Took a friend out today to a site Iv not been at for many weeks. It was perfect timing, the light was good and the tide was falling. Scanning ahead at all the lie up's I know in that area I managed to pick out two small and dark bundles of fur laid out on the grass at a regular spot, to the un-trained eye these would barley have been thought to have been rocks let alone anything else. But there was no mistaking it, this was definitely young cubs, fast asleep while mother forages close by.
The wind direction and lay of the land was ideal, allowing us to begin our approach. But it was very clear that we would limit our distance, I can think of nothing worse than disturbing these adorable and wonderfully wild creatures.
Typically, after lying in wait for the cubs to waken the clouds built up and the light had slipped away, but wait we did. Whilst lying in full camo gear amongst the boulders and Bladder wrack seaweed I excitedly wondered who the mother would be, I was nearly sure I knew but I also knew of another in the area who should have cubs of a similar age by now (about four months old).
Eventually of course, after an hour or so the cubs slowly revived into an energetic bundle of bites and tumbles! And when mother appeared from the water, she was who I thought, moments like those it feels like you've just met a relatives baby for the first time, but if she knew we were there I wonder how she would see us?
