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During the night we rounded the northern tip of South Georgia and expected to be on the lee side of the island, but a strong wind had shifted round to the north west resulting in a long swell that made the ship roll rather than pitch, and as our beds lay across the ship made sleeping more difficult.
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Antarctic (Dove) Prion
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Zodiac
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Salisbury Plain
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In the morning with the strong adverse wind our planned landing at Salisbury Plain (a name applied to the area on British Admiralty charts in 1931) in the Bay of Isles, on the north-west coast, to see King Penguins and Fur Seals, had to be cancelled. Instead we had a very interesting talk on ‘Shackleton, after Endurance’.
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King Penguin
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In the late morning we had a visit from a King Penguin which performed for us.
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King Penguin
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Fortuna Bay
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Around midday, with our anchor dragging and little prospect of being able to get ashore on Salisbury Plain, it was decided, to the disappointment of the bird watchers on board, to move round to the more secluded Fortuna Bay (named after the Fortuna, a whaling ships of C.A. Larsen which was wrecked near by). To get there we had to endure a sea passage over lunch but it was worth it. As we entered Fortuna Bay the grey/green sea changed to emerald green and then to a milky green with the melting glacier. Around us towered snow covered mountains with a glacier at the southern end.
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The zodiacs were sent ashore to set up a landing point and soon we were on our way through drizzle and spray. At 15.18 we finally set foot on South Georgia, going first to see a sealers cave and also to sort ourselves out in the dry.
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Antarctic Fur Seals - in stream
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Around the beach area Antarctic Fur Seals, some small ones only a few weeks old were playing, swimming and having mock fights. The pups were left to themselves for up to five days at a time whilst their mothers went to sea to catch food for them.
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Antarctic Fur Seal - Pup
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Southern Elephant Seal
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Alongside the Fur Seals were big fat Elephant Seals pups, these had been fed by their mothers for 22 days and were now abandoned to lay about fasting until they had metabolised their fat into muscle and able to swim and hunt for themselves.
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Southern Elephant Seals
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The King Penguins were all over the area in various groups, more numerous inland and more thinly spread on the beach. With all these animals in close proximity we were spoilt for choice on what photos to take.
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King Penguin
In front of Explorer
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King Penguins
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Fur Seals Fighting
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Fur Seal
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Fortuna Bay
Waterfall
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After a while we strolled inland over the flat glacial moraine, with small streams cutting through, to the larger groups of King Penguins. The penguins were at various stages of development from ones that were still eggs to ‘Occam Boys’, so called because sailors thought that their coats look like occam, to moulting juveniles and full adults. We stood and watched their antics and they stood and watched us.
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Fortuna Bay Stream
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King Penguins
Occam Boy
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King Penguins
with eggs
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Fortuna Bay
Mountains
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King Penguins
Moulting
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Fortuna Bay
Glacier
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Fortuna Bay
Moraine
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King Penguins
Laying down
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Reindeer
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As well as the native animals there were also some introduced deer, which we understand are soon to be captured and transferred to the Falklands. Towards late afternoon, for a short while, we were treated to a spell of sunshine making it one of only 30 days a year on which the sun is seen at all in South Georgia.
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Returned to the zodiacs about 17.00 to see a Gentoo Penguin, looking a little lost. And then back on board to sort out all the photos and for dinner.
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Gentoo Penguin
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Awoke to a sunny morning, not wall to wall blue sky but enough to make it pleasant and just right for a walk to follow in the footsteps of Shackleton, Worsley & Crean on the last part of their trek to Storminess Bay.
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Whilst the light was good I took the opportunity before breakfast to take views of the bay from all angles.
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Fortuna Bay
Mountains
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Fortuna Bay
Mountains
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Fortuna Bay
Entrance
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Seals on rocks
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Fortuna Bay
Glacier
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Shackleton Path
Seals in tussocks
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At 8.00 around 40 of us gathered on the beach of Fortuna Bay ready for the walk. Also gathered were a number of fur seals in the tussocks, but they didn’t join us.
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The first 100m was probably the most difficult as we climbed off the beach through the tussock to less sloping ground. Behind us the sun shone on the Bay, the Explorer, the glacier and the mountains. Even on this remote spot a path was visible over the talus and scree where it had been slightly compacted by previous walkers and the loose scree eroded.
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Shackleton Path
Group climbing path, Explorer & Mountains behind
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A jagged line of peaks with a gap like a broken tooth confronted us. This was the ridge that runs in a southerly direction from Fortuna Bay, and our course eastward to Stromness lay across it. A very steep slope led up to the ridge and an icy wind burst through the gap. South! by Sir Ernest Shackleton
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Shackleton Path
View ahead
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As we climbed the slope patches of moss could be seen, these were quite vunerable and so we had to avoid walking over them.
