T2519 Scenic Scottish Isles in Five Nights
- pmh0606617
- Sep 1
- 4 min read
Updated: Sep 2
22nd - 27th August 2025 MS Bolette
All images used in this blog were taken during the cruise. Click on the images to view them at full size.
Friday 22nd August
Having bid good-bye to Martin, Ian and Dave, Paul stayed on the MS Bolette and welcomed Anno Brandreth and Julia Mottishaw who were joining him for the next cruise - T2519: Scenic Scottish Isles in Five Nights.
The sail away from Liverpool was now becoming familiar to Paul (this was his fourth time cruising out of the Mersey this year - does he ever go home? I hear you ask). The red freight cranes and the Gormley Statues stood to attention as the MS Bolette set off, accompanied by Herring, Lesser Black-backed, Common and Black-headed Gulls.
The sand banks in the mouth of the Mersey held the familiar Grey Seals - our first "blubber" of the trip.
Not long afterwards, a small group of Bottlenose Dolphins were seen in the wake of the ship and a passenger reported seeing a Harbour Porpoise in the mouth of the River Mersey.
Saturday 23rd August
As the name of the cruise implies, this was to be a short cruise, with two days of sailing and two port days. We therefore decided to make the most of the sea-days and spend as mush time as possible on deck, showing passengers the sea-life that could be encountered in UK Waters. Weather conditions on the 23rd August couldn't have been better as we cruised round The Hebrides, a Force 2 North-westerly wind, great visibility and moderate seas.
As Paul and Julia stepped out onto Deck 3 before breakfast, they were greeted with the sight of 5 White-beaked Dolphins leaping at the rear of the ship - was this a taste of things to come? It was to be a busy day for the OWE Team, Anno was giving a presentation in the morning, and Paul and Julia were hosting lunch in the Terrace Restaurant - would the Speaker's Curse play their hand! As it was, it wasn't until early afternoon when Common Dolphins started to appear, pods varying from just a couple individuals to groups of 10 or 20 animals. By the end of the day, over 170 Common Dolphins had been seem. Several very close to the Bolette, giving some of the first-time cruisers their first ever sightings of dolphins. Lots of happy faces graced the decks.
Common Dolphins © Paul Hill/OWE
A single Harbour Porpoise, a Humpback Whale, and three Basking Sharks were also seen during the day. Seabirds also featured - Gannets; Fulmars; Manx and Sooty Shearwaters; Arctic, Pomarine and Great Skuas; Kittiwakes; Guillemots, Razorbills and Puffins were all seen.
Sunday 24th August - Kirkwall, Orkney
Our first port day, with a brief chance to look for cetaceans before anchoring and breakfast - a single Risso's was seen and two passengers reported two large tall black fins just as we reached Orkney. Undoubtedly two male Killer Whales, a species the two passengers had encountered before.
An afternoon in Kirkwall provided some low-level photo-opportunities of gulls resting on Peedie Sea - an waterbody just off the coast road. Sandwich Terns fished in the bay where a Shag allowed quite close approach, unlike the several hundred moulting Eider.
Herring Gull, juvenile Great Black-backed Gull and Common Gull; Sandwich Tern and Shag © Paul Hill/OWE
The sail away failed to produce any Cetaceans, but Gannets still featured.
Monday 25th August - Stornaway, Lewis, The Hebrides
As dawn broke on 24 August we were already well on our way to Stornaway. Early risers had been treated with Anno to two Minke Whales! Most of the day was spent in Stornaway, or processing images ready for our presentations on the final sea-day. White-tailed Eagles, Sparrowhawk, Peregrine, Buzzard and Raven were the bird highlights, whilst several Grey Seals swan around in the harbour.
Tuesday 26th August - Scenic Cruising and return sailing
Our final day, cruising past the Small Isles, Fingal's Cave and Dutchman's Cap in a heavy sea-mist!! As we cruised near the Isle of Rum, we saw a small herd of Red Deer on the shoreline, not quite a sea mammal!
Early morning produced a few Common Dolphin at the bow of MS Bolette produced another Basking Shark and a single Minke. As the weather worsened to Sea State 6 (4-6m swell) and a Force 7 South-westerly gale (the remnants of Hurricane Erin), seabirds were evident all day, almost playing in the surf - Gannets, Manx and Sooty Shearwaters; Arctic, Great and a dark juvenile Long-Tailed Skua whipped across early doors. Two European Storm-petrels were seen amongst the shearwaters, and Arctic and Sandwich Terns accompanied some of the flocks of Kittiwake.
Sooty Shearwater (left) and Manx Shearwater (centre and right) © Paul Hill/OWE
All too soon our cruise had come to an end, but as usual we had met some wonderful people, many of the first-time cruisers. We had told them about whales, dolphins, seals, seabirds and even a little bit about Jellyfish!
The break down of species of Sea Mammal seen is given below:
SPECIES | NUMBER SEEN |
Common Dolphin | 185 |
Grey Seal | 16 |
Bottlenose Dolphin | 7 |
White-beaked Dolphin | 5 |
Minke Whale | 4 |
Harbour Porpoise | 2 |
Killer Whale | 2 |
Humpback Whale | 1 |
Risso's Dolphin | 1 |
GRAND TOTAL | 222 |
Acknowledgements:
The Ocean Wildlife Encounters team would like to thank Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines, and the crew of MS Bolette for their support. Most of all we would like to thank the passengers for taking the time to share the incredible wildlife that helped make for such a memorable cruise. We hope to see you again on another cruise sometime soon.
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