SURPRISE! We’re going on a boat trip! To the Skellig Islands! Today! Now! Well, we do have 20 minutes to grab that lunch, and a coffee, and get aboard. Upon arriving in Portmagee we walk toward the lunch cafe, but a sign advertising boat tours out to the Skellig Islands grabs out attention. Hum. We wonder when it leaves? (20 minutes). We wonder if there is room for us? (YES!). We buy the ticket!
We have read about Skellig Michael, a jagged isolated island 7 miles off shore, the site of an ancient monestary. There are two gigantic slate and sandstone rocks far off on the horizon, the larger of the two, Skellig Michael is more than 700 feet tall and a mile around. There is a tiny cluster of abandoned beehive huts near the summit. The smaller island, Little Skellig, is home to a colony of gannet birds...actually according to our guide, 75,000 nesting gannets today. Oh, yes, and Atlantic puffins! Many many puffins!
It’s 12:30 sharp and we are motoring away from Portmagee in fairly calm seas. It’s not always possible for the boats to make this trip so it seems things are going just right for us today!
It’s a one hour trip out to these two magical islands rising out of the sea. First we circle Little Skellig and marvel at the gannets. Gannets in flight, gannets perched on nesting sites, gannets everywhere we look. Except where there are Atlantic puffins! Lots of puffins, covering the sea in little floatillas and then flying off across the water.
Yes, well, the iPhone photography here is definitely for the scenery....not the actual birds. See all those little white dots on the rocky cliffs? Yep. Gannets. You’ll just have to believe me.
Then we motor over to Skellig Michael and begin to wrap our brains around 6th century Christian Monks, seeking isolation to be closer to God, living here. They patiently built six small, stone, igloo type dwellings (beehive huts) on the high cliff terraces. They also built a series of rock stairs to connect the huts to the sea, some 600 feet below. Just looking and one step, I can’t imagaine how long it took to chisel (dies they have a chisel?) out of the rock...yet...here are the steps making an incredible stairway up to the sky.
Today there is a seal using the bottom steps to catch a few rays.
Today there is a work boat at the concrete landing. The government has not yet opened the island to visitors as they are still doing safety checks. A landing must be pre-arranged and only 60 people a day are allowed to book a boat trip which includes a two and 1/2 hour visit on land. Then there’s the question, “Are you up for the hike?” You know, the one on rough hewn ancient steep rock stairs going up 600 feet?
There is quite a swell as we motor close to walls of rock and small open caves.
If you look closely you will see the path the Monks used to reach the top...same one people use today.
We are just happy to be able to see this incredible place and consider the history written here.
There is modern history too. In 2014 this rugged island out in a very wild place was used as a filming location for the final scenes of Star Wars: The Force Awakens. A lot of controversy surfaced about the impact of the fragile ecosystem and seabirds from movies being made here and tourists arriving. Disney abandoned the plan for filming Star Wars VIII on the island and built its own version of the location on the Dingle Peninsula. However, not to say Star Wars fans don’t show up!
No, we didn’t think this up. A young couple along on our boat suddenly opened their packs and pulled out these fold up light sabers. Of course when asked if we wanted a photo op too...well....how can one say no?
Who knew there was really such wildness along The Ring of Kerry, and along The Wild Atlantic Way?
Back at the boat tour office I could finally get a good photo with my iPhone! Here’s a lovely Puffin! And a Gannet!
You see! Such beautiful birds! (Even if no longer alive)
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