An Outbreak of Kilchoan Sunshine

Four members of Kilchoan Fire Brigade chose the wettest day of the year so far to do their annual round of the fire hydrants.  32mm of Kilchoan sunshine poured down on us in the 24 hours up to 8.00am this morning, and a further 10mm was added to the overflowing burns between 8.00am and 1.00pm this afternoon.

Every time the Fire Brigade is active in the village we count ourselves extremely fortunate to have our local team.  Acharacle, a much larger community, is struggling to maintain its service, and in other remote Highland areas such as Sleat on the Isle of Skye communities are threatened with losing their retained unit altogether through lack of recruits.

Being a retained fire officer is hard work.  As well as being ready at a moment's notice to attend a 'shout', they have to train once a week and maintain their skills, such as the use of breathing apparatus, by attending regular training events in Fort William.  In return, they are paid an annual retainer and, by the hour, for call-outs, training and maintenance jobs like checking fire hydrants.

The foul weather didn't prevent this intrepid Kilchoan yachtsman from sailing his boat to Tobermory this morning.  While we had plenty of rain, the wind remained light, at force 2 to 3 from the northwest, so, as long as he didn't mind getting wet, his trip was probably reasonably pleasant.

This Goldfinch continues to look very smart despite the downpour.  The Diary is facing crippling costs in maintaining the bird feeders over the coming winter.  As soon as the weather changed, we had an influx of small birds.  The Goldfinches gave up on the soggy thistle seeds, of which there was a good crop this year, and began attacking the peanuts, while the usual hoards of Chaffinches took up permanent residence in the conifer that overlooks the feeding area.

It is, however, good to see more House Sparrows this year, including Blondie, who is a regular visitor. Some of the winter regulars have yet to appear, including the tiny Siskins, but yesterday we saw the first Coal Tit, though he was very nervous, disappearing before he could have his portrait taken.