Freediving with Atlantic Grey Seals at Lundy Island

If you’re looking for a freediving adventure in the UK, look no further than a Grey Seal encounter at Lundy Island. This remote, enchanting location offers an opportunity to dive with one of the friendliest groups of Atlantic Grey Seals, known for their playful and curious demeanour. In this blog post, I’ll take you through every step of this extraordinary adventure, from the journey to Lundy to the heartwarming moments spent with these adorable seal pups.

*A curious seal pup checking out my camera*

Location:

Lundy Island, situated in the Bristol Channel 11 miles off the North Devon coast, is a unique marine nature reserve and home to the famous Atlantic Grey Seals. As the UK’s first voluntary marine nature reserve established in the 1970s, Lundy hosts a fantastic array of underwater and above-water wildlife. The island’s west side faces the Atlantic Ocean, enduring the brunt of the storms, while the sheltered east side provides protected coves that serve as perfect nurseries for seal pups. The mixed, strong currents in the surrounding waters bring in essential nutrients, creating an ideal environment for the kelp forests that blanket the ocean floor in the cove of Gannet’s Bay, where we had the pleasure of exploring.

*The statue guarding Ilfracombe's harbour*

Logistics:

Our journey began in a cute town called Ilfracombe, where we stayed overnight before boarding a catamaran for Lundy the next morning. Traveling from London to Ilfracombe can be a bit lengthy — about a 5-7 hour drive (depending on traffic) or a 3-4 hour train ride from Paddington to Barnstaple, with one change in Exeter, followed by a 30-minute taxi ride to Ilfracombe. I traveled with a group in a van and returned by train. Personally, I found the train journey more comfortable, especially when the trains aren’t busy, as there’s more space to spread out, snack, charge your phone, play games, read or stretch your legs. For my return journey I arrived home 2 hours earlier than the group who drove back, even though we left Ilfracombe at the same time.

The boat ride:

We hired a catamaran for the journey to Lundy. It was quite spacious and comfortable, especially in good weather conditions. The boat ride takes 1-2 hours depending on the sea conditions, but it can be rough. On our way there, the sea was very choppy, and half of the passengers got seasick. However, the return trip was much smoother and faster, as the weather improved and we rode the waves back in just about an hour, while enjoying the afternoon sunshine.

Be prepared to get wet on the boat, particularly in rough conditions, especially if you’re seated at the back. Even without rain, waves were splashing in, soaking everyone sitting outside. Luckily, the boat offers hot tea and hot chocolate, which was a welcome comfort after a rough ride and three hours of diving in 17-degree water.

The diving location:

Our dive site was located next to Lundy Island in a protected cove on the east side, where the conditions were calm. We had strong west wind on the day, and a lot of seals were sheltering on the east side so we got to see lots of them.

The water was shallow, ranging from 2-4 meters in most places, though it deepened to 5-10 meters if you swam out further. Visibility varied throughout the day, especially with the changing tides. We were diving as the tide was going down, transitioning from high to low tide. Visibility was better during high tide, particularly over the rocks as opposed to the kelp forests.

Diving with seals:

Freediving with seals requires a bit of preparation. I wore a 5.5mm wetsuit and needed about 7kg of weights to stay down since most of the dives were very shallow — though the weights made it tougher to stay afloat. I experimented with different amounts of weights, and when I wore 7kg and if I exhaled and didn’t kick, I’d get water in my snorkel. Next time, I might experiment with a “variable weight” configuration: staying on the surface with less weight (allowing me to play with the seals without having to kick constantly), and getting down with more weights so I can play with them at the bottom for longer. Some of the seals enjoy biting or even hanging onto your fins or legs, which is incredibly adorable - in this case not kicking means they might hang on longer. Other times some seals liked snuggle up close when you are at the bottom, so the longer you can stay and more likely they’d snuggle up close and let you pet them.

