Two dolphins were making the most of the Easter holiday sunshine on Monday 10 April by paying a visit to Agatha Christie’s holiday home, Greenway. The dolphins were spotted from Greenway’s Boathouse, and seen swimming up and down the River Dart on five separate occasions.
Phillip Worrall, a Boathouse volunteer at Greenway who was lucky enough to see the dolphins in the river, said ‘I was standing out on the balcony of the Boathouse when I suddenly saw a fin.
‘A visitor who had travelled to Greenway by ferry said that the ferryman had seen a dolphin, and we all waited to see if it would appear again. We have binoculars at the Boathouse for visitors to use, and kids were looking through them trying to see where the dolphin had gone.
‘When not one but two dolphins reappeared there was so much excitement, people were screaming. We saw glimpses of the dolphins go up and down the river five times.
‘We know that the view from this beautiful spot normally raises people’s heart rate, but the sight of the dolphins this far up the river caused such excitement; more than the Boathouse balcony has ever before witnessed!’
Nick Warboys, another of Greenway’s Boathouse volunteers, said ‘This is an amazing sighting. We have resident seals off the Boathouse and they have been very active this season, but I have never heard of dolphins this far up on the Dart.
‘There is a regular one that comes to the entrance of the river around Dartmouth at the beginning of the year.
‘The Sea Watch Foundation recorded dolphins off Berry Head in late March, and of course we’ve had the humpback whale nearby.’
Volunteers and visitors at Greenway alike are keeping their fingers crossed for another glimpse of the dolphins in the River, and while they wait to see if they will visit again, are enjoying the spring weather from the Boathouse, along with the regular sight of seals, kingfishers and other creatures who call this stretch of the River Dart home.
You can find out more about Greenway, nestled on the banks of the River Dart, by visiting www.nationaltrust.org.uk/greenway or calling 01803 842382. Greenway is open daily.
(from a press release)
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