I arrived early at the shore office, in plenty of time to collect my ticket and then enjoy a coffee, watch a couple of Hirundines overhead and look forward to the passage to Lundy.
With a full complement of passengers, we left Ilfracombe harbour in glorious sunshine, with a gentle breeze and perfect flat seas. The bank holiday weekend had started well!
As we made our way along the coast, I made my way around decks, and everyone was enjoying the smooth crossing and stunning coastline views. Herring Gull aside, sightings of Guillemot were the most frequent, both singles and small rafts. Pairs of Razorbill were also noted. As we drew closer to Lundy, a Manx Shearwater, Shag, and a Gannet were seen.
As we disembarked, a Grey Seal was seen swimming by the quayside, with the excellent underwater visibility making the individual easy to follow as it moved around.
After a lovely walk up to the village, enjoying the stunning views, we made our way up to Jenny’s Cove to watch the Puffins whilst having lunch. There were fair numbers of Puffin to be seen, standing guard by their burrows as well as seen on the water. A good many Guillemots were crammed tightly onto the cliff behind and also out on the water.
The walk to Jenny’s Cove proved very popular today, with many walking up the west side of the island, keen to see the Puffins. There were good numbers of Hirundines in the skies and the song of the Skylark was relaxing background music for the return walk to the landing stage in good time to embark. Wheatear were very showy and other species seen included Linnet, House Sparrow, Starling, Crow, and Goldfinch.
The return sailing to Ilfracombe was sun drenched and beautifully smooth, but quiet in terms of sightings, with only sporadic sightings of gulls and auks. As we drew closer to Ilfracombe further Grey Seal were spotted. No cetacean sightings were recorded today.
As ever, huge thanks to the crew of the ‘Oldenburg’ for their help and assistance.
MARINElife/Lundy WLO Chris Roberts
Summary of sightings
Seabirds
Herring Gull
Lesser Black-backed Gull
Puffin
Fulmar
Guillemot
Razorbill
Shag
Gannet
Manx Shearwater