Tag 89 - Searching for the Seals

Hey everyone,

Today we started the day very comfortably - rain was forecasted.

However, we were really lucky! We made it through completely dry :).

We went to Croig, where we wanted to launch our boat and paddle along the coast in search of seals. As it turned out, we were only making very slow progress and after a few hundred meters, we exhaustedly anchored the boat to a buoy. We looked around for a while and didn't spot anything. Later, we came to the conclusion that it didn't make sense and turned back. Once back on land, we met an older couple and asked them if they had seen any seals anywhere on the island. They actually replied, "Yes, right over there when you walk over the hill. There's a beach where we saw them yesterday." Of course, we had to go check it out! We saw some, but they were on a small mini-island that was almost on the other side of the bay. On the way back to the camper, we met the couple again. They told us that there is a place on the other side of the bay called "Cuin Point" where the animals always hang out and you can get really close to them. However, it's a long way (3 miles, which is about 5 kilometers) and we should plan enough time.

We crossed over and had a little something to eat. Actually, we wanted to leave tomorrow, but we thought we could just have a quick look. We walked and walked and walked... until we reached a fork in the road - of course without any signs. We decided to take the left path because it seemed to lead to the coast ahead. After a few minutes of walking, however, this path disappeared into a meadow... But somehow turning back wasn't an option :).

We kept walking through the meadow, constantly changing direction as the path became impassable. Eventually, we decided to hike up to a high point where we had a better view. Nothing to see... After several attempts, we then searched for the way back. Suddenly, we found ourselves in the middle of a cow pasture. Actually, nothing spectacular... But: practically every cow was standing there with its young and stared at us angrily. We walked past one, then the second, and then we started feeling uneasy and turned left. With a bit of distance, we wanted to observe the cute scene. The cows seemed to tolerate us, so we sat down. Suddenly, it seemed that this was no longer okay, because one of the moms ran towards us with a determined look. We waited briefly and when we realized that the cow wasn't slowing down, we started running. There was actually the path up ahead! It was already getting dark by now and the mosquitoes were getting really active. You don't want to know where we have mosquito bites!! Even on our faces, it's all over.

Since we had been on the road for so long and it somehow didn't matter anymore, we wanted to try a shortcut again. But after a few meters, it went "splat" and I sank into the water up to my calf. Okay, done now, abort.

We kept walking back and when we were about at the level of the island we had seen, we wanted to give it one last try. We climbed over rocks, walked through huge fern fields, and eventually actually got close to the seals. We sat by the coast for a while and observed the animals. However, it was already quite dark, so the pictures probably didn't turn out well...

As we were sitting there, it suddenly started raining and since it was really dark by now, we started heading back. We had a pretty wooded area ahead of us and when we passed through it, it was completely dark.

But we actually made it back to our camper at midnight! First, we checked ourselves for ticks and guess what! Two were crawling on Kevin and I caught one on my leg! When we shook out our pants in the shower, five more fell out! So into a bag with the pants and as soon as we see a laundromat, they'll go in the wash.

So my dears, the photos will follow again tomorrow ;)

See you then!