Diary
I was looking forward to today. We were due to make a landing and see our first king penguins. After two days at sea we were all really excited.
First stop was Elsehul but when we got there the swell was to much to put the Zodiacs in the water. As and alternative we went to Right Whale bay. We managed to get the Zodiacs in the water for a cruise but no landing. We saw king penguins, elephant seals, fur seals and lots of really cool birds. It was nice to see the colonies but we were just a little to far away, so not many photos.
After lunch we went to Sailsbury Plain, home to 600,000 breeding pairs of penguins. This is the second larges colony in South Georgia. Sadly it was to rough to land the Zodiacs on the beach so we had another cruise, and had a little sulk. This stop had really been built up so naturaly people were disapointed. There were lots of elephant seals, the beach masters on the beach making the next round of babies and the sneaky f**kers in the water waiting to get a bit on the side. Sneaky f**kers is the scientific term for the elephant seals with no harem of their own, they hang around the outskirts waiting for a sneaky quicky!
Sat next to Ursula at dinner, she is awesome. Very intersting, she runs a minke whale research programme in Canada. I have learnt a lot from the tonight and feel inspired.
We have to get up at 5.30 tomorrow morning so an early night.
The swell was to much to put the zodiacs in the water so we about turned.
Not before seeing this beautiful light mantled sooty. Another one of Johns amazing shots.
The water is still quite rough, so no landing, but here you can see the king penguins and lots of seals.
Large elephant seal with two fur seals fighting in the water
Fur seal chilling in the icey cold water.
Baby fur seal, not very old. When they are born they look like a bag of skin and bones and are quickly fattened up.
Gentoo Penguin
Elephant seal relaxing in a small pool.
Anchors up and off to the next spot. As we left we had some fur seals playing around in the bow.
The Zodiacs being unloaded for the cruise around Sailsbury plain.
Sailsbury Plain. Full of Elephant seals and King Penguins. It was a little frustrating not to be able to make the second landing. This was the second largest colony of penguins in South Georgia and it would have been really cool to have been amoungst it.
Antarctic terns, another one of Johns great pictures, he does have a camera the size of a tank as well as a good eye!
Grey headed Albatross.
One of mine, hurrah. A Snowy sheathbill. These birds eat up the pengiun poop. This one is getting ready to land.....
.......on the head of John Sparks. John worked for the BBC for many years. It really was a privelage to have such knowlege and experience on board. MV POLAR STAR SHIPS LOG
Monday 10th November - At Elsehul Bay, Right Whale Bay & Salisbury Plain
Time: 12:00
Latitude: 54° 00.6' S
Longitude: 37° 40.7' W
Wind: Force 3 East
Sea Conditions: Moderate (wave height 1.25 – 2.50m)
Pressure: 1007 mb
Temperature: 5ºC
Overnight, a one hour time change had robbed us all of sleep but the new day was never the less eagerly met. Some of the hardened birders, Andrew Colenutt among them, were out on deck before 05:30 and had already been rewarded for their tenacity. Sightings of macaroni, gentoo and king penguins in the water, grey headed, light mantled, royal and black browed albatrosses in the air and fur seals in abundance made for a fantastic early morning on deck. At 07:00 the Captain increased our speed by engaging the second engine in order to reach our destination in time for a Zodiac cruise. On our arrival at Elsehul Bay it was clear that lowering Zodiacs would not be an option. The swell at the gangway was far in excess of a safe operating level. The Captain took the ship into the bay and performed an incredibly tight turn to bring us back out into open water. The decision was then taken to motor towards Right Whale Bay in the hope that this would boast more favourable conditions. As soon as the ship dropped anchor, 9 Zodiacs were lowered into the water. From deck 3 we watched groups of king penguins as they swam past, porpoising, on their journeys to and from the shore while the boat driver sputtered around the ship waiting for the landing to commence. This entertainment kept us occupied while the crew changed the gangway to the starboard side of the vessel as conditions were better there. Once on the water the cruising was fantastic; we saw many fur seals fighting on the beach, heard the roar of the beachmasters(dominant bull elephant seals) as they guarded their harems of females and we caught our first glimpse of a king penguin colony spreading outup the hillside in the distance. When the boats were finally called back to the ship lunch was ready and waiting for us in the dining hall.
By 16:00 the ship had reached Salisbury Plain and was at anchor. Ian ordered a Zodiac to belowered as a scout boat to take the expedition staff close to shore in order to make a decision on whether the surf was too large for a landing. It was clear after a short time that the landing would not be made; the steep gradient of the beach and the large active waves created a potentially dangerous surf zone that could not be operated in. The decision was made to undertake a Zodiac cruise along the shore, not only to see the incredible wildlife but also to show us the shoreline up close and explain the reasons for the cancelled landing. Several elephant seal harems occupied areas of the beach, some of us were even lucky enough to see a huge bull and female copulating onthe shore. King penguins wandered around the black sand beach and we could see the rookeries spreading right up the hillside and valley towards the glaciers behind. Giant petrels soared aroundthe Zodiacs while bold sheathbills made attempts to land on our laden boats with some success. At one point a beaming John Sparks could be seen with a large white sheathbill stood nonchalantly ontop of his head, proving he truly is the birdman. Antarctic terns were seen surface feeding on small crustaceans in the water on the colour change between the blue sea water and the cloudier, mineral-rich outwash from the glacier. The keen birders were also treated to great views of several graceful snow petrels as they flew past. By 18:30 we were ready to return to the ship for recap and briefing before dinner.
No comments:
Post a Comment