Isles of Scilly
The Isles of Scilly are located 45 kilometers off the coast of Land's End in Cornwall. This is a beautiful part of England and is popular with day trippers and holidaymakers in the summer, but at the end of September the boat and plane services stop leaving only locals on the island. The archipelago is the westernmost and southernmost point of England, as well as the southernmost point of Great Britain
Inhabited islands
The most important fact about the Isles of Scilly for day travelers is that there are 5 inhabited islands: St Marys, St Agnes, Brier, St Maarten and Tresco. The largest island, St. Mary's, is only six square miles and has a circumference of only 9 miles. The capital of the Isles of Scilly is Hugh, St Mary's is the most convenient island to visit on a day trip to the Isles of Scilly, but Tresco is the most popular among tourists.
Sunny Earth
The climate on Scilly is quite mild, however in the colder months of the year the wind increases and causes stormy conditions. However, thanks to sunnier skies over the Isles of Scilly than the rest of the UK, tropical plants can be found on some islands. The islands are also home to sandwich terns, willow warblers, sand martins and swallows. You can also find razorbills, guillemots, cormorants, dunlins, plovers, ducks, kestrels and peregrine falcons.
Shipwrecks
Historically, the Isles of Scilly have been very dangerous for passing ships and tankers. In particular, the first supertanker sank off the Seven Stones reef and dumped up to 120,000 tons of oil into the sea. It is known that there were more than 530 sunken ships off the coast of the islands. A tragic incident occurred in 1875 when the German ocean liner SS Schiller sank off Scilly, killing 335 people. The islanders managed to save 37 people, and the Schiller Shelter was built in their memory by the German government and as a thank you to the islanders.
Habitat for seals
The Isles of Scilly are home to around 260 seals in summer and 750 in winter. You can join a seal watching trip with St Mary's Boatmen's Association to see their favorite spots. The association provides everyone with the opportunity to swim with seals. It is estimated that about 80 puppies are born on the islands each fall.
