Last week on the last day of June, we waited on the pier in Kilmore Quay for the ferry to take us to Great Saltee Island, the bigger of two small islands off the Wexford coast known as the Saltees and a haven for birds. it didn’t feel like summer with no trace of blue amid the greys of the sky. This trip has become an annual summer pilgrimage for us and one of the highlights of our year (despite all our travels😀).

The small ferry boat had room for about a dozen passengers, some weighted down with large camera equipment but all squashed together with water splashing over the stern and pooling around our feet. There is no island pier or jetty so we had to transfer to a little dingy with an outboard motor to get onto the island. The morning was cool and the dingy motor was sluggish and slow to start. While the young crewman pulled the throttle, becoming more and more frustrated, a curious seal welcomed us by swimming and diving around the boat. A few meters away, gannets fell from the sky to catch wriggling fish in their beaks. Eventually the engine coughed and spluttered into life and getting from the dingy to land involved rolling up trousers, taking off shoes and wading through seaweed to the little beach.

The island is privately owned by the Neale family who have a holiday residence there – the only house on the island – but this is unoccupied for most of the year. A few steps up from the beach is a large marble plaque signed by the late Michael the First, Prince of the Saltees and a colourful character who bought the islands in the 1940’s, keeping a vow that he made to his mother as a ten year old that he would one day own the islands. There is even a large stone throne on the island dedicated to his mother. Day visitors are welcome but all visitors are requested to be off the island by 4pm.

There’s a special atmosphere on this island, a wildness and a natural beauty with wildflowers, ferns and heathers and of course, the main attraction – the birds. These are breeding grounds for lots of species but there’s something about the puffins that makes them a star attraction – maybe its their brightly coloured beaks, or their comical padding as they stroll about or their curiosity. They were as interested in us as we were in them as they sat outside their burrows on the cliffs facing out to sea. The sandeels were plentiful and we watched the silvery flash in rainbow beaks as parent puffins returned to feed their young, their short wings flapping furiously. The puffins are mainly silent birds although there were hundreds of them on the cliff.

The same cannot be said of the Gannet colony. On bare cliff rocks with the heavy stench of sulphur from bird poop, thousands of Gannets squawked and fought for space and mates and family in a frenzied free-for-all. We watched two large birds lock beaks whilst bystanders screeched encouragement and then joined in like a pub brawl. Others ignored the melee and twined pale yellow necks in intimate embraces. A lone Shag stood still and tall, black against the rocks and sky, immune to the chaos and behind her, a baby shag peeped out beneath a rock.

The chicks of the Black-Backed Gulls were adorable – speckled furry balls with black pebble eyes. They hopped along on lichen covered rocks among the swaying grasses. The Mother gulls stood nearby, super-alert, screeching at us with flapping wings. One swooped above my head almost touching my hair, warning me to stay away from a nest which was practically on the rough path. I obeyed the order and detoured quickly😮

Overhead the sky was dizzy with wings with gannets gliding, razorbills flapping, guillemots whirring, kittiwakes swooping. We sat on rocks and watched all the entertaining antics of these seabirds, munching our egg(!) sandwiches. All too soon, it was time to make our way back to the boat, to roll up out trousers and wade out to the dingy for the return trip to Kilmore Quay. The allotted time of four hours on the island had flown by as usual…..flown on wings🤣.

Even if you don’t know your razorbill from from guillemot, or your cormorant from your shag, this is a wonderful trip. The return boat trip costs €30 per person. There is no shelter, food or cafes on the island so it is essential to bring water, some food, some warm clothes, sunscreen and waterproofs. Bring a bird book and a pair of binoculars and prepare to be captivated, entertained and educated in this VERY special place,