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Shackleton Path
Crean Lake
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Shackleton Path
Crean Lake
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As we neared the top we came we came to Crean Lake, so named because on the Shakelton trek Crean fell into it. Around lay patches of snow and other small lakes.
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We went through the gap at 6 a.m. with anxious hearts as well as weary bodies. If the farther slope had proved impassable our situation would have been almost desperate; but the worst was turning to the best for us. The twisted, wave-like rock formations of Husvik Harbour appeared right ahead in the opening of dawn. Without a word we shook hands with one another. To our minds the journey was over, though as a matter of fact twelve miles of difficult country had still to be traversed. A gentle snow-slope descended at our feet towards a valley that separated our ridge from the hills immediately behind Husvik, and as we stood gazing Worsley said solemnly, "Boss, it looks too good to be true!" Down we went, to be checked presently by the sight of water 2500 ft. below.
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Shackleton Path
Top of pass
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At 310m we reached the pass and looked down into Storminess Bay. At this point we took a break and enjoyed the views. It would seem that either Shackleton's estimate of hight and distance were exagerated or we were on the wrong path!
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Shackleton Path
Taking a breather
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The initial descent down into Storminess Bay, past the waterfall to our left that Shackleton & Co had slid down, was over slightly steep scree but at the bottom we were onto broad, level ground. On the slopes moss and ferns were trying to get a hold amongst the broken rocks. In the valley bottom a herd of reindeer were grazing. Somewhere about there must have been a tern nest as they became a little agitated as we passed by.
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Shackleton Path
Walking down scree
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Moss
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Storminess Bay
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Fern
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Shackleton Path
Waterfall
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Stockport - an introduced species
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Gentoo Penguin
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Reindeer
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Gentoo Penguins
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As we neared the shore small groups of Gentoo Penguins became more numerous, accompanied by a couple of Skuas waiting to rob them of eggs or chicks. A few broken eggs that the Skuas had succeeded in stealing lay about.
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Storminess Bay
Mountains
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Storminess Bay
Sign
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Storminess whaling station which we had been able to see since coming over the top of the pass came close enough to get some decent photos (I can’t understand why Shackleton need to see the ‘Z’ shaped rocks to confirm that he was in the right bay when it’s easier to see the buildings!). Because of the dereliction of the buildings and the presence of asbestos we were not allowed to go closer than 200m.
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Storminess Bay
Whaling Station
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King penguins
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As we awaited for the zodiac to return us to the ship we sat and watched the Fur Seals, a couple of Elephant Seals, and a small band of King Penguins.
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Once back on board, and over lunch the ship weighed anchor and we set off round to Grytviken (meaning Cauldon Bay in Norwegian, C A Larsen had found three legged pots there left by earlier sealers) arriving about 14.00.
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Grytviken is the ‘capital’ of South Georgia, which is an Overseas Dependency of Britain. South Georgia is ruled over by the South Georgia Government, but has no citizens, nor its own head of state, nor its own administrators, but it does have revenue raising powers. Its ‘citizens’ are the scientists who go to South Georgia on mostly 2 year contracts, some construction workers helping to clean up the old whaling stations and a couple of long term residence who run the museum. Its head of state, The Commissioner is the Governor of the Falkland Islands, along with appropriate deputies and assistants. The Administration is the British Antarctic Survey which has its offices at King Edward Point, just outside Grytviken and its revenue raising power is to issue fishing licences for the 200 mile coastal waters around the island. The revenue raised is used for fishery patrols (hired from the Falklands) to prevent illegal fishing and to promote conservation particularly of the Patagonian Tooth Fish.
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As the tour we were on was titled ‘The Spirit of Shackelton’ the first duty of us all, when ashore, was to gather around his grave for a short eulogy and to toast his memory in rum.
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Grytviken
Cemetery notice
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Grytviken
Shackleton's Grave
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Reverse of Shackleton's Grave
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THE WHALERS' CEMETERY
The earliest graves are those of men from the Esther who died of typhus in 1846. Some of the graves on the left of the cemetery resulted from an outbreak of typhus at the whaling station in 1912. On the right lies the grave of William Barlas, British Magistrate, who died after an avalanche pushed him into the icy sea.
The grave of Sir Ernest Shackleton is at the rear of the cemetery. He died aboard Quest, at anchor in the cove, in 1922. The most recent grave is that of Felix Artuso, an Argentine casualty of the 1982 conflict.
The white cross on the hillside to the left is a memorial to Walter Slossarczyk, an officer of the German polar vessel Deutschland, who went missing from a rowing boat in Cumberland Bay 1911.
