Island 488 - David's Stone, North Devon

David's Stone is a small rocky uninhabited tidal island located on the North Devon coast at David's Hole half a mile to the west of Combe Martin.  David's Hole is signposted as Mermaid's Cove, although this name is not shown on any Ordnance Survey maps, so I presume it is either what the locals call it or it was a name invented by the owners of the Sandaway Beach Holiday Park, which is located on the cliff top above the beach, to make it sound more appealing.  It says on their website that it is their private beach but there is a public footpath, which runs from the South West Coast Path in a north westerly direction along the boundary of the holiday park and then through the northern part of it and down the steps to the beach.  However when we visited in December 2020 the section of the public footpath that runs along the boundary was barely accessible - we had to crawl under 3 trees that had fallen across it and fight our way through brambles. Devon County Council have assured us that the footpath will be cleared by spring 2021.

David's Stone has several trees and gorse bushes growing on the summit of the island.

David's Stone from across the beach at David's Hole

Looking up towards the summit of David's Stone

David's Stone from the footpath down to the beach

David's Stone

Looking east from David's Stone towards Lester Point and Little Hangman

David's hole from David's Stone

The beach at David's Hole aka Mermaid's Cove

Island 487 - Crow Point, Braunton, Devon

Crow Point is a sand spit, which is also a tidal island at the moment, although it is only cut off at spring tides.  It is a comparatively recent island, as a shingle spit, known then as Crow Neck, only started to form across the Taw estuary c1840.  The reasons for its formation were probably:

• Fish weirs, which were constructed in the intertidal area around Crow Point in the mid 19th century.  These obstructed the flow of the tide and caused the deposition of sand and shingle.
• Horsey Island was enclosed in 1857, which altered the course of the River Caen.  Before this time it flowed along the northern side of the island and probably provided enough water to keep the area where Crow Point now is, clear of excess sand.

By 1900 sand dunes had begun to form on top of the spit. In 1921 the spit was breached and Crow Point became an island.  Then for the next 25 years or so sand was gradually deposited on Crow Neck and by 1946 it was c60 metres wide and marram grass had established itself on the island.

The gap between Crow Point and Braunton Burrows is currently protected by a low line of rock armour.  A 2013 report commissioned by the Environment Agency and Torridge District Council says that the existing rock armour will fail at some point after 2025 if it is not maintained. Experts disagree what the result of this failure will be on Crow Point.

Crow Point Lighthouse was built by Trinity House in 1954 to guide ships and boats sailing up and down the Taw and Torridge estuaries.  It was originally powered by acetylene gas but was converted to electrical operation in 1978 and solar power in 1987.  The light is 7.6 metres above mean high water level.

Crow Point Lighthouse

Crow Point Lighthouse

Crow Point Lighthouse

The gap between Crow Point and Braunton Burrows

Looking NW up the landward side of Crow Point

Looking SE down Crow Point

Crow Point Lighthouse from the top of Crow Point

Crow Point Lighthouse

Common restharrow

Crow Point Lighthouse from the top of Crow Point

Memorial? on the top of Crow Point

Six-spot burnet moth on viper's bugloss

Appledore from Crow Point

Island 486 - Horsey Island, Braunton, Devon

Horsey Island is both a comparatively new and a rapidly disappearing island.  It is located to the south west of the town of Braunton in North Devon and has an area of 80 hectares. The land was reclaimed from the sea in 1857 and enclosed by an earth bank and a dam to protect it from the sea.  It was then used for pasture, arable crops and rough grazing. In 1910 a storm breached Horsey Island's sea wall in 5 places.  It was repaired in 1911.

The River Caen flows south down the eastern side of the island and into the estuary of the River Taw, which flows in a south westerly direction along the south side of the island.  Excess rainwater was drained from Horsey Island via a pipe into the river.  The pipe had a flap on the end to stop sea water from coming back up it. In 2014 or 2015 the flap broke and the condition of the sea wall around it gradually deteriorated.  In November 2017 the sea wall was breached.  In January 2018 the breach was widened by Storm Eleanor and the island flooded.  Several old stone farm buildings on the island were damaged.  The breach was not repaired and the island was regularly flooded with sea water and was reverting to salt marsh, sandbanks and mudflats. By autumn 2019 the breach was 60 metres wide.

In November 2019 Devon Wildlife Trust announced that it had bought Horsey Island, helped by a generous donation from a local resident and bird watcher called Mark Ansell.  It is now managed as a nature reserve. Salt tolerant plants such as samphire, sea blite and sea purslane have colonised the island, which is now visited by thousands of wading and other birds, which land there to rest and feed. Golden plovers, curlews, little egrets, shelducks and lapwings are common but ospreys, spoonbills, glossy ibis, cattle egrets, great white egrets and ruff have also been seen on the nature reserve.