However, be mindful that these seals do bite and scratch, and they have sharp teeth and nails. If you’re concerned about your carbon fins or smoothskin wetsuit, you might not want to encourage them too much. Fortunately, both my carbon fins and wetsuit survived numerous hugs and bites without any marks, which was quite miraculous! I was very impressed. We did have one freediver whose lined wetsuit got punctured by a seal’s bite, leaving a small hole from their sharp teeth.

Takeaways and recommendations:

Don’t eat breakfast before the boat ride to avoid seasickness. The middle of the boat is the best spot as it’s less volatile.
Bring water and snacks for the boat.
Pack warm clothes and/or a change of clothes; a waterproof and windproof jacket will enhance your comfort.
Consider changing into your wetsuit before boarding if conditions are rough. Either stay in normal clothes and try to stay dry or change into your wetsuit (or at least the wetsuit bottom) to protect yourself from the wet and cold. I changed into my wetsuit bottom and wore a long sleeve top and a water/wind-resistant jacket, then put on the wetsuit top once we arrived on the island. This was comfortable and kept me warm, but only because I stayed in a more sheltered spot on the boat and didn’t get completely drenched by the waves.
Bring extra weights.
Wear neoprene socks and gloves to stay warm for longer, and you may need to grab onto rocks at the bottom.
My previous boat safari experience paid off - my freediving packing list was excellent! I was super happy with what I brought.
Check all your gear and test your camera equipments before entering the water. You’ll likely be so excited or distracted that you might not notice if something is wrong until it’s too late (e.g., camera settings wrong, gear not properly on, etc.).
Leave early in the morning if possible—you’ll want as much time as you can get with the seals. They seemed more active and playful in the morning, and became a bit more lethargic in the afternoon.
Be careful, mindful, and respectful around the seals. Remember, they are wild animals, and we don’t want to injure them or ourselves.
If you’re with your camera or GoPro, don’t forget to put them down for a moment so you can be fully present with this incredible interaction!
HAVE FUN!!! ENJOY THE CUTENESS OVERLOAD!

*Spotted a Grey Seal's unique floating technique*

After the trip:

If possible, I recommend staying another night in Ilfracombe. It’s a long and tiring day, and you’ll likely be exhausted by the end. We left at 8:30 in the morning and returned to our hostel around 17:30. I was very thankful to have a hot shower and a bed and not have to travel any further that day.

If you have time the following day, there are some lovely places nearby to explore. We took a hike from Ilfracombe to Sandy Cove (near Lee), which took about 1.5 hours one way. Along the way, you’ll pass by beautiful seaside views from the hills and some impressive cliffs. Sandy Cove itself has a charming beach that isn’t sandy but rather covered with super flat sheets of small stones. It’s very interesting and a nice spot to relax. I even took a cold dip that I hadn’t planned on, and it was absolutely exhilarating and energizing (mind you, I’m not usually a cold water person)! The nearby town of Lee has a cozy pub called The Grampus, with a lovely garden and very friendly people. When we arrived, the weather was gorgeous, and it was absolutely beautiful to sit in the garden and enjoy a drink and some snacks. If your phone is out of service or if you need to call a taxi, they have a list of taxi numbers and will gladly let you use their landline. It’s about a 10-minute taxi ride back to Ilfracombe, or you can hike back.

Closing Thoughts:

Diving with the grey seals at Lundy Island was an experience unlike any other—a perfect blend of adventure, wildlife interaction, and natural beauty. I’ve seen a lot of amazing marine animals—whales, sharks, dolphins, sea lions—but diving with the curious Atlantic Grey Seals was a truly magical and very special experience because of the desire to interact from these adorable wild animals.

Thank you for joining me on this incredible journey! If you’d like to see more, be sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel and check out the other adventure videos I created. And let me know if you have other freediving adventures in the UK or around the world that you recommend, or share your experience if you end up going to Lundy too!

Happy exploring!

Watch the full adventure video below, or check out more photos in the Gallery