11 Jun 2012

Iony - Tiny Island, Big Experience

Iony Island is rarely marked on maps, but must be one of the outstanding natural history sites of the world. Probably only a handful of people have ever visited this island. Today we spent 4 hours zodiac cruising around the coastline and everybody is still on a high.

There were hundreds of Steller Sea Lions hauled out on the rocks and some were so curious that they came up to investigate the Zodiacs. We noted several very small pups on a rocky beach which was obviously a breeding colony. Birds were there in their hundreds of thousands – standing room only in most places. The dominant species was Brunnich’s Guillemot, but a real highlight was having four auklet species around the zodiacs and on the rocks - Whiskered, Parakeet, Least and Crested.

From Iony Island we sail west to the Shanter Archipelago.