We've had a remarkably calm winter in Shetland. However, we had Force 9 gales on Saturday. Winter in Shetland wouldn't be the same without a good gale. The impact on the sea is quite amazing. Apparently the waves were crashing over a roundabout in town! On Sunday it had calmed and was quite beautiful with the sea still roaring. I took a walk to Scatness and enjoyed the crashing of the waves, noticing how the purple sandpipers tucked themselves just out of reach . Another impact that the gales have on the sea is how it changes the colour. There's lots of grown-up science I could write about aeration, abosorption of light and stuff, but I prefer to think of it as art - the ever changing mood of the sea that so influences life in Shetland.
Today at Sumburgh Head, my mood was somewhat lifted. There was just enough wind for the fulmars to be creating a visual feast - dozens surfing, swooping and slicing through the air. They are a joy to watch. After a moment I noticed that, over the rumble of the sea, there was a sound rising from low down the cliffs. "Craaaa craaaa cra cra craaaa." I realised it was a sound which I had not heard for around six months. My eyes were drawn down to the stack, through the aerial display of the fulmars. The bare stack of yesterday, December, November, October, September and August was now covered in black and white. "They're back," I smiled, my tummy doing a flip. The guillemots are back.
I took my camera up to take a photo yesterday morning. However, the wind has risen (and the sea with it) and the birds have gone back to sea.