Foulney Island

The wind was cold and getting stronger by the time we reached the causeway to Foulney. In order to get here we had to drive some way down the causeway to Roa Island though this doesn’t get cut off by the tide. We had missed Foulney last time we were here. It is low lying, only 10 feet above high water mark and therefore not easily seen unless you know it is there.

Foulney means bird island and during nesting season parts of it are closed off. At high tide it can be cut off for several hours. We misjudged the terrain here as we wore our wellies. The causeway is mostly stones which after a while you could feel through the soles of the rubber boots. Walking boots would have been much better. We slipped around on the stones too and boots would have given better grip. The stones were varied in shape and size and covered in green slime at the beginning. We could hear oyster catchers and I believe I saw a knot.

We passed a strange orange lifeboat, capsule like with a battered keel and anchored into the sands. Further towards Roa we could see a wreck of a trawler, painted orange to help preserve it as well as act as a warning to its presence.

It was a mile walk along this causeway. I am not sure if the Victorian causeway was actually on top of the mounded wall of rocks, shingle and concrete, beside where we walked. There were huge holes at intervals where the sea had breached it. Some of the rocks looked volcanic in origin being so black. All around were small stones covered in holes rather like pumice.

As we neared the island the rocks became easier to walk on being flat, thin and rounded. Later shingle intermingled with mussel shells led to the grassy bank where we stood at last!

A white tower with AGA printed across it stood at this end of the island, with what looks like a small light for shipping on its top.

We came to an open concrete shed with gear used by the ornithologists when it’s the breeding season. There were piles of stones painted with numbers and letters denoting the names of the birds- RP ringed plover and OY oystercatcher presumably for marking nest sites. There was an upturned comfy chair which looked quite out of place and was exposed rather, to the weather.

The views of Piel and Roa have been good again and we could see that the tide was now incoming. On the sands were flocks of tiny birds-or so they looked from a distance and against a lone seagull. They moved on mass in an undulating fashion like a grounded murmuration.

We came to a large shingle patch, obviously man made, maybe for the ringed plover. Nearby were barricades and notices to be put up during the nesting season.

On the beach above here were chunks of brick building, chimney sized. The bricks had small stones in them which made us think they were at least Victorian in age. Some were completely yellow. The sea couldn’t have brought the bricks but there must have been a building sited here. there was a good view of Piel castle again from here.

We reached the furthermost point and then walked back the other side of the shingle “triangle”. We more or less retraced our steps all the way back to the car. This time the wind was fiercely in our faces and at times it was hard to push against it- perhaps 30 mile an hour.