We have had another wonderful season spotting wildlife from our cruises and onshore. There is no doubt having a dedicated Wildlife Guide helps idenitify habitat and find species and you never know what you are going to see! Amazing one-off sightings in 2019 include a unique appearance of an adult minke whale with calf; a very rare sighting of a fin whale and several sightings of the snowy owl on St Kilda. Here are some photos sent in by crew and guests - as always, puffins feature greatly and we have seen dolphins and white-tailed eagles on most cruises, often multiple times. Many other sea birds are well represented as well as seals, otters, red deer and cetaceans.
What a fantastic experience we had on board the Lucy Mary for seven wonderful days in mid-July. She is a super vessel, very stable on the sea and very, very comfortable. All the crew members were very personable from James on the wheel, Will and Ruari as guides, Sam the cook and Abbie as our hostess. We had the great experience of having Fingal's Cave Cave on Staffa to ourselves as James made sure we got to the island well before the tour boats arrived - of all the places we were brought, this stood out on its own. For me, Lunga was amazing there being so, so many birds present and being able to get really close to Puffins. We were spoiled with Sam's fantastic cooking and also his willingness to work with stuff we foraged both on the shore and also on land. So, thanks to all in Hebrides Cruises for a really memorable west coast of Scotland experience. Brendan
Brendan O'Connor: 17 July 2023Idyllic Islands: Mull, Iona, Staffa & the Treshnish Isles