My Veterans Day Was Amazing!

 So, I woke to fog, which cleared quickly.  Then some birds and porpoising penguins.  Then the wind picked up.  So, no zodiac cruising in Gold Harbour.  Landings are still being planned. My group goes first  this time.

The weather here is nuts! The winds got so bad, the zodiacs that had been off loaded were just bouncing and banging against the boat and each other, so they were craned back onto the ship and plans were made to cruise on up to Cooper Bay, returning to Gold Harbor this afternoon. Just as we got the zodiacs reloaded, the winds died down.  Captain Jeremy and Phil considered trying again, but decided it was just too spotty, so off we go to Cooper Bay.  I'm likely to be kind of irritated if I don't get to see any macaroni penguins!  So,we'll see!

Ab burst my bubble with this one.  I was sure it was a juvenile wandering albatross.  One second was all it took for him to tell me it was an Antarctic Fulmar!  Silly me!  Still a lovely bird!

So, we headed out to Cooper Bay, which was also too choppy for any landing or zodiac.  We saw some humpback whales that came right by the ship and some penguins were porpoising in the area.  The penguins were too far away for me to get a good shot of them, but based on their feet, they are different than any we had seen yet.  Neill identified them as macaroni based on their feet.  Other guides identified them as macaroni based on their location because macaronis are known to live on Cooper Island.  I don't consider that a sighting any  more than the adelies that were so far away on the Argentina research station.  If I wasn't close enough to see the identifying markings by binoculars or photograph (not just feet, unless feet is a major identifier that is commonly known), I wasn't close enough to see it!

When we got back to Gold Harbour, the water was much smoother.  Gold Harbour is one of the top destinations in South Georgia.  It's a black sand beach, and I think I heard somebody say it is volcanic sand.  I wasn't able to verify that, but there is a lot of volcanic rock in the island, so it maks sense.  It is the home to a massive king penguin colony.  And boy howdy, it's massive!  

We pulled up in the zodiac with very little space between the elephant seals for landing, but elephant seals don't particularly care about people.  Just don't step on them or get between them and an enemy (or concubine), and you're fine.  Groups of king penguins appeared to be coming to greet us.  Because of how densely the beach was populated, we had to walk across the stream, through the tussac grass, dodging the fur seals and taking care not to step on the elephant seals while trying not to slip and fall in the mud in order to get to the king penguin colony.  Because the seals like to lie down behind tufts of grass, we had to go in an almost exact footprint-match line behind the guide who picked out our path based on the location of the seals.  There was so much wildlife, the ship didn't have the staff and guides to do both a landing and zodiac cruising, so we just