During our trip to Seahouses in Northumberland, UK, we hopped on a boat called Glad Tidings VIII and went over to Farne Island, which has a thriving population of puffins and grey seals.
The captain was very knowledgable and gave us a running commentary of interesting facts. The Longstone lighthouse was built and designed by Joseph Nelson in 1826.
Inner Farne Lighthouse was built in 1811 and is now inactive.
We spotted the island’s colony of grey or Atlantic seals on the rocks or bobbing their heads up in the sea. Seal pups can be seen later on in October. Some of the seals looked as though they had a smile on their face.
If you visit in the middle of April and late July you will see a variety of seabirds, such as, puffins, kittiwakes, eider ducks, razorbills, arctic terns and guillemots.
The arctic terns have a habit of swooping down and dive-bombing visitors to protect their nests. It's best to wear a hat!
The kittiwakes build their nests on the cliff ledges. They will return year after year to the same place, using the same nest and adding to it every time.
It was a very interesting and informative boat trip seeing numerous sea birds. I particularly enjoyed seeing the puffins and seals. It was a great experience.