What you can see on the Ons Island webcams
Both cameras belong to MeteoGalicia, the regional weather service, and both stand in the village on the sheltered eastern side. One looks over the rooftops to the pier where the passenger boats tie up, with the mainland across the water; the other looks south along the shore. They are still images that show the sky, the sea and the light rather than people.
Ons harbour, where the boats from the mainland land
Life on Ons revolves around its pier, and MeteoGalicia's camera looks straight down on it. In the foreground are the red-tiled roofs of the village on the sheltered east side of the island; beyond them, the long concrete jetty runs out over the rocks to a small light at its tip. Across the water lie the low hills of the mainland at the mouth of the Ría de Pontevedra.
In season the passenger boats from Bueu, Portonovo, Sanxenxo and other mainland ports come and go here, and you may catch one crossing the frame. The camera also shows the state of the crossing: flat water and a clear far shore mean an easy trip, while white horses or a hazy horizon suggest checking the forecast. The morning sun shines into the lens, so the picture is clearest later in the day. Still image, not video.
Along the east shore of Ons
The second camera on Ons stands in the village and looks south along the island's sheltered eastern shore. On the right, the main track runs down past houses and trees; on the left, the low, rocky coast drops into clear water, with a small islet offshore and the open Atlantic beyond the tip of the island.
It faces towards the sun for much of the day, so the light is often hazy and backlit; the morning gives the best view. It shows the kind of day a walker would have on the island's paths, which lead to the lighthouse, the coves and the chasm in the cliffs known as the Buraco do Inferno: whether the sky is clear, whether mist lies on the water and how hard the wind is ruffling the sea. Still image, not video.
A lived-in island
Unlike the Cíes, Ons has been farmed and fished for centuries, and its stone houses, small fields and hórreos, the granaries raised on stone legs that are found all over Galicia, give it the feel of a rural hamlet set down in the sea. Footpaths cross the island to the lighthouse, to Melide, a sandy beach in the north about 2 km (1¼ miles) from the village, and to the Buraco do Inferno, a deep chasm in the cliffs. Ons has been a protected area for birds since 2001, and it became part of the national park in 2002.
When to watch Ons
Ons is one hour ahead of the UK. The pier camera faces east, into the morning sun, so it is clearest from late morning; the second camera looks south and is best early. Watch the water before you book a crossing: the channel between Ons and the mainland is open to the Atlantic swell, and a white-flecked sea means a lively ride.
Around Ons
In season, boats run to Ons from Bueu, Portonovo, Sanxenxo, Marín and Aldán. Sanxenxo, the biggest resort in the Rías Baixas, is the most convenient base for most visitors, with hotels, beaches and the ferry quay at Portonovo close by.
Visiting Ons
As on the Cíes, in the busy season you need a free authorisation from the Galician government before you can buy a boat ticket. There is a campsite for those who want to stay the night, which is when the island is at its most peaceful, after the day boats have gone. Keep to the marked paths along the cliffs, take water and plan to catch the last boat back.
