Plum Island is a barrier island located on the north eastern coast of Massachusetts. It is only about 11 miles in length bordered by the Merrimack River to the north and the Ipswich River to the south. Ron Risman‘s video “Day on the Beach – Plum Island” does a fantastic job of capturing the feeling of being there. Check out UpTake’s full list of things to do and places to stay here.
Monthly Archives: March 2011
Tahiti Travel Notes
Ina Lejins of Coconut Island Travel sent me those notes on the 7th edition of Moon Tahiti.
Snow Goose No Glory
Egg-static - first Shag egg of the season (Ciaran Hatsell)
Migrants on the move - Goldcrest (Ciaran Hatsell)Wednesday 23rd March comments:
What a day. The best day of the week produced the most talked about events of the season so far. On an early seawatch, a Snow Goose was picked out flying north through Inner Sound in a mixed Goose flock. This potential ‘first’ for the Farnes will cause some debate as to its true origins, but its presumably the same individual seen recently in Ashington and on nearby Holy Island in Northumberland. If it is accepted as a wild individual, there will be some early celebrating on the islands.
Speaking of celebrating, the first eggs have been discovered – as a pair of Shags at lighthouse cliff were discovered sitting today – now that is early! With the mild start it’s not totally unexpected although it is the earliest ever recorded laying date by five days and we would normally expect the first eggs in mid-April. There was also a welcome return – our first Sandwich Terns – all three discovered on Knoxes Reef. As I said, what a day!
Today’s highlights: Snow Goose 1N (potentially first for the Farnes), Goldeneye 3, Red-breasted Merganser 2, Common Scoter 33 on sea, Sandwich Tern 3 (first of the year), Wood Pigeon 1 west, Rook 4 west, Jackdaw 2 west, Blackbird, Goldcrest 2 and Linnet 4
Cetaceans: Porpoise 3 surfacing through Inner Sound.
Pinkies on the move
Skein of Pink-footed Geese over the Pele Tower (Ciaran Hatsell) 
Early start, pair of Shags on the cliffs (Ciaran Hatsell)
Woodcock wings - one full Peregrine nearby
Tuesday 22nd March comments: It’s been another cracking day as the sunny weather continued and the team have been working hard to get the islands ready for visitors and seabirds. I’ll introduce the team over the next week or two, but everyone is enjoying it and can't to welcome visitors back to the islands.
Interestingly today witnessed the complete evacuation of the islands of all the auk species as they moved off the islands and back to sea leaving the cliffs bare. However the day was notable for northerly passage of Pin-footed Geese as nine skeins totalled 466 moved over the islands, a record spring count for the Farnes.
Today’s highlights: Red-throated Diver 1S, Red-necked Grebe, Wigeon 3S, Teal 2, Goldeneye 2, Brent Goose 4 on sea, Pink-footed Goose 466N (in nine skeins), Redshank 31, Purple Sandpiper 30, Blackbird 7, Rook 3, Jackdaw 3, Linnet 4, Greenfinch, and male Reed Bunting.
Puffins return
Look who's back... (Ciaran Hatsell) 
Puffins galore (Ciaran Hatsell)
Looking good - Inner Farne courtyard
Whooper Swans fly north (Ciaran Hatsell)Monday 21st March comments: It’s been a cracking start as the fine weather continues to prevail and team moral is high as we enter our first week back on the islands. It hasn’t taken long for the seabirds to react to the settled start and for the first time this year, the Puffins landed – their back and it was great to see them.
Alongside the Puffins, huge numbers of Guillemots were in attendance whilst Shags and Kittiwakes remain loyal to the cliff tops. However it won’t take much to move birds back out to sea and any spell of poor weather, will result in bare islands, it is only mid-March after all.
Sunday 20th March highlights: Whooper Swan 68N, Red-necked Grebe for second day, Goldeneye 2, Sparrowhawk female, Peregrine male, Purple Sandpiper 90, Skylark and Blackbird 2.
Underwater Skyscrapers to Clean the Ocean
If there is anything that iritates island dwellers more than privacy intrusions its water pollution! Fortunately new technology is being developed to help clean up the oceans and make the water safer for both islanders and mainlanders!
Serbian designers have recently proposed a series of giant underwater skyscrapers that would be tasked with cleaning up the Great Pacific Garbage Patch that would collect and recycle the waste into a source of energy.
The underwater sky scraper was inspired by the Eiffel Tower and flipped upside down in the water. The lower portion of the tower collects and stores plastic waste until it can be recycled in the middle section of the tower. Above the skyscrapers are office space and then residential units that sticks out above the water creating floating man made islands.
Ballasts take in or release water to control the buoyancy of the tower depending on how much waste has been collected. Meanwhile the recycled trash is processed to create fuel for use to run the facility or elsewhere. The waste will be heated in the recycling chamber and converted into a gas that will be stored in massive battery like structures.
Read more: Underwater Skyscrapers Recycle Waste From Great Pacific Garbage Patch Lady Landfill Skyscraper – Inhabitat - Green Design Will Save the World
It’s a Free World: Peter Island
The world famous PeterIsland Resort and Spa in the British Virgin Islands just got a little bit better…if that is even possible!
The luxurious private island retreat in the British Virgin Islands, is offering the first night free and full board for the stay for all stays that are five nights or over.
This meands you book on a room-only basis but get breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea and dinner free for the duration of the stay. Book by March 15th for travel until December 19th. This offer cannot be combined with any other offer.
