WildSmiths are husband and wife team, Greg and Sarah Smith. We offer guided wildlife walks on the Isle of Coll. Welcome to our website.
WildSmiths in 2026
We had a reduced presence on the wild Isle of Coll in 2025. Sadly family commitments meant we had to move away, however we did manage some great trips and some great finds when we were here. Several Coll specialities were on show in April including Short-necked Oil Beetles in the machair and Corncrakes being unusually showy in the early season grasslands. We found a new plant for the island: a dune foreshore specialist called Portland Spurge. Very exciting! Arctic Skuas seem to have taken up residence in a new location where we enjoyed watching them terrorising the local Ravens. Later in the summer, we took a lovely couple of visitors from Australia around the stomping grounds of their ancestors – including a glorious day exploring the ruins of an old township (Grimsaray) up in the hills. Top this off with some fantastic cetacean action on the water – including a vast super-pod of 700 Common Dolphins accompanied by several inquisitive Minke Whales – and a few Basking Sharks at close quarters (which seem to have been in short supply in recent years) and it’s not unreasonable to conclude that the year, though short, was indeed excellent.
Our plans for 2026 are to juggle our domestic responsibilities in England with several extended visits to Coll through the spring and summer when we will be offering our range of wildlife guiding services once again. We will also be hosting a couple of weeks for Naturetrek in May and July. These are sure to sell out so, if you’re interested, more details are available here. If you have plans to come to Coll during 2026, do get in touch and we’ll be eager to help you out. Even if our timings don’t coincide, we’re always happy to set you on the right track.
All our activities are carried out safely and responsibly, minimising any possible impact on the wildlife of the island and the local community, and taking into account our customers’ health and well-being.
Elsewhere on this website, you will find blogs and articles about the special wildlife of Coll, resources to help you on your visit and a log of ‘recent’ wildlife sightings which we will keep up when we are on-island.
We look forward to seeing you in 2026.
Greg and Sarah
“The walk with Greg was a holiday highlight – he is so knowledgeable about all things Coll, and not just the marvels of the wildlife.”
Liz, May 2022, Tripadvisor
“Greg and Sarah were great guides, and our walk with them was a fantastic way to kick off our time on Coll!”
Mithila F, September 2020, Tripadvisor
“I would highly recommend anyone who comes here to book a walk with Wildsmiths as soon as they can.”
RockyandLuna, June 2021, Tripadvisor