The South West Coast Path used to run along the top of the sea wall on the south and east sides of the island.  Since October 2016 it has been diverted and it now runs alongside the toll road on the north west side of the island on the inner sea wall, which was built in 1811-1815 when Braunton Marshes were reclaimed from the sea.  This is currently the only way you can view Horsey Island - there is no access to the island itself.

Devon Wildlife Trust notice near Crow Beach House

Viper's bugloss on the outer sea wall

Looking across Horsey Island from the outer sea wall

Outer sea wall

Estuary of the River Taw and Appledore from Horsey Island

Looking NE across Horsey Island towards Braunton

Horsey  Island

Looking NW up the outer sea wall

Looking south west down the outer sea wall towards Horsey Mere

Female large skipper butterfly on the sea wall

Island 485 - Point of Nesbister, Whiteness Voe, Shetland

Point of Nesbister is a small tidal rocky outcrop on the east side of Whiteness Voe on Shetland Mainland.  A building, known in Shetland as a böd, was built on the outcrop by Hay & Co in 1844 to house fishermen and their equipment during the fishing season.  The fishermen would have dried fish on the beach outside the böd to prepare them for export. The böd consists of a single storey with a loft above and was built of rubble with stugged (random chisel marks) sandstone dressings. A short flight of stone steps leads up to the entrance door and the loft is accessed by a separate external flight of stone stairs at the north end of the building.

The böd is now used as a camping barn offering cheap but basic self-catering accommodation to visitors.  It has no electricity and the toilet is of the "bucket and bury" variety.  It is one of 9 camping böds in Shetland run by Shetland Amenity Trust.

Point of Nesbister is only cut off from the mainland during storm conditions. The rest of the time it is linked to the mainland by a beach.

Low tide at Point of Nesbister

Point of Nesbister

Nesbister Böd

Nesbister Böd

Island 484 - Skeo Ness 2, Lunna, Shetland

Skeo Ness 2 is a small uninhabited tidal island located 50 metres to the south of Skeo Ness 1 and cut off from it at high tide.  The gap between the two islands is covered in orange/brown seaweed, which means the island is cut off at every high tide.  Skeo Ness 2 is round in shape and no more than about 25m in diameter.  It is closely grazed by sheep.

Looking north west from Skeo Ness 2 towards Noness Head and Fora Ness

Skeo Ness 1 from Skeo Ness 2

The tidal island of Pund and Hunter's Monument from Skeo Ness 2

Skeo Ness 1 from Skeo Ness 2

Skeo Ness 2 with Cul Ness beyond from Skeo Ness 1

Skeo Ness 2 with Cul Ness in the distance from Skeo Ness 1

Island 483 - Skeo Ness 1, Lunna, Shetland

Skeo Ness is a narrow tidal island linked to Shetland Mainland on the western side of West Lunna Voe near the village of Lunna.  It is a half mile walk from the road junction near Lunna House.  The first part of the walk is on a metalled track, which leads to a house and then there are two fields and a couple of ditches to cross.  The pebble tombolo, which links Skeo Ness to Mainland, is probably only covered at times of high spring tides.  

The island, which is 200m from north to south by 50m from east to west, is closely grazed by sheep, although there were none present when I visited in early September 2019.  I spotted daisies, thrift and hawkweed on the island.  I also found the empty shells of sea urchins, crabs and mussels close to the shore - possibly the remains of an otter's breakfast? 

At the northern end of Skeo Ness there is a stone walled compound.  I saw a Shetland wren hopping around in the wall.  The compound is marked as a sheepfold on the 1880 6" scale Ordnance Survey map.

Looking north up Skeo Ness towards Shetland Mainland

Tombolo from Skeo Ness

Sheepfold at the northern end of Skeo Ness

Sheepfold

Sheepfold

Sheepfold

Skeo Ness from Mainalnd

Skeo Ness from Shetland Mainland

Island 482 - Holm of North Voxter, Shetland

Holm of North Voxter is an unnamed island.  I named it, as it is plenty big enough to count as an island.  It is a low lying tidal island about half way up Aith Voe, close to the hamlet of North Voxter on the east coast of Shetland Mainland.  It is attached to the hamlet of Longwell at low tide by about 100 metres of muddy shingle.  The island is about 100m from north to south by 75m from east to west.

I parked in a large layby at North Voxter and as I was about to set off a local resident drove by and stopped for a chat.  I asked him if it was permissible to visit the island, if it had a name and if the crossing was solid.  He confirmed it would be permissible to visit, that the shingle was solid, said he didn't think it had a name and to be careful as the tide had turned and was now coming in.

It was an easy crossing to the island with just a shallow channel of water to cross.  Holm of North Voxter is ungrazed but someone visits it, as a wild rose had been planted with a guard around it close to an unidentified rusting iron object.  Sea campion, tormentil, iris, thrift and scabious were also growing on the island.

Looking north east - unidentified metal object and wild rose

Looking south down Aith Voe

Looking north towards Longwell

Holm of North Voxter from Longwell

Holm of North Voxter from Longwell