2nd November – Received a message of orca in Hoy Sound this morning but after a fruitless trip to Ness Point, I headed up to Yesnaby to see if they were travelling in that direction. It was a beautiful morning but the sea state at the foot of the cliffs at Yesnaby would keep the orca off shore.
So, no cetacean sightings but I did find this interesting piece of fossilised wood. The cliffs here are about 30m above sea level but it’s clear that this area was once the seabed, perhaps this was a piece of driftwood on an ancient ocean.
8th November – A bright sunny day here. I was on the usual Shorewatch duty this morning. No sign of any marine mammals but plenty of birds enjoying the winter sunshine.
21st November – It’s been a lean month for postings. Almost two weeks of gales and rain has caused problems across Scotland and Orkney wasn’t spared. At one point the roads into Kirkwall were closed due to flooding. The weather has restricted our travel to essential journeys only.
One sad item to report today has been the discovery of a fin whale body, washed up on Graemsay, just by the lighthouse in the above photo. This is just opposite the site where I do my Shorewatchng. The authorities have been notified and tests will be conducted to ascertain the cause of death.
22nd November – The first hint of snow this winter with a light dusting on the high ground on Hoy.
25th November – It might look quite bright and sunny but it is, as they say here, absolutely Baltic! This is a meteorological term used in Scotland to refer to a very low temperature, often enforced by a wind chill.
28th November – The patience has paid off, on my Shorewatch this morning I recorded a pod of around ten Common Dolphin. They stayed in the area for about an hour, presumably feeding.
We’ve had a good couple of days of Shorewatching, as a family of Orca passed by Ness Point yesterday. I caught up with them at Warebeth but didn’t manage to get any photographs.
29th November – It’s been a glorious day here, no sightings but whose complaining with sunsets like these.
Scapa Views 
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