A couple seated a few tables away from us across the hotel dining room appeared to be sharing exciting news. I couldn’t resist interrupting my meal to run over to them and find out what was going on.

“Look out the window”, they instructed me. “We’re suffering a seal invasion. Nobody dare set foot on the beach”.

I pushed back the dining room curtains to see what all the fuss was about. Not an inch of sand could be seen under the writhing bodies of hundreds of overweight shiny black seals making their way up the beach from the shoreline. The bay was brimming with others coming into land. It was a truly spectacular – and frightening – sight.