A Biology seal-watching trip was cancelled because the bus was too long

Imagine rising for a 6:45am start up the mountain known as Cardiac Hill, having sweated your way up to the science site and beyond, in the dark… only for your seal-watching field trip of a life time to be cancelled.

That's how the biologists studying Behaviour felt today, when their coach was deemed too long "to get anywhere near the [seal watching] site" according to lecturer Sean Twiss.

The summative field trip to Donna Nook to analyse seal behaviour included a generous six hour round coach trip. But without much of a chance of gaining access to the planned site, Twiss reasoned that the keen seal-watchers would have "spent six hours on a coach for no good purpose".

Could the problem have been resolved with a bendy bus?

An email was sent out to the biologists turned away at the crack of dawn with "sincerest apologies" for the cancellation and the explanation that the coach supplied "was significantly longer than coaches we have had in the past". Of course meaning that access became an unprecedented factor.

One biologist from Van Mildert expressed her feelings towards coach lengths interrupting her education, telling us that she "could not con-seal her disappointment". Another biologist from Cuths told The Tab it was the "sealiest thing you've ever heard".

But ignoring the slight flaw in the field trip, in that no actual seals were seen, the summative will still go ahead as planned, with other data to be used instead.

If only they had been able to access the site…

Despite the procrastination opportunity of a six hour coach journey, there wasn't too much dismay of the cancellation, with many biologists returning home for a good day of sleep.

But when one door closes, another opens. One biologist took a trip to Newcastle instead, getting her priorities sorted: "I've done all my Christmas shopping".

Some even took the opportunity to beat the queues into Flat White and console themselves with pancakes.

But for some, the "crushing disappointment that doesn't usually result from things being too long" hit home with the realisation that they wouldn't visit the seals.

"I was heartbroken to miss the baby seals" said one biologist from Van Mildert. Another student said: "the coach didn't get the seal of approval" from the biology department.