New arrival

A curious thing happened this morning: I left the cabin early, and as I pulled the door closed behind me and took a step onto the veranda, there was a loud splash. Out past the end of the jetty, the raft was rocking, and beyond it, a half-circle of wavelets started to spread across the sound. My first thought was a cormorant, though it seemed like far too much disturbance for any kind of bird. After a minute, by which time a cormorant would have surfaced (albeit a hundred and fifty yards or more away) there was still no sign, so it had to be either a seal or an otter.

George the grey seal can't be ruled out, but he has never used the raft before, so I'm going for otter. One of the divers told me the other day that he had seen otter droppings on the deck of a boat which is moored to the northwest of the cabin - a vertical steel ladder goes from the water to the gunwales - so they're obviously about. It's good news, because we haven't seen one for some time.

From now on, it's eyes peeled first thing in the morning, and I won't venture anywhere without the camera..