We arrived at The Fields of Avalon fairly late, but early enough to make a dahl and have a gibber. We woke to a beautiful sunrise. There is something very peaceful about this part of Glastonbury – maybe it’s all the crystals! We are always treated to interesting weather down this way and by breakfast time, we had already been hailed on. We still risked climbing the Tor. We saw some impressive cumulonimbus in the distance but above us were bright blue skies. We took some photos of the local wildlife and then headed down the hill to the pub where we managed a pint outside. In January, boom!
However, at the realisation that the starling mumaration started early evening, rather than at dusk, as we believed, we got a move on to Ham Wall in the hope of seeing the amazing spectacle
Disappointingly, we were met with crowds leaving the area. We could only assume the show was over. It was a beautiful walk nonetheless. However, we then overhead a group who were walking toward us who appeared equally as disappointed? As it turned out, the show hadn’t even started and they believed it probably wouldn’t. Then we saw a starling. Then a small group of starlings. Then before we knew it, the sky was inundated with them. It appeared almost carpeted with little black specks, cheeping, swooping, incoming on mass, stretching as far as we could see, forming incredible shapes and making their way to a central location, the middle of a field, where they were roosting. It was like something from a Studio Ghibli movie. A thunderous mass of black. Coming and going in flocks, all aware of each other’s movements. They were so loud. It was incredible and I could only laugh hysterically at the sight – not quite being able to believe what I was seeing. We photographed them until the sun went down.
However, at the realisation that the starling mumaration started early evening, rather than at dusk, as we believed, we got a move on to Ham Wall in the hope of seeing the amazing spectacle
Disappointingly, we were met with crowds leaving the area. We could only assume the show was over. It was a beautiful walk nonetheless. However, we then overhead a group who were walking toward us who appeared equally as disappointed? As it turned out, the show hadn’t even started and they believed it probably wouldn’t. Then we saw a starling. Then a small group of starlings. Then before we knew it, the sky was inundated with them. It appeared almost carpeted with little black specks, cheeping, swooping, incoming on mass, stretching as far as we could see, forming incredible shapes and making their way to a central location, the middle of a field, where they were roosting. It was like something from a Studio Ghibli movie. A thunderous mass of black. Coming and going in flocks, all aware of each other’s movements. They were so loud. It was incredible and I could only laugh hysterically at the sight – not quite being able to believe what I was seeing. We photographed them until the sun went down.
The anticipation, reward and pure shock of what we saw gave us a feeling not unlike that after a storm chase and we soon realised, probably partly due to the adrenaline rush, that we were incredibly hungry. However, before we ate, we had the important task of Blind Beer Test Chapter 2 to participate in. We stopped at a spar shop and gathered as many individual beers as we could before heading back to camp to perform the experiment, the aftermath of which is to then drink a lot of beer, hopefully of a variety that you have now identified as your favourite. We accompanied this with special beans and maybe some wine, but I can’t really remember!
The next day was rainy, as expected, but we took a trip into Street, picked up a few new items of work clothes and some tracky bums (which are, so far, the best tracky bums I’ve ever had) before not so much surfing, as being stuck in the cold front for a long rainy journey home. One of the best weekends though, without a doubt.
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