COMMON SEAL by markp

COMMON SEAL

Okay so day two of my time in Scotland saw me awaken on the Isle of Coll. As I went down to breakfast I could see that after yesterdays mainly very windy, grey, cloudy, drizzly, rainy day, it had turned in to a very windy, grey, misty, cloudy, much heavier rainy day. This looks like fun I thought.

As I cycled up the hill away from the village, to explore more of the island, it seemed I had stopped travelling on the road but on the river bed of a river rushing down the hill. It stayed mainly wet, to various degrees for most of the day.

I saw a shut field gate, with a sign saying beach 850 yards this way. I followed a very narrow track up and around and as I got to an area of sand dunes, I was rather surprised to discover hidden away there was a recycling centre ! All very tidy, a dead minibus, a scrap car, a pile of old metal, and your usual bottle and paper banks etc. Even in the rain it seemed to be in a very scenic spot. Maybe it's the UKs most picturesque tip.

Left Bumble leaning on the minibus, and walked down through the dunes to the beach. Just off shore was a rocky island covered in seals. As I went down on to the sands, I was again surprised, as about six seals, flopped into the water, but instead of swimming away from me, they approached the shore. They wanted to see what I was up to. As I stood at the waters edge, taking photographs of them, they bobbed up and down watching me.

Having taken enough shots, I had partly turned away from the sea, as I heard and just saw out of the corner of my eye a loud splash. My first thought was a Dolphin. Then I realised it was far too close to the beach to be a Dolphin. Puzzled, I stood watching, hoping what ever it was would repeat it. It did !
I was amazed ! Didn't really believe what I was watching.

It was a FLYING SEAL !!!

It must have been swimming very fast underwater across the bay, then surfaced and shot through the air. It didn't leap up like a typical Dolphin, with a curve in its body. You might have seen the nature TV programmes with shots of Penguins whizzing along fast just above the surface of the water, like arrows.

Well a Seal is a lot bigger than a Penguin, and it looked just like a great, long, straight, grey torpedo flying along, clearly well out of the water, before re-entering the sea with a huge splash. Just to prove it, to my disbelieving eyes, he repeated the trick a bit further down the bay. I don't know if this is a regular event but I can't ever recall hearing about this before.

I waited around for a while, but it seemed the show was over.

I went back to the road and continued on to see what else might turn up. I stopped a few times, and had a wander around, but the drizzle was a pain, hampering photography. Cycling on, I passed a small building, with a sign saying Photography Gallery open. I should have stopped but was due to catch another ferry later and wasn't really sure how far I had to go. Then the heavens opened again, so quick u-turn. I thought, I'll look at the photographs till the rain eases.

This led to yet another major surprise of the day !!

To see what happened next, click on the link below.......

http://365project.org/markp/Alternatively/13-06-2017
Wonderful
June 23rd, 2017  
I'm enjoying following your travels and your sights along the way.
June 23rd, 2017  
Fabulous
June 23rd, 2017  
I'm enjoying the play by play of your trip and the accompanying photos. Great shot of the seal here.
June 23rd, 2017  
Boy, you were quick with this photo! So enjoying your commentary about a wild and desolate area!
June 23rd, 2017  
Great shot
June 23rd, 2017  
Wonderful
June 23rd, 2017  
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