Puffin Island

Edge of Thought

After missing the last of the puffins by a day last year, I was determined to try and see them this year.

I booked my spot on the ferry to Skomer Island as soon as bookings were open, last December. 

My husband made it home from sea in time for us to make a weekend of it and we drove down to South Wales on the Saturday.  We watched as the temperature dropped by 10 degrees as we headed west. Stayed in a small and perfectly formed Airbnb.

Sunday morning, we headed to Runwaykiln for a tasty breakfast. A perfect cafe in the middle of nowhere that I'd happily visit every weekend.  From there it was a quick cross-country drive to the ferry dock. It’s a quick 15mins to the island which looms large on the horizon. It’s been raining a little this morning and mist clings to the air around the coast. The crew clearly knowledgeable about the island share a lot of information especially about the puffins that everyone was excited to see. Mine was not the only camera on the boat, nor was it the largest, but that's ok.

On arrival there's a challenging climb up steep stairs at the island, but I don't care as we're already surrounded by puffins.  Literally fishing, flying in and nesting on the cliffs around us.

It’s a beautiful island, stuffed with wildlife like Manx Shearwaters, Razorbills, Fulmer, Gannets, Oystercatchers, Herring Gull, Kestrel, Meadow Pipit, Swallows and even rabbits to name but a few. I do feel like I am doing the island a disservice because I only have eyes for puffins on this occasion.  On the last occasion we headed across the island to take in as much as possible but this time we head straight to the Wick where we know there will be puffins.

We head in land first and I try my hand at photographing swallows that whizz around the vegetation.  Spot a rabbit or two and surprisingly a pheasant.  We know when we're at the right place when we spot a line of photographers.  Puffins burrow everywhere, sometimes using rabbit burrows, right up to the edge of the path. We are not allowed to leave the footpath at all and in the nesting areas the paths are cordoned just to remind us. We are warned against putting bags down, resting tripods off the path because some of the burrows are just centimetres from the surface and could collapse under careless behaviour damaging birds, eggs and chicks.

This is clearly the place to be. We are surrounded by puffins. They are small birds, much smaller than the gulls that hang around trying to mug them for the sand eels that they catch. We watch birds after bird, land in front of the path then run across at speed to their hole and waiting chick trying to avoid the menacing gull. Some will run backwards and forwards trying to gain the confidence to head for their hole. Others give up and fly off again with their catch do a lap or two of the area before returning to try again. Yet others, the real masters fly directly to their hole landing on their doorstep and tumbling into their home.

I spend a good hour watching and photographing the puffins. My photographic wishes evolve as the day progresses.  I had arrived on the island hoping to see one and now I want to see one with a beak full of fish; in a hole; with a puffling; two together; coming into land; flying.... I do get dragged away for a short while to have some lunch.

I am completely captivated by these little birds, I don't notice the sun breaking through the clouds or when the sea in the bay turns a gorgeous clear turquoise.

I do notice puffins gathering along the cliff edge as if taking an afternoon break hanging out with friends. It feels like the gulls are eager for them to get back to fishing as they fly close to the cliff scaring them off the ledges into flight.  They do a couple of laps of the area before settling back. I don’t know whether these guys are just taking a siesta and sunbathing in the afternoon warmth before going back and fishing for the family or whether they are single birds, or those whose chicks have already fledged but whatever the reason it’s great to watch them just ‘hang out’ on the edge of the cliff.

Moments Between the Wind

A puffin lands with fish and heads across to the island side and is intercepted by a Lesser Black-backed Gull who is more that twice the size of the little puffin, who then bullies it to dropping the beak-full of sand eels. It’s tough to watch, and I am surprised that I didn’t stop pressing the button and have captured the deed on ‘film’!

Thankfully, that was the only time that the gull got lucky while we were there, but he was hanging around island side all the time that we were there, so it was likely a profitable position for him.

We leave around an hour before the boat comes in to cross the island back to the dock. It’s hard to leave the puffins to climb over rough terrain, the views across the island are stunning, and I definitely feel that I could stay longer.

We turn a corner and come across more puffins. Razorbills cling to the cliffs a little closer than at the Wick. I stop for a moment or two to watch before being hurried on. As we return to the landing bay, I am amazed that I had forgotten in the few hours all the puffins here. They are flying in over our heads with beakfulls of sand eels and landing on the cliffs around us.

All too soon, the boat is here and its time to go and leave this magical place behind – until next time…