Monday 14th September

We had a great day today despite the foggy conditions. This morning in particular was very dense, but the wildlife has been so abundant lately that we knew where to go looking, and things turned up where we thought they would be. Lots and lots of common dolphins of course, with some hunting bluefin tuna and as so often happens in fog, really good seabird sightings. Most of these were gannets, but we also saw some guillemots, razobills, shearwaters and kittiwakes among the other gulls. At the end of the trip when the fog was very thick, the seals were starting to haul out at low tide.

By the time we returned after lunch, there were seventeen seals hauled out! This is quite a collection for our little island, which is never very prolific for seals. Kelp is still hanging around, and still apparently pregnant, and there are lots of young males too. As we motored south into the chop, the fog started to lift and visibility really improved. This allowed us to find some common dolphins fairly close inshore, and feeding with them there was minke whale, doing great big surges as it lunged. It was moving incredibly quickly and therefore very difficult to track. Far on the horizon we saw an absolute mess of diving gannets so headed that way into the choppy waves. This died down as we approached but we were in time to see (and smell!) another minke surface several times. Frustratingly it was so unpredictable, there were no photos today. There were many more dolphins out there too, who appeared to be in a sociable boisterous mood. Sailing a little to the east, two more dolphins approached – Risso’s this time. They did one pass of the boat and then were gone, then as we headed in, we were joined by dolphins closer to the coast as well. September is really delivering.