Along the beach
Another week of changeable weather with storms that took away another part of the beach below our famous golden cliffs (sorry picture not taken) and a poor dead dolphin washed up on the sand. On Valentines Day we planned a day out at Lyme Regis. The weather was so awful that we ended up working instead! I'm pleased to say that on our second attempt to visit Lyme Regis the weather was just like a spring day making the views even more spectacular!
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| Lyme Bay looking towards Charmouth |
As it was half term and the first decent day everyone was out enjoying the sunshine and low tide!
The sky was so blue and this display of the colourful dogwood so eye catching!
The colours on Eype beach are more muted.
We are continuing to try and reduce the number of single-use plastic items coming into our house. We now have lots of toilet rolls wrapped in paper rather than plastic and have gone back to using washing powder rather than liquid, all these small changes do make a difference, I was very encouraged this week talking to local retailers this week to hear the efforts they are going to trying to find alternatives. I took part in another beach clean to gather material for a project a local school is involved in to highlight the plastic debate, although we didn't find as much rubbish as before!
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| The Nurdle hunters - even a passing dog came to see what was going on! |
On Saturday we went to Charmouth Heritage Centre where we joined Philip Strange to take part in a Nurdle Hunt, as I have mentioned nurdles (sometimes called mermaid tears) are plastic pellets the size of lentils. They are increasing being washed up on the shore and are eaten by fish and sea birds mistaking them for food. The plastic pellets are melted down and used to make most of the plastic items that we use today from bin bags to phone covers. Spills take place when they are handled or transported.
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| My husband searching for nurdles |
Unfortunately we didn't have to venture very far from the Centre to find them. I gave up counting them after I had picked up 120! We had never come across so many on mass before although we were told that there were less on this stretch of beach compared with the previous year. It did feel as if our efforts were like a small drop in the ocean! Our hunt did however create lots of interest, as those passing stopped to find out what we were doing. It was good to meet up with another fellow blogger, although there wasn't much time to chat and I forget to photograph the occasion!
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| Our nurdle collection which we estimated to be around 200. |
Wishing you a happy and healthy week, thank you for popping by.
Sarah x
A quick reminder for anyone else who would like to take part that next week's post will be another visit "Through the Garden Gate." I know my post will definitely be more colourful than last month as we welcome and admire the first signs of Spring.
Your photos make me long to get out of this room I work in...FOR GOOD! Thank you, they're beautiful.
ReplyDeleteGreat work along the beach! Love the second photo!
ReplyDeleteUgh, nurdles are nasty, and seemingly everywhere. Well done on your continued quest to go plastic free. And very well done on the beach cleaning. It all helps, it really does. And it's good to see other people out there too, joining in. I was down by the river yesterday and sadly there's plenty of plastic there too. It's an internationally important area for wetlands wildlife, an SSSI, a Ramsar site, an SPA and an SAC. Vital for so many wetland birds, it's, oh I don't know what word to use, disappointing doesn't really cover it, ghastly, to see so much plastic waste there. You are an inspiration Sarah, I am motivated to work harder to eliminate plastic from our lives, or at least cut down as much as possible. Keep up the good work. CJ xx
ReplyDeleteInspiring post, thank you!
ReplyDeletePooping by, though?😂 It certainly made me smile. Perhaps a little edit required... or not!
Whoops my editor wasn't up to speed this week! All corrected now! At least it raised a smile and nothing else! Sarah x
DeleteSuch inspiring photos of Lyme, such a beautiful place. Well done on your inroads to plastic reduction. We’re continuing with no plastics round our fruit and veg and being quite successful. I must look out for hurdles on our beach. I had heard of them but never really looked for them. There does seem to be a positive slant on plastic reduction at the moment. B x
ReplyDeleteYes it is good that there is lots going on with plastic reduction at the moment. I found it quite difficult to find nurdles until I had found the first one. They can quite often be found in amongst the debris at the high tide mark. Sarah x
DeleteTo live by the sea....a dream.
ReplyDeleteWhat a worthy cause. In the country, many people still throw their car trash out the window and it is strewn across the countryside.
ReplyDeleteWe are going up to Scotland soon and no doubt will see if we have lost anymore of the cliffs along the beach - the weather we are having these last few years seems far harsher than I remember. We get a lot of large plastic fish boxes washed up on shore and milk cartons - some of the beaches in the bay seem worse than others - I will be doing my usual Spring Clean along our stretch - every little helps. Unfortunately our plastic patio table that we inherited with the cottage was washed out to sea when we had the flood and we never did see it again -so if anyone finds it on a beach clean up let me know!
ReplyDelete120 nurdles in one day ... How depressing. Good for you spreading the word ... & being so proactive I always mention your clean ups to other people & we are all trying harder after your posts!
ReplyDeleteHi Gerrie, Thank you that is so heartening to hear but original intention was to reduce our consumption of single use plastic and try to encourage others locally. It is wonderful to hear that my actions have also changed habits and thoughts about it worldwide!
DeleteLyme Regis is one of my favourite holiday destinations. Litter is a real bug bear with me, of what ever kind. You see the roadside verges mown, often unnecessarily, scattering chopped up litter everywhere.
ReplyDeleteGuten Morgen, heute schreibe ich mal deutsch. Ich mußte nachsehen, was Nurdles sind. Nun weiß ich es. Die Plastikverschmutzung weltweit ist grauenvoll. Wir können ja auch kaum noch was Essbares kaufen, ohne dass es in Plastik verpackt ist. Heutzutage schälen sie gekochte Eier und verpacken sie in Plastik - auch die Orangen. Das ist wirklich unfassbar. Wie schön, dass ihr so engagiert seid. Die großen Steine am Strand sind wundervoll, sie würden im Garten auch gut aussehen!
ReplyDeleteSigrun
When I worked in Zurich, I remember looking at a colleague in quiet horror. He was peacefully eating his lunch including a naartjie (easy peeler!) - which had been peeled and wrapped in plastic.
DeleteVery inspiring Sarah. I am seeing an encouraging move to plastic reduction on lots of blogs and Instagram accounts. I am myself trying to look for practical alternatives. The washing powder is a good idea I will follow. Well done on making a difference and spreading the word.
ReplyDeleteJacquie x
Hi Sarah, lovely to meet you and John last Saturday on the nurdle hunt. I also forgot to take a "meeting" photo, we shall have to try again!
ReplyDeleteApparently the total collected by the 30 nurdlers was about 6600 pellets, a frighteningly high number given that we looked in a relatively small area.
I am surprised the number collected was that high. Sarah
DeleteI've not yet managed to do any beach cleaning (being so far from any beaches) but the 2 minute beach clean movement seems to be growing along with the awareness of plastic pollution.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed seeing your seasidey scenes, as always :)
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