Haven to Skoma Island, April 2026

19 April 26

Haven to Skoma Island.

The initial idea was to circumnavigate Skoma anticlockwise, down the west coast, and back up the sound.

To be honest, we underestimated the power of the tides (which was rather full-on Springs).  We got to the western corner and realised that rounding the southern end would probably cut up rough. So we decided _"discretion was the better part of valour"_ and chickened out. To be fair to us, the importance of the paddle lay in the wonderful wildlife experience of paddle through rafts of sea birds. It's a fantastic spectacle of hundreds of Puffins, Guillemots, and Razorbills, not to mention the large number of grey seals in the Skomer harbour bay. We had all paddled a number of times around the island, but getting back across the north end of the sound was an effort without being washed down the sound. There would have been no danger in that, but we would have had to wait for the tide to slacken before paddling back. Despite the truncated nature of the trip, it was still a very rewarding and challenging outing.

The island is not going anywhere in a hurry, so we will return to do the whole trip on the right day on neap tides this time!