As we headed out of the harbor into the Bay of Fundy we passed the first lighthouse.
The 2nd one would be on Machias Seal Island. Both Canada and the United States claim sovereignty. The Canadian Coast Guard continues to staff a lighthouse on the island.
The whole Island is considered a bird sanctuary so boardwalks have been constructed for the humans to walk on to avoid stepping on nests or baby birds.
On the way out of the harbor we spotted a pair of bald eagles.
It gives me a thrill to see so many of these magnificent birds. It was hard to get a picture as the Barbara Frost was starting to pitch a bit as she picked up speed.
We didn’t see any whales.
It was about an hour trip and it felt like it. It was cold even when we huddled near the cabin. Hard to believe that it was 90 + in Boston!
Our first indication that we were nearing the island was a raft of small black and white birds.
They are called Razorbills and also nest on the island with the Puffins. Right after the razorbills came in sight a puffin flew across our stern. These bird make me think of bumblebees. They have such round little bodies and stubby wings. Its hard to believe they can fly at all!
Right after that we spotted the lighthouse.
We were surprised to see some gannets mixed in with the razorbills on the rocks but the biggest surprise of our approach was the stranded seal!
I mentioned the huge tides in a previous post. Well apparently this guy hauled out at high tide and forgot to leave when the tide receded.
Now we watched in fascination and horror as he slowly (and painfully) worked his way down the rocks. He landed face first more than once. I mean, that’s got to hurt!
He was almost to the bottom when we got the go ahead to land from the coast guard and had to miss his big splash. It was time for us to start part 2 of our big Puffin Adventure.
