One of my bucket list items during our trip to Wales was seeing wild puffins. As luck would have it, we were in southern Wales smack dab in the middle of their nesting season (mid-April to mid-May) – a prime time to see loads of puffins as well as other nesting seabirds.

I quickly booked a tour to Skomer Island in Pembrokeshire Coast National Park. Our 60-minute boat ride took us out to Skomer Island so we could travel along its coast and try to spot some of the birds making their way in to begin their egg-laying in the island’s burrows.

Skomer Island is the most important seabird site in southern Britain. The colony of Manx Shearwater is possibly the largest in the world, and the Puffin, Storm Petrel, Guillemot and Razorbill colonies present a significant proportion of the total population of these species in Britain as a whole.

https://www.peoplescollection.wales/collections/1953456#:~:text=Skomer%20Island%20is%20the%20most,in%20Britain%20as%20a%20whole.

I was a little nervous about the excursion because I tend to get seasick. Happily, it was a beautiful and relatively clear day with very little wind so the water was quite calm. Brian volunteered to man the camera – looking through the lens while rocking on a boat does not help my stomach! – and got us spots at the very front of the line to board so we could choose seats up top, away from boat fumes and with ample views of the horizon. All of these things combined led to a nausea-free adventure where I could solely focus on bird watching!

After winding along very narrow country roads, we came to the field offering paid parking near the boat tour’s check-in/shop. We picked up our tickets, hit the restroom, and walked down to the water where we found an interesting trail over a rocky crest and down to the boat ramp.

Our boat was completely full, and an older gentleman provided our tour over a sketchy intercom. He was a little hard to understand between his thick Welsh accent and the poor electronics, but we got the gist of things and he eventually climbed up to our deck to see if we had any questions.

He initially told everyone the seats on the bottom level offered better views of the birds. We were already well established up top and I had a moment’s regret about prioritizing my stomach over the view.

However, I actually think we had much better views where we were seated as we could see all around the boat as well as the birds that were a bit farther away. Maybe he was simply trying to make everyone on the first level feel better about being stuck down there!

The ride to the island was lovely, with our guide describing the preservation work on both Skomer as well as other nearby islands. In addition to all of the seabirds, the islands are also home to several seal colonies. We got to see several basking in the sun on the island’s rocky outcrops as we got closer to the shore.

Of course the highlight of the trip was seeing all the puffins! Our guide joked on the way to the island that they had seen a few that morning, which made me very excited since of course it’s never a sure thing spotting wildlife.

He was bluffing – we didn’t just see a few, we saw thousands of puffins, Guillemot, and Razorbills. Flying through the air, swimming in the water – they were everywhere, and I was in heaven!

The boat kept moving around the island, and I simply took it all in. I couldn’t believe with all of the movement – boat, birds, and water – that Brian was able to capture as many clear photos as he did. Here are a few of my favorites that he shot:

Before I knew it, we were headed back to the dock. The hour had absolutely flown by. If we’d had more time, I would have loved to have done one of the shore excursions where you can get closer to the actual nesting areas in hopes of seeing the eggs. However, I am grateful beyond measure that we had such a clear and calm day with so much seabird activity for our short boating experience – I would do it again in a heartbeat!

Someday, I’d also love to visit later in the season once the eggs hatch. Fun fact: a puffin chick is called a puffling. (Awww!)

Because of my stomach concerns, we decided to wait and have lunch after the excursion. We popped into a nearby spot called the Lobster Pot Inn and took our beer out to the garden while we waited on our sandwiches. We quickly met the couple at a picnic table near us – Collin and Bev, and their elderly dog Boo who immediately took a liking to Brian.

They were on a short caravan (aka RV) trip and were among the many locals who asked us what two Americans were doing in Wales. Upon further reflection, we didn’t encounter more than four other Americans during our entire week in Wales, so I guess we were genuinely a bit of a curiosity!

We enjoyed the weather, garden, and political discourse with Collin and Bev for a while before carrying on with the rest of our sightseeing in Pembrokeshire Coast National Park.

It was a beautiful day in this new-to-us national park, and – for me – a highlight of our trip!