Summer storm at sea off Sizewell!

I woke up this morningrather undecided abpout what to do. The forecast wasn't brilliant but, being so far east, it's never that accurate so wanted to get out and about. Had toyed with idea of going to FolkEast at nearby Somerleyton Hall especially as Bellowhead are playing tonight but didn't really want to go on my own. Ended up, as I frequently do, going to Minsmere. Of course, I could have stayed at home and done some gardening but ... well, you know!

Only spent a couple of hours in the Bittern Hide which lived up to its name. Saw 5 different Bittern, mainly flying but one stood in the reedbed for 5 minutes or so. They really do have ridiculously long necks!! Unusually there was not a sign of a Marsh Harrier - or much else come to that.

Decided to move on to Dunwich Heath which is next door but a good 20 minutes drive by the time you've driven out of Minsmere, along the road and back down to the coast. I knew that the heather would be looking good and indeed it was.

Apart from a couple of heavy showers - which I managed to avoid - the rain had missed us. The area outside the tearooms at Dunwich Heath offers a great vantage point to see all the way to Southwold to the north and Sizewell and its power station to the south.

The area between the heath and Sizewell is, basically, Minsmere.

As I sat in the car overlooking Minsmere the sky grew darker and darker to the south and a storm headed out to sea. It was incredible. We stayed dry but it must have been very wet somewhere. As indeed it was as I drove home. Had to stay in the car at Morrisons until it eased off a bit.

This blip is dedicated to my good mate Gail who has today given birth to a baby girl called Rebecca. May God bless her and her family.