Nemmie’s arm links through mine. ‘Don’t be a drama queen, Mum, we just want you to enjoy the suspense.’
Lando’s smile fades. ‘I like your shorts. You should wear them more often.’
There are times when I give up. ‘I’ve got a good idea. Why don’t I wear them on the days my Barbie skirt is in the wash?’
Nemmie looks at Lando. ‘She doesn’t mean that. When she looks at the clouds like that, she’s being ironic.’
Lando smiles. ‘Thank you for explaining that, Anemone. My news is, once we’ve climbed the next fence, we’re almost at our destination.’
As I jump to the ground on the other side of the rails I’m still protesting. ‘So we’re heading for a cliff top, with no way down to the beach, and nothing but emptiness in every direction. Is this one of those satnav errors that ends with us accidentally jumping into the sea?’
Lando puts his fingers to his lips. ‘It’s not, but it’s best if we keep the noise down from now on.’
We follow him in silence as he turns and walks another hundred yards or so to where the cliff edge veers inwards. And then he stops, steps towards the edge, and beckons us to follow.
He peers over, then watches as we approach.
I follow his gaze, then I see what’s on the beach below, and my heart melts.
‘Seals? You’ve brought us to see seals?’ I barely breathe the words, and as I take in the beach below covered in silver-grey spotted bodies, my face is wet with tears. I scrape my fingers under my eyes, rub my hand over my nose and sniff. ‘I have no idea why I’m crying. I’ve just never seen so many together before.’
Nemmie whispers. ‘We thought you’d be happy!’
I gulp. ‘I am, Nems. I’m crying because this is one of the nicest things anyone’s ever done for me. And because it’s so much better than anything I was expecting.’
Nemmie murmurs, ‘So the herrings did work. Lando promised us he’d bring us here that first day at the beach hut. We’ve been asking ever since.’ She shakes her head. ‘The others will be so cross they’ve missed it.’
Lando pats her shoulder. ‘We can come again.’ He’s dipping in his bag, his voice still low. ‘I’ve brought binoculars so we can take a closer look from up here with no risk of disturbing them.’ He hands us each a pair, then spreads a rug on the grass. ‘This is in case you want to lie down to get a better view.’
And of course, we do, so we line up along the rug, and prop ourselves up on our elbows. Then we clamp the binoculars to our eye sockets, and as we listen to the regular swish of the sea foam frilling up and down the beach, with the occasional low cries from the seals, we watch their mottled bodies and whiskery muzzles as they lollop in and out of the water, and up and down the sand. Some of them have their heads raised; others are playing; some are lying on their sides.
After a very long time I sigh out loud. ‘How can I get so much pleasure simply watching seals?’
Lando’s lying beside me. ‘That’s exactly how I feel every time I come here.’ He nudges me. ‘Look at those two sniffing each other, that’s their way of saying hello. They come up onto the rocks at low tide to rest on the sand while they digest their food.’
I only hope the animals below aren’t aware of force fields, because the electricity is sparking every time he touches my arm or his leg brushes against my bare one. As for how fanciable he is for pulling off this amazing excursion, that’s off-the-scale too.
Nemmie’s voice is full of awe. ‘They’re like a big seal family, chilling together.’ She laughs quietly. ‘These are grey seals, Mum. They have their pups any time from September onwards, so next time we come we might spot some youngsters. They’ll be white.’
‘Baby seals.’ I groan inwardly at the power Lando’s wielding here.
Lando laughs. ‘One of the research teams I work with tracks and identifies them; some of this group have been around this coast for more than twenty years.’
Nemmie’s looking along the clifftop. ‘They’ve lived here longer than I’ve been alive. And it’s entirely deserted of humans.’
Lando smiles. ‘Remember, I told you there aren’t many of these seals in the county?’
Nemmie nods and looks at me. ‘There are fewer grey seals in England than there are red squirrels.’
Lando carries on. ‘There are some dedicated viewing points where everyone can see them, but this land is part of a wider sanctuary that gives them protection so they can get on with their lives and breed without humans disturbing them.’
Nemmie puts her nose in the air, and looks at me. ‘We’re only allowed in because of Lando’s work. If you ever come across seals on a beach, the rule is to stay well away, and never, ever feed them.’ Now she’s started she’s going to tell us everything. ‘Their eyes are specially adapted so they can see under water and on land, and their hearing is like ours. That’s why we’ve got to talk quietly.’
I nod.
Nemmie drops her voice even further. ‘You can get seal stampedes if you scare them.’
I’m amazed she’s so knowledgeable, but it hasn’t come out of nowhere, and my alarm bells are clanging.
