Isles of Scilly
Illuminated by the light of a waning moon, whitecaps danced on the sea pre-dawn as if the ocean were still celebrating the arrival of May. Clouds of many colors swirled rapidly across the sky chased by the chariot of the sun. Who knows who whistled up the wind but someone must have, for it increased in velocity throughout the day and churned the sea into a frothy frenzy.
But it really didn’t matter to us, for our Zodiacs are stable craft, powered to bear us from ship to shore and to return again with ease. There were, however, other vessels, a hundred or so to be exact, driven forward by sturdy arms pulling rhythmically on oars, straining against the wind and the falling tide. As we headed to Tresco Island, in the Isles of Scilly we found ourselves amidst the May Day gig race. Dozens of boats poured from the harbour on St. Mary’s, swarmed about our ship and then raced against the clock back to their starting point.
Freed from the traffic jam we discovered that we had entered an island apart from all the rest, a gateway to a botanical world that belongs thousands of miles away. The warm Gulf Stream moderates the temperatures but it takes more than that to create a hospitable climate, a microhabitat removed from the steady salt spray bearing winds. Time and patience have done just that. Dense hardy gorse formed the first barricade. Then growing slightly taller Rhododendron ponticum took over. Finally, towering above all the others, stately trees sprouted. And then the garden was ready to receive tender flowering plants and succulents from far and wide. Outside the Abbey gardens the native plants lay low, an ankle deep mat upon the land.
Guided by a local pilot we wove our way through the larger islands and a myriad of rocky skerries barely visible above the waves to visit Bishop’s Rock Lighthouse, the site of the demise of the English fleet many long years ago. Their misfortune was our gain for it was this event that stimulated the search for longitude. And so now we navigate safely toward the west, bound for Ireland.