Five nights at Peter Island starts from £1,085 (€1,279), including tax in an ocean view room on a full board basis.
For more information visit http://www.Peterisland.com
Cheap Private Island
Most people get discouraged when they see the prices that some private islands sell for, particularly those promoted in the media. However, not all private islands are out of reach. If you think outside of the tropical private island with the 20,000 square foot mansion the options become decidedly more affordable.
Currently one of the cheapest islands on the market is Barnard Island. This heavily wooded, buildable island is located in the 20-mile long chain of the Tsala Apopka Lakes near Hernando Florida. This beautiful island is in its natural state with abundant wildlife and excellent bass fishing. The island is very secluded, but is just ½ mile from shore, and 1 mile from a public launch. There are many waterfront homes around the lakes, and raw land is still available in the surrounding area for main land development.
Special Features: There are many attractions within an hour of the island including Disneyworld, EPCOT Center, Gatorland and Crystal River where you can swim with the manatees. This area of central-west Florida is renowned for spectacular fishing, hunting and water activities of every kind. The nearby city of Hernado has all amenities, including shopping, dining and a country club
The island is currently priced at just $55,000. For more information visit Private Islands Online.
curing wanderlust…
Their grandfather called them the ‘Gold Dust Twins’ when they were younger. Unclear of the meaning then, Evan and Mike (first cousins, by the way) discovered later on that it meant “two people working together productively”. With that definition in mind, both have quit their jobs and are now curing their wanderlust side by side.
© Gretchen for TravelBlogs, 2011. |
curing wanderlust… |
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inspiringtravellers.com: Ideas from the road
Both Andrea and John were seasoned travelers when they met, and eventually married. They ‘settled down’, spending four years in one place. Wanderlust struck again and now they have embarked upon a round the world journey. They share their stories plus those of other travelers they have met along their way.
© Gretchen for TravelBlogs, 2011. |
inspiringtravellers.com: Ideas from the road |
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Post tags: Asia, Australia, couples, cultural experiences, Europe, expat life, North America, Round the world
temples feluccas and dodgy hotes
Hello allFinally relaxing in a roasting hot Luxor after a busy few days.On Wednesday we were up at the painful hour of 3am to get the bus toAbu Simbel from Aswan. We had to drive to the nearest police stationand wait for more buses to join us on a security convoy the firsttime we have seen the police do anything here Abu Simbel wasimpressive and the story of how the temples were rescued and m
CPE Certificate of Proficiency in English Seminar British Council
Sunday 27th March 2011.Woke up at 6 am 5 am if we don't take into account the summer saving time change.Drove myself to Bucharest yyyeeeey Got there in 1 piece yeeeeyTook part in a 6h CPE seminar.Loved every bit of itMet interesting people.Completed several activities and tasks on CPE exam format tips and strategies.Had a 20 min lunch break.Did some more pair work and studying.Receive
From Bad to Worse to Worserer
It is always a bad start to a day when you wake up in the morning and the sun is shining. Now this might not conform to most people's ideas of a bad day but when you purposefully change your travel plans for a day on the beach and it rains the sun is a bad sight on the day that you are leaving. It was in this bright sunny manner thato probably the worst day of our traveling adventure to date s
Good afternoon Vietnam
Getting to Hanoi should have been easy. For a while it looked like it wouldn't be. Then it was thus the first sentence doesn't really make sense. It does sound good though. A punchy first line don't you thinkWe'd heard and read about the remote border region near Vieng Xai and the rampant overcharging of helpless optionless tourists. To avoid this we took the soft option of booking a singl
Hoppity Hoppity goes the Harry and Steph Bobbity
Leaving Kuala Lumpur our plan was to slowly island hop our way into Thailand thus having a great deal of fun going to various different islands and avoid the issues of being blown up in the conflicts around the South of ThailandOur first stop was Georgetown on the island of Penang. Whilst there were a few ways to get there the easiest way is simply by coach from Kuala Lumpur and out across th
Where the wild things are ..
After all that lazing around on beaches and struggling to walk the few feet from our wooden beach bungalow to the beach we decided it was time to do something different and took off for Khao Yai National Park 120 km northeast of Bangkok. The National Park covers some 2168 sq km of the Phanom Dangkrek limestone mountain range and was the first one to be established in Thailand in 1962. Apparentl
Amsterdam 3192011
Drove to PnR from Norwidjt and took the train in. Took a bus tour visited the Van Gogh and Anne Frank museums and the Flower market.
The Spaceship Has Landed
Dear Blog ReadersLast weeks blog sparked some interesting discussions. In particular was the stalkerish nature of the high school girls and specifically the What is your blood type question. Chef Chris told me that people have matched blood type with personality traits. I decided to investigate further and found this description for my blood typeThey are very studious type of pers
Travelling again…
So Lottie is let loose again and off on her travels. This time to deepest darkest Peru land of Paddington Bear llamas and Inca Lords The flight from Norwich provided a great start just a little taxi ride and Im there none of this hours of hellish driving round the M25 to contend with. Then off to Amsterdams Shipol airport for a transfer to my flight to Lima. Shipol airport was a surprise
She
It is strange that from time to time the people you meet can rock you hard. She was standing at the LGBT centre in Paris. I knew that the day was dedicated to her cause. I found myself back in my upmost primitive me scrutinying her from feet to hair. I feel realy sorry for that. It must have been a very unpleasant experience for her. Gosh I could not believe it. I was startled and in disbilief. H