Fortuna Bay, Shackleton walk, Stromness

On May 20^th, 1916, Ernest Shackleton, Tom Crean and Frank Worsley, arrived at Stromness whaling station after a 36 hours strenuous hike from King Haakon Bay. The first crossing of South Georgia was the last chapter of the Endurance expedition, a dramatic voyage of exploration that ended up as one of the greatest adventures of the Heroic Age. Shackleton did the hike ninety six years ago and we repeated it today. Not all, of course, but the last five kilometers, the distance between Fortuna Bay and the old Norwegian whaling station of Stromness.

In Fortuna, a sheltered bay in the northern coast of South Georgia, we enjoyed ideal conditions for landing, with no swell, no wind, and no precipitation. An amazing walk through hundreds of territorial fur seals lying on the beach was the starter for what was coming next: a spectacular colony of more than seven thousand pairs of King Penguins packed together at the foot of cliff.

After the landing, MV Fram departed for Stromness, leaving ashore the passengers that had signed up for the hike. An easy walk along a gentle slope up to Crean Lake, three hundred meters above sea level, were followed by mostly flat terrain till a small ridge perched above Stromness valley. A short but very steep descent to the foot of the valley and we made it! Christmas day 2011 will be remembered by all as the day in which we completed the last stretch of a legendary expedition.

MV Fram was waiting for us by the whaling station and with it our fellow passengers that decided to sail with the ship. More king penguins, more fur seals and more elephant seals set in front of the decaying remains of the whaling station and the day was over. We are now at anchor at Cumberland Bay. Shackleton is in our minds. Tomorrow, at Grytviken, we will close his story.

Christmas Eve on the Scotia Sea

Christmas Eve, Scotia Sea, on passage between Malvinas/Falkland Islands and South Georgia, singing Christmas carols in different languages amongst fellow travelers from the four corners of the world. Ceremonial celebration on deck seven, presided by our captain, hotel manager and expedition leader and classical themes played by our two Chilean musicians. Safe and intimate atmosphere onboard whilst sailing the stormiest seas on earth. It’s hard to imagine a more dramatic setting for one of the holiest festivities of the Christian calendar.

Lectures and briefings filled up the day although not everybody made it to the lecture halls. We have crossed the Polar Front and we are now officially in Antarctic waters.  And nobody but the weather set the rules. The ship has been rolling the whole day, maybe a little too much for those not yet used to southern high seas. But for those comfortable enough with the rhythmic gentle dance of the Fram, lectures on biodiversity, an icy cold convoy to Vostok base, explosive harpoons and old whaling station stories added knowledge into their Southern Ocean experience.

South Georgia is just below the horizon.  We can’t see it yet but we know that it is there, with its spectacular mountain ranges, lengthy glaciers and dramatic fjords, its huge colonies of Antarctic fur seals and King Penguins and its mythical remains related to some of the best Antarctic stories. Shackleton was there. And so were Cook, Weddell and Larsen. We are about to land at the Gateway to Antarctica, and with their exploits on mind enter into a world of legends.

Georgia on my mind

Georgia, oh Georgia… Not quite the same Georgia the song aludes to, but everyone on board had it on their their minds today: we’re heading towards South Georgia. And that entails some preparations, which we began today. For a start, we explained our passengers the Antarctic code of conduct they have to follow, and we also vacuum-cleaned our backpacks and other gear to minimize the risk of introducing seeds, bugs and other biological aliens to these far-away lands.

We did all the preparations in relative calm, because we were lucky to have the wind blowing from astern: that is, from behind, which means we’re making very good progress with the help of the winds, and we’re not rocking too much, which is always a welcome thing.

Calm seas also meant the Captain invited several guests to visit the bridge, where he explained how to operate a rather complicated piece of machinery: MS Fram.

Pretty much all day long, we were also treated to the majestic flight of wandering albatrosses following the ship – a fantastic background scenery against which to enjoy a beautifully aromatic cup of tea and start preparing emotionally to arriving to the Jewel of the South, and maybe take part –weather permitting- in the Shackleton walk we want to make with our passengers, following the last epic leg of the famous adventurer’s hike from Fortuna Bay to Stromness. Definitely, Georgia on my mind…

Port Stanley and environs

Options are what big cities offer and options are what we got today in Port Stanley, were we docked safely this morning after sailing carefully through the very narrow passage that leads into the inner harbour of Port William. Rusty hulls and wooden carcasses of old wrecks reminded everybody that the safe waters of this perfect natural harbour have long been the last resting place of many boats paying their tribute to the Southern Ocean.

A few opted for an historical tour of the old settlement of Port Stanley, stopping at the spectacular wreckage of the Lady Elizabeth, photographing the odd signpost with directions and distances to almost any point in the World, learning the complex history of the archipelago at the local museum and remembering the tragic events of 1982 at the Falklands War Memorial.

Others signed up for a natural history walk along the northern shores of Port William, starting at the Lady Elizabeth wreckage, passing Engineer Point and ending up at the spectacular beach of Gipsy Cove. Tips of local history, botany and birding were provided by a knowledgeable local guide, with highlights like the historic scurvy grass, a small colony of Magellanic penguins, remains of the Second World War and a rookery of cormorants and night herons.

