Farmhouse holiday cottages in a tranquil rural hideaway Ceredigion, West Wales.
An ideal base for exploring The Teifi Valley, Cardigan Bay and Pembrokeshire.

West Wales bird watching: Pembrokeshire islands

Thursday 30th of May 2013 18:41

West Wales bird watching: Pembrokeshire islands

Holiday cottage owner Mick had a great weekend scuba diving in Pembrokeshire with Cardigan Sun Aqua club.

The off shore bird watching was wonderful. A waterproof camera is on the shopping list, so that I can take photos to share with you.

We set off from Dale in the direction of Skomer and soon we were spotting, gulls, cormorants and terns.

As we neared Skomer we saw more and more puffins skimming low across the waves or sat on it fishing.

When we looked more carefully we spotted birds similar to puffins but without the colorful beaks. With the aid of bird handbook I now realise these were probably shearwaters, guillemots and razorbills.

The cliffs of Skomer were littered with puffins and with seals down below.

On our way to Grassholme, the next island, we spotted a pod of dolphins who came closer to play in our wake.

As we neared Grasssholme, the cliffs appeared to be covered in snow! As we got closer we saw the snow was moving and was actually the gannet colony. These birds are large majestic flyers, swooping with ease a real contrast to the puffins with their fast beating stubby wings.

The birds and the dolphins were a wonderful added bonus to a great days diving. We would certainly recommend a boat trip to our holiday cottage guests.