Summer comes to Bastion ...

... the day after a Winter storm!  I am judging it is Summer as we felt warm in the afternoon, and a Curlew Sandpiper was on the sand.  {I have put this image first so that it appears up front in any Facebook links.)

The sea wasn't quite as rough as it appeared, from Facebook posts, to have been yesterday, but there were good swells running and lots of white water.  It was running well up the beach.

And breaking attractively over the breakwater.

We had gone to the beach in the expectation that there would be interesting marine 'stuff' washed up.  However it seemed that either it had been flung far up the beach or sand had been washed in too, to cover it.  This coloured jellyfish (or part thereof) was an exception.

A less well lit view of the Curlew Sandpuper.

After strolling around it had a rest with some Red-capped Plovers.

Going round the mouth and on to the flats a large area of shells was visible.  I suspect this was due to scouring by the high water on the previous day.

Compared to recent days the water was covering a wide area on this visit.  (I had checked the gauge in the morning and it was about 0.3m , compared to a lowest reading of -0.15m a few weeks back.)  One outcome of this was the loafing terns were much closer.   I estimated 160 Crested Terns and 49 Australian Pied Oystercatchers.

A lone Caspian Tern was also present.

A splinter group of Pied Oystercatchers.

A lone Sooty Oystercatcher about to give some beak to a washed up limp of cunjevoi.

Two of the 5 Bar-tailed Godwits.

The Curlew Sandpiper again, this time including a Double-banded Plover in its companions.

We decided to return along Develings Inlet to minimise the risk of tromping on a Plovers nest but found the ground to be a bit soggy.  Presumably this was due to the high water the previous day.  As we headed back towards the beach we had a good view of a female White-fronted Chat ...

.. and a less good view of a male.

This next image is included to show the damp sand indicating where the waves broke over during the storm.  I'm not sure it does that very well!

A whelk - or at least gastropod - egg mass,

We went to the breakwater hoping to get some spectacular images of waves breaking but the big sets seemed to have gone elsewhere.  Also, Frances noted that they seemed to coming from two directions so not landing with full force.