Directly behind the cemetery, high on the hill, is a cross erected to the memory of 17 men who drowned when their fishing vessel Sudur Havid sank off South Georgia on 6th June 1998.
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Reverse of Shackleton's grave
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I hold that a man should strive to the uttermost for his lifes set prize. Robert Browning
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Elephant Seal Head
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We were then free to walk as we wished, the only restrictions being to keep out of the derelict buildings (all buildings except the museum and church were derelict) and not to touch things, especially if it looked like unexploded ordinance!
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Elephant Seals in a line
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Grytviken
King Edward Point
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We took a walk up the hill, behind the cemetery, to the reservoir, to get a view over the site. The reservoir was much larger than would be required for the present inhabitants and was probably constructed in the whaling days. We later learnt that the reservoir had been constructed not for water but to produce hydro-electric power, there are plans to re-instate the plant. Now the dam wall and pipes are in some need of repair with the main pipe producing three fountains of water from leaks, though two new sections of pipe lay nearby.
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From the reservoir we then descended into the whaling station and walked through to the church passing by rusting tanks, machinery and ships. The church, which was built as such but also used in the past as a cinema and store has recently been restored.
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Grytviken
Whaling Station
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Grytviken Church
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From the church we wandered over to the South Georgia Museum with an extensive and well labelled display of everything to do with South Georgia and exploration of the area. Attached to the museum was a well patronised gift shop with a good range of goods. I bought a new peak cap.
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Shopping done we returned to the ship to get ready for a BBQ on the stern deck. To make all us Brits feel at home it rained, so we all had to dash outside to grab our food and then jump back inside again.
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For evening entertainment we had a visit from one of the fisheries officers to talk about her work and living on South Georgia for two years.
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Over night we sailed round to Gold Harbour, a small bay, with Bertrab Glacier at its head, at the east end of South Georgia
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If there had been a clear sunrise it had been planned to give us all a wake up call at 2.45. Depending on how you look at it, the sunrise wasn’t worth getting up to see and so we were all to stayed in bed!
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By 8.45, when we were due to go ashore the sun was shining brightly, so we could look forward to a pleasant morning. On the beach there were groups of King Penguins, Gentoo Penguins, a lonely Chinstrap Penguin, Elephant Seals and Fur Seals, all roughly mixed together.
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Elephant Seals
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Gold Harbour
Bertrab Glacier
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Gold Harbour
Beach
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Gold Harbour
Climbing tussocks
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We opted to climb the hill, though a group of stroppy Fur Seals sitting in the tussocks, in search of the Light-Mantled Sooty Albatross. At the top of a short slope we reached level ground; away from the sea the breeze had dropped and with the sun shining we discarded our outer layers.
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Gold Harbour
Tussock
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Light-Mantled Sooty Albatross
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The albatross were not as abundant as we had hoped, but there were a few about often two together flying in formation. On the cliff side was a sitting bird, this was thought to be trying out a possible nest site for the next breading season. Also flying around were skuas, and terns.
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Light-Mantled Sooty Albatross
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Gold Harbour Mountains
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All around were mountains with snow shining brightly in the sun.
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Skua pellet
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On the ground we came across a skua pellet that it had coughed up, made up of penguin feathers.
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Brown Skua chick
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Returned to the beach to watch life for a while and then walked along to take a closer look at the far end and the Bertrab Glacier. Around the melt pond gathered more penguins and seals together with sheathbills.
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Antarctic Tern
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King Penguins swimming
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Sheathbill
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Chinstrap Penguin
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King Penguins
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South Georgia Shag
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At 12.30 with the sun still shining we returned to the ship to move on to the afternoon destination of Cooper Bay, named for Lt. Robert P.Cooper, an officer aboard the Resolution on James Cook's voyage.
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Chinstrap Penguin
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The main attraction of Cooper Bay was a colony of Macaroni Penguins. We weren’t able to approach them along the beach so again we had to climb a bank and work our way through elephant and fur seals to get to a point where we could look down on them, The bay was shared with Gentoo Penguins which preferred the higher ground so the climb up was partly shared with them.
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Macaroni Penguins
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Macaroni Penguin Colony
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Macaroni and Gentoo Penguins
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Drygalski Fjord
Group
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Returned to the ship for one final highlight for the day, a cruise along Drygalski Fjord to the glacier at the end. The fjord, about 1.5km wide and 12km long, was named for Prof. Erich von Drygalski, leader of the German Antarctic Expedition, 1901-03. The weather, by this time, was dull to overcast so the photos while OK were not spectacular.
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Drygalski Fjord
Glacier
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