As I mentioned yesterday, we were delivering a "Cetaceans for Beginners" WOW course this weekend and the weather and time failed us when we tried for the (usually reliable) Bottles at Newquay.
The forcast for today was not good. Should we head for the shelter of the lookout and concentrate on our Strumble Porpoises , which Rich Stonier got great pic's of yesterday, or make a dash for Newquay before the even worse weather came in?
Its got to be said that Bottles are big and impressive and for beginners the subtle charms of porp's may be less obvious...
We headed for Newquay and after a dissapointing blank start retired to the good old Mariners Cafe for some tea and a warm. I have to say our studenta were remarkably good natured about this but I can hardly express my relief when having gone back to the shelter of the TIC building, we spotted some dolphins coming into the bay (Well done Maggie!)
They came in close and gave some excellent viwsthat helped us ignore the persistant drizzle. although I fluffed several chances to get good shots whilst trying to keep my camera dry! This particular animal had a pretty distinctive fin with a few nicks and a triangular scar. We reckoned there were at least six animals at the end of the session although in usual Bottlenose fashion they were appearing and dissapearing from nowhere.
So our course came to a close and I think despite the adversities encountered we had all enjoyed the experience , learned a little and ended on a high, which can't be bad!
