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13 Apr ’14 - 1:05 pm

Newly-wed couple stranded after seal steals their dinghy for four days

Eddie Stebbings and bride Bee Buechetook's trip took an unexpected turn when a giant seal took up residence in the dinghy they used to reach the mainland

A newly-wed couple were stranded on a remote island three miles from the mainland when a giant bull seal climbed into their inflatable dinghy and refused to budge for four days.

Eddie Stebbings, 35, and his bride Bee Bueche, 36, spent their first three months of married life together with a colony of Atlantic grey seals on Skomer Island off the Pembrokeshire coast.

But their wildlife adventure took an unexpected turn when a giant seal took up residence in the dinghy they used to reach the mainland.

Eddie and Bee were married in August and returned to the windswept island where they are wildlife wardens just in time for the seal pupping season.

Eddie said: "One morning in October the seal flopped itself into the boat,

"It refused to budge for four days and was at one point joined by another seal.

"He was about four times my weight, eight foot long and clearly not worried about people coming close to him."

The couple chose to spend their honeymoon on one of Britain's most remote islands, which they shared with over 400 adult seals.

They also saved 108 baby seals after a cow seal gave birth on the pebble beach and in the island's caves.

Eddie said: "It's been an interesting start to married life for us - we have shared it with the seals.

"They are joy to watch but we try not to interfere with them too much - we have to let nature take its course.

"We have been out with them every day since - even when a hurricane blew up we were on the cliffs checking on the seals.

"Skomer is only a small island so 180 baby seals is a lot to keep an eye on."

Skomer, managed by the Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales, is one of Britain's most important bird sanctuary islands.

A spokeswoman for the Trust said: "The island is in good hands with Eddie and Bee - they are dedicated to its wildlife and have fallen in love with its seals."

http://www.telegraph.....-days.html

just goes to show animals can throw a wrench into your plans, I'd like to know how that seal gave birth to over 100 pups though