Kicker's rock

The ground is bare, just rocks and the occasional sea moss. Probably too cold for corals. A school of larger fish nibbles from the algae growing on the dark rocky bottom. Soon we are encircled by a swarm of little silvery fish. They dart left and right, never stand still. Suddenly the swarm hushes away, and from nowhere a sea lion appears, trailing behind a curtain of bubbles. Unimpressed by the human presence he zigzags around with great agility.

At Kicker’s rock – a solid square mass of stone out in the sea, divided by a big chasm. High waves roll through the gap, emerald green with a surface like glass. Birds live here in small niches marked by their white excrements; from their high watch tower they dive down in the rolling floods and reappear with a little sliver fish in their beaks.