And some made it to Bluff Cove Lagoon, where they could see half a dozen king penguins reigning over several hundred Gentoo penguins. An interesting sight in the colony was a leucistic penguin: an animal with reduced pigmentation, which unlike albinos, have several reduced skin pigments, not just melanin. The ride to the colony was beautiful: a drive alongside the rocky spine of East Falkland Island.

Eventually, everybody ended up in the city center, shopping around, strolling along Ross Road, relaxing at Victory Green, guessing the size of big whales from the jawbones in front of Christ Church and even walking as far as Government House, Battle Memorial or the local museum.

  

Malvinas/Falkland Islands

First landing, first albatrosses and first penguins! And, of course, first encounter with the variable Malvinas/Falkland Islands unpredictable weather. The landing at New Island started with pretty miserable conditions, improving while we were ashore to not so bad, quite good and extraordinary. We enjoyed the perfect light for photographing birds, which is something that our passengers took advantage of, filling their memory cards to the limit of their capacity.

Black-browed albatrosses with chicks were the stars of the day, followed in close pursuit by the always devilishly looking rockhopper penguins and the elegant blue eye cormorants. The perfect setting of the rookery, like a natural Greek theatre hanging over a cliff facing the open ocean, did the rest.

And for those souls for whom nature is not enough, the little touch of history in the tiny museum of the settlement gave them the human dimension to this nowadays almost uninhabited place. Rusty harpoons, flensing gear and old cauldrons reminded everyone that this astonishingly beautiful island once was the first and only land whaling station of the whole archipelago.

Remote Carcass Island, with its most hospitable owners Lorraine and Rob, was waiting for us in the afternoon. A paradise for serious and occasional birdwatchers, the beach has been a hotspot for a great variety of endemic and non endemic birds of the Malvinas/Falklands.

Delicious cookies from four corners of the British world welcomed all of us that decided to pay a visit to the farm and meet Lorraine and Rob at their warmly decorated home. Tea time found most of the passengers savouring their coffee and tea at the house, but few decided to burn out some cookies and made it to the top of the hill located just behind the house, a short but steep and strenuous walk facing strong winds that almost took some of our thinner passengers to the neighbouring island!

A quite wet and bumpy Polarcirckle boat ride back to the ship was the final adventure to deserve a well earned buffet dinner after the first activites ashore.  We ended the day sailing along the uninhabited northern cost of the islands heading towards Port Stanley, the “big city” of the Malvinas/Falkland Islands, where new adventures and experiences are waiting for us tomorrow.

Scotia Sea

Our first day at sea was peaceful and quiet, which is a good thing, considering the Scotia Sea, like its neighbour to the south, the Drake Passage, is known for its temper... But today we saw its mild side, and we enjoyed the calm seas - we also enjoyed watching (admiring, really) the host of wonderful seabirds that followed our vessel for the best part of the day. We were treated to the elegant gliding of, among other majestic flyers, wandering and black-browed albatrosses, giant petrels in both their white and dark morphs, cape petrels, prions, etc.

We also started our lecture series - and had something REALLY special for our guests: we had our Catalan historian giving a lecture on the history of the Malvinas/Falkland Islands in English, translated into German by our French biologist - how's that for an international expedition team!

Finally, we'd like to use today as an opportunity to send all our friends, colleagues and followers, a Christmas card, as the festivities are getting near.

PS - This blog was written by a Mexican biologist using the photographs of an Aussie...

Ushuaia: Turnaround day

It always is a hectic and emotional day when we dock in Ushuaia. Hectic, because the action starts early in the morning to get ready to disembark; once our passengers have departed on their way back home, we have to prepare the ship for the arrival of our new guests; and then the arrival of our new guests themselves, which usually takes some time because we have to check everybody in and they have to get acquainted with MS Fram. Emotional, because we’re lucky enough to always make some friends among our passengers, and it is always emotional to say goodbye – but also, because we very much look forward to the new friends we’ll certainly make, which makes us happy in anticipation.

So, once everything is shipshape onboard Fram, and we are cleared to sail, we very slowly (an very “scenically”!) cruise down the Beagle Channel en route to our new adventure… Exciting times!

Heading home

After a ferocious partial day on the Drake, the second and now third days were relatively calm and comfortable. In a way it was the perfect combination- to see this unique part of the marine world in both states- lion and lamb! If you are unconvinced about this contrast, read yesterday’s blog!

Sometime in the afternoon we approached the continent of South America close enough to make out some dark shapes on the horizon. Land ho! As we got nearer, the warm air wafted the beautiful smell of the Notofagus forest out over the ship. This seemed even more wonderful considering that one of the last smells we remembered from Antarctica was penguin poo!

 Soon we were sailing around the islands in the Parque Nacional del Cabo de Hornos, south of the big island of Tierra del Fuego and a little later we were treated to repeat visits by a large pod of Dusky Dolphins. Many times they ran up alongside the ship and breached or “porpoised”, with bodies completely out of the water. It did not take much imagination to suppose that they were welcoming us back to where we had started this journey!

In the late afternoon the Captain hosted a farewell reception in the Panorama lounge on deck 7, which was followed by our traditional Fram charity auction.

Well, tonight is the time to pack in preparation for our return journeys. This is always a bitter-sweet day because, although we want to get home for Christmas, we do not want this incredible experience in Chile and Antarctica to end. But alas it must.