Route: Farne Islands
Area: Northumberland
Date of walk: 11th June 2015
Walkers: Andrew and Gilly
Distance: 2.0 miles at a guess
Weather: Sunny
We were staying at Harbourside Cottage in Seahouses, a perfect base for our short walking holiday in Northumberland, and we can highly recommend it
It was a 2 minute stroll from the cottage to the harbour where we boarded the Serenity, which would take us on our day long tour of the Farne Islands
Our first port of call was rocky Staple Island, one of the outer Farnes and a bird sanctuary. We had some fantastic sightings here – I’ll let the pictures tell the story
We spent about 2 hours wandering around the rocks, after which the Serenity took us via the scenic route to Inner Farne. On disembarking we ran the gauntlet of the arctic terns – these birds breed close to the footpath, even on the path in places, and aggressively defend their nests. Take a hat if you go!
We had another couple of hours to walk around the island. The route is roped in so as to protect the wildlife, which is there to be seen in abundance, and in many cases just a few feet away
Eventually it was time to leave, but with reluctance as this had been one of the best wildlife experiences of my life – an amazing day out and I hope that the photos that follow will do some justice to it
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Scroll down – or click on any photo to enlarge it and you can then view as a slideshow
![Seahouses harbour Seahouses harbour](https://www.andrewswalks.co.uk/wp-content/gallery/farne/Farne%20Islands-1.jpg)
From the balcony of Harbourside Cottage we can see our boat - the Serenity - and the Farne Islands in the distance
![Longstone Lighthouse, Farne Islands Longstone Lighthouse, Farne Islands](https://www.andrewswalks.co.uk/wp-content/gallery/farne/Farne%20Islands-41.jpg)
Longstone Lighthouse - known for the role of Grace Darling, the lighthouse keeper’s daughter, in rescuing survivors of the Forfarshire
![Grey seals, Farne Islands Grey seals, Farne Islands](https://www.andrewswalks.co.uk/wp-content/gallery/farne/Farne%20Islands-67.jpg)
After a fantastic couple of hours on Staple Island, the boat took us past Big Harcar and Little Harcar in search of grey seals…
![Arctic tern, Farne Islands-128 Arctic tern, Farne Islands-128](https://www.andrewswalks.co.uk/wp-content/gallery/farne/Farne%20Islands-128.jpg)
Our last port of call was Inner Farne, where Arctic Terns breed - by the path is some cases - and defend their patch. It’s adviseable to wear a hat!