10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 4, 2013

The inscrutable species frustrated me and I found myself especially stumped by the difficulty I had distinguishing them, and wildly mystified by the excitement they inspired in my fellow-birders. We didn’t even need binoculars to enjoy the puffins – they were close enough to be marveled at naked-eye! Happy puffins.

Puffins 181

Puffins Whales Whaling Bald Eagle 181

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 29, 2011

I love puffins. Before my trip to Washington the only species of puffin I had ever seen in the wild was the puffin of the Atlantic Ocean, the appropriately named Atlantic Puffin. At $55 a head, and free for toddler Desi, the chance to see puffins from a comfortable boat seemed too good to ignore.

Washington 172

Washington Protection Puffins Rhinoceros 172

10,000 Birds

JUNE 29, 2013

The hotel owner told us that visiting them in the evening had the best showing of puffins as they returned to the cliffs from the sea. Hundreds of birds all huddled closely together, dangling from the jagged ledges, seemingly separated by species in separate levels along the cliff. The cliffs are a newbie photographer’s dream.

Iceland 194

Iceland Puffins Europe Birds 194