The PUFFINS TRIP BEGINS
Wednesday, 3 Aug 2022, I boarded the boat BARBARA FROST with Captain Andy at the Cutler Harbor, Maine for a long anticipated Atlantic Puffins photo trip. I, along with the other visitors boarded at low tide, so the dock was not useable. We were ferried out via small outboard boat. As we all board and get settled, excitement begins to flow. The weather was a beautiful crisp 65 degrees or so (quite a change from the Texas heat of 96+ degrees!). Blue skies and minimal wind. The seas were calm as we slowly chugged out of the harbor into the North Atlantic.
10 Miles Later:
As we putt around the island, we are beginning to see birds. Many have left for the season, however there are still lots of Puffins in the water and in the air. The Island of Machias Seal Island is the summer breeding ground for many seabirds…some have left for the year, but the Puffins are still here. We board a small dingy that will shuttle us from the larger boat to shore. Once on the shore, we are divided into 4 groups of 3-4 people each and escorted into “boxes”. The boxes are actually bird blinds that have slide down windows. We open the windows…remain quiet…and….. PUFFINS!!!
Cameras like machine guns:
For a full 90 minutes, the only real sounds coming out of the blinds are the rat-a-tat-tat of camera shutters…. One member of our “box” had a mirrored camera, causing a very distinct slap with each time the shutter opened and closed. Another had a super fast camera that is ideal for birds, shooting up to 25 frames per second…my camera is capable of 11 frames per second….it sounded like a “war zone” with pictures being taken like crazy!!! For those of you with any military range time, we had the M2 .50 cal machine gun, the 5.56mm SAW, and the M-60 machine gun…. All with different tones and rates…. Was amazing! The box had no chairs, so we all stood for the entire time. The end of time, we were escorted back to the landing and were transported via dingy back to the big boat and a final loop around the island…. we were gone.
Puffins:
Puffins are a sea bird that spend most of their life at sea. The chicks that we saw (most were nearly fully grown and were learning flight, swimming, and fishing…and soon to leave) will not return to land for 3-5 years when they are mature enough to breed themselves. Once breeding age is reached, birds will remain at sea for 9-10 months per year, only returning to land to breed and raise chicks. It was truly a pleasure and loads of fun to watch this. For a similar experience, check out Bold Coast Charter Company…the only American tour company allowed to land on the Island. The island is also claimed by Canada, and they also have 1 company allowed to land. For more information see boldcoast.com/index.htm
