A Cold August Day

Golspie's summer weather, according to the two men who spend their working lives sitting on machines mowing the graveyard and the two playing fields near us, is getting wetter, and greyer, and cooler. Today was an example of the trend, with the temperature struggling to reach 14C and heavy rain for most of the afternoon. 

This morning, with the best of the weather forecast to be over by midday, we joined a small number of people who were wandering the beach looking for things of interest, which included....

....the very smelly remains of the bottlenose dolphin which was washed up early in July but which subsequently disappeared - we have no idea where it has been in the meanwhile, but the head was removed for an autopsy.

There's a feel in the air which is less autumn than winter. Certainly, the waders are beginning to behave as if the seasons are advancing fast, with oystercatchers appearing in their winter groups and the first curlews stalking the mudflats after being away for weeks.

At least some are carrying on as if summer isn't finished, though there were very few other insects to be seen, and not a single butterfly. However, not all is lost as the weather is set to improve, with heady highs of 19C forecast for Friday.