Friday 4th April 2025

Dancing Ledge and Dorset gets their Early Spiders a good couple of weeks before Kent. And with us travelling on Saturday, Friday was the last chance for me to see a UK Hardy Orchid before May.

Jools went to yoga first thing, while I laid in bed to half six, then up to do the bins and the other chores.

We had much more planned, but there is only so much we can do, so Jools decided to skip aquafit, and so I was able to go to Samphire Hoe to check on the orchids.

We have breakfast first, and then I am gone, driving into town then up the A20 before turning off.

Samphire Hoe is well known for these orchids, but it is bedevilled with keen westerlies that stunts growth until the weather really warms up.

But there is one spot, under the lea of the cliffs that creates its own microclimate, and allows a few spikes to be earlier than the main colony.

Even so, it was a faint hope that after parking, I set off down the sea wall, chatting to the lone fisherman who had the same views regarding his chances as mine.

Another chap, a twitcher, was watching the cliffs, looking for Black redstarts and Peregrines. I ask if he minded if I went to the cliffs . He was laid back, so I approached the chaky steps and the narrow passageway.

Every winter the colony is bombarded with rocks from above, buring the previous season's plants. I go to the far end, then shuffle back, seeing no orchids.

Until about 10m up, a single small spike, with open flower was seen.

I could have tried to clim the scree slope, but could have fallen of trampled other plants, so I took a shot and that was that.

I walked back, and shared the finds with the two guys, then walked back to the site offices and beyond to the overflow car park, where I saw a single rosette last month.

I failed to find it again, and the warden then appeared and told me there were no spikes in flower along the path, thus saving me a long walk.

So, a check of another little-known spot, I walked back to the car and drove back to the tunnel.

Back home so Jools could take Scully back to the vets for another seventy quid check up, then I make lunch of pancakes with the leftover pudding batter.

And then to Jen's for an afternoon of cards with added Sylv adding great distraction. A single round of Meld took nearly three hours, as I predicted, and by then it was time to go to collect the pizza for early supper, so we could get home to jab Scully then pack.

We are just about set. We should have everything we need, if not, its too late now.