Herm resident Kathryn Bailey, is currently spending the third year of her Spanish degree in Mexico.  As she was packing her bags last August for the year away she managed to find a tiny bit of space in her suitcase to pack a Herm flag.  She has been a Hermite for 17 of her 21 years so is proud to fly the flag for Herm!

The enormity of a country like Mexico is quite a contrast to Herm so in between studying Kathryn is exploring as much of it as she can. She returns to Herm in August before going back to Exeter University for the final year of her degree.

Rosie Wheeler became the first ever lady to represent Herm in the Channel Island darts championships.   Despite playing well she she lost 3/0 to the eventual winner Jenna Avril of Jersey.  Rosie was selected to represent Herm after winning the ladies tournament which took place over the winter at The Mermaid Tavern.

   The male representative for Herm was Mike Rowe   Mike is often  known on Herm as The Fish because of his passion for fishing from his boat.  He is also very talented at darts and his name usually appears on the darts trophy which is played for on Herm each winter.  Mike played his usual high standard and made it to the final in a match which was played at the Peninsula Hotel, Guernsey.  He made it to the final but narrowly lost out to Eddie Le Bailly of Jersey.  It was a close match with just one leg separating them at the end with the final score 3/2 in favour of Jersey.

During the winter months we get the occasional day when strong winds blow  and no boats are able to run between Guernsey and Herm.  It is very unusual for this to happen when the island is open for the season but today is an unusual day – NO boats!  A handful of guests are stranded at The White House Hotel but as they realise that it is completely beyond their control and that there is nothing they can do about it they are enjoying an extra twenty-four hours of rest and relaxation.

The weather has been very changeable today.  One minute glorious sunshine and the next torrential downpours.

The 2nd Herm World Aid Walk will take place on Bank Holiday Monday 7th May 2012.  So far thirty walkers from Guernsey have registered.  Last year 38 people took part for the inaugural Herm World Aid Walk which takes place at the same time as the Guernsey walk.  For more information on how to enter the Herm World Aid Walk please see the website http://www.worldaidwalk.org.gg/?page_id=52

http://www.facebook.com/WorldAidWalk

Dominating the Guernsey news recently has been the general election which took place on April 18th 2012.  Herm come under the parish of St. Peter Port South but for those Hermites who hadn’t registered for a postal vote it meant a trip to Guernsey to the polling station. 

When you live on an island things aren’t always so straightforward.  The weather on voting day was south westerly winds blowing up to force 8/9 which meant that Travel Trident only had one sailing across to Herm.  By late afternoon the wind had changed to a westerly and calmed down slightly so four Hermites keen to use their votes made a special trip to St. Peter Port on the island boat ‘Little Herm’. 

Over the centuries different ways of earning an income have been tried on Herm.  In 1837 the Herm Mining Company was formed by John Hunt who was a Kent mining engineer.  He sank experimental shafts looking for silver, lead and copper but mining in Herm was expensive and unfruitful and so it eventually ceased.  During his time on Herm Hunt did manage to prove that a copper seam runs throughout the island so this presumably still exists today.

The shaft to one of those mines is still visible from the south coast cliff path above Rosaire Steps.  James Hastings, the island builder and Richard Knight, the island carpenter are currently repairing the fence around the shaft.  In previous years visitors walking past the shaft may not have noticed it was there as although it was fenced off it was completely covered with brambles and ivy.  This has now been cleared back giving a good view of the shaft but only from behind the fence!  It is very deep so the fence has been repaired for health and safety reasons.

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The White House Hotel, the Snack Bar at The Mermaid Tavern and Shell Beach Cafe all open today for the 2012 season.  The weather is glorious and the wild flowers are at their spring time best. 

Those visitors who walk along the Spine Road towards the south coast may spot a few daffodils in one of the fields on the west side of the path.  In the early years of the Wood family tenancy Peter and Jenny tried a number of ways to earn money.  One of them was flower growing.  Home Field was chosen to plant daffodil and iris bulbs because it was sheltered by a pine wood from the east wind, open to the south and sloping gently to the west. 

Although the flower growing continued for several years and some of the years were particularly successful overall the flower business only just broke even so it was decided that it would be better if the labour force  concentrated on preparing the island for the visitor season ahead!  Stories from the early years of the Wood tenancy can be read in Jenny Wood’s book ‘Herm, Our Island Home’.  It is available to buy from the Herm Gift Shop pages on ebay http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Herm-Our-Island-Home-Direct-Herm-Island-/120482465042

Each year the start of winter is heralded by the arrival of a flock of Brent Geese that over-winter in Herm.  This winter over forty of them have been enjoying the water around Herm and can be seen at low tide wading in the sandy water of Fishermans Beach.  At high tide a flock of them often gather in Fishermans Field seeing what they can dig up with their beaks.  If an east wind is blowing they bob about in the water off the east coast between Belvoir and Shell Beaches. 

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They come from the Arctic tundra and will return there in the spring where they will nest and breed.  They will lay three to five eggs which hatch in three and a half weeks and within three months the young birds must be ready to fly south!

If you are visiting Herm in the next few weeks see if you can spot them.

With some parts of the UK reaching temperatures as low as -12°, it seems like winter is suddenly arriving with full force. But it's comforting to see that on Herm, signs of Spring are already starting to show.

Every year it seems the first solitary daffodil appears overnight on the Drive, giving us hope that the winter won't be too long. The first week of February has seen flowers beginning to spring up all over the island.

Many more flowers are colouring the holiday cottage gardens already. It won't be long until the sun is out, the sands are warm and the smells of cut grass and sea salt fill the Springtime air.

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Herm is a stunning place to be, whatever the time of year. In summer, sunlight sparkles off the tranquil sea and the scent of bluebells and cut grass fill the air. In winter, wild foamy waters crash against the rocks under a slate-coloured sky, and golden leaves crunch underfoot.

Many visitors make the trip to Herm just for the beautiful scenery, and residents learn to always have a camera to hand for when those breathtaking views demand to be captured on film.

Here is an example of a few lovely views and how they change from summer to winter.

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