seen moving west as the incoming tide gradually swept them off their roosts. They eventually collected on the saltmarsh near the Reserve's boundary fence - lining all the inlets made by this inundation. There were thousands of Oystercatchers and Gulls (mostly Black-headed); hundreds of Curlew; good numbers of Bar-tailed Godwit, Mallard, Lapwing and Shelduck and small groups of Cormorant, Grey and Golden Plover with a couple of Grey Heron and a little Egret.
Saltmarsh pool as viewed from the RSPB layby.
Oystercatchers and Gulls lining the islands and peninsulas near the boundary fence at high tide.
Oystercatchers and Gulls on another inlet.
Golden Plover.
Bar-tailed Godwits and Oystercatchers lining the marsh edge.
Oystercatchers and Mallards.
Grey Plover grouping.
Grey Plover losing its summer plumage.
A further feature was the sighting of a Tall Ship, which had sailed up the Estuary into Annan harbour on the high tide the previous day, returning back to sea on the tide today.
A small Tall Ship being guided into Annan harbour by the coastguard launch - 30th August. . .
. . . underway for the open sea, today at high tide.
Then on Tuesday, 1st September, one of the few 10.3m high tides of the year occurred at 2.16pm. The day started off sunny but with a light NW wind making it a little cooler than of late. One could feel a touch of Autumn in the air. As the tide came in the Solway Bore could be seen racing along the channel and across the mudflats. The estuary rapidly started to fill up.
The Bore coming in.
Dark thunderous clouds had been gathering and thunder rumbled in the distance. Birds were by now lining the tide's edge in their hundreds and, what with the running tide pushing them off their roosts and the frequent claps of thunder getting increasingly closer, there was a continual flurry of wings westward along the saltmarsh. It was quite dramatic watching the storm slowly moving inland along the estuary with flocks of birds enveloped by it. As yesterday, they all were heading for the seclusion of the saltmarsh beyond the Pool near the boundary fence.
Inundated marsh looking east towards the Viaduct.
Oystercatchers roosting round Scargavel Point.
Some were already heading west for Saltmarsh Pool area.
Oystercatchers, Bar-tailed Godwits and Herring Gull as the tide came in.
Black-headed Gulls, Oystercatchers and Mallard on the flooded saltmarsh.
Oystercatchers, Black-headed Gulls and Lapwings.
As the storm approaches birds fly uneasily west.
At the height of the storm Oystercatchers, startled by the thunder, fly off their roosts.