Her Royal Highness Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh, made history today (23 June) by being the first member of the Royal Family to visit The Écréhous.
After spending the morning meeting members of our dairy farming industry and Jersey calves, the Duchess travelled to the reef.
Les Écréhous is a group of tiny islands six miles north-east of Jersey. They are officially part of the parish of St Martin.
Her Royal Highness was welcomed on the beach by members of the Residents’ Association and some lucky islanders who happened to have day-tripped there in the hot weather.
Sophie visited the Royal Square, where she spoke to Katie Bacquet, Marine Operations and Compliance Officer, about looking after the wildlife that lives around and on the islands, including the large Tern population.
A commemorative plaque was unveiled to mark the visit, which is to be fastened to a bench there, popular with the locals for their 'morning coffees' and occasionally 'sundown' drinks.
The bench wasn't accessible at the time of year due to the nests, with the Duchess joking 'It's there Tern!"
She took some time to watch some young chicks in their nests after being told by a resident that there were some around the corner.
Before departing, she was offered to look inside one of the few houses on the island - the owner inviting her, 'This is my kitchen! Would you like to take a look inside?'.
We understand the Duchess was able to see dolphins on her ride there - making it the perfect Ecréhous experience. When leaving, a large seal was waving her off.
During her afternoon by the sea, the Duchess also learnt about Jersey's sustainable fishing practices from people in the industry at St Catherine's breakwater.
She travelled with Jade-S Fisheries to join Leyton Hunnisett and Gabby Mason in hauling up a pot of lobster and spider crabs.
They explained the lobster-catching sizing regulations and plans to mark breeding lobsters to ensure sustainable fishing.
Her Royal Highness also watched a cooking demonstration from JCG and Les Quennevais pupils, who made a seafood linguine with local catch.
They said: "She asked us what our favourite foods are, and if we liked fish and ate it regularly, she said that she liked scallops a lot."
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