It was a privilege to be so close to these magnificent birds. It was also eerie. If they'd attacked en masse they could have had me for supper. For the most part they stood their ground as I walked past, but my presence was quite a disturbance. In hindsight I don't think I should have been allowed there.
That thought came back vividly fifteen years later. After spending two days on North Rona we headed over to Sulaisgeir. Gannets in the thousands were nesting on the island and a heavy swell precluded landing. But after remembering how bad I felt disturbing them on The Bass I wasn't terribly disappointed not to get ashore. It was just as exhilarating to view them from the sea. At one point several hundred simultaneously took flight from the side of the rock: a solid white mass of birds avalanching down to the sea. It looked like a glacier calving.
That thought came back vividly fifteen years later. After spending two days on North Rona we headed over to Sulaisgeir. Gannets in the thousands were nesting on the island and a heavy swell precluded landing. But after remembering how bad I felt disturbing them on The Bass I wasn't terribly disappointed not to get ashore. It was just as exhilarating to view them from the sea. At one point several hundred simultaneously took flight from the side of the rock: a solid white mass of birds avalanching down to the sea. It looked like a glacier calving.
Fantastic! Like something out of an alien world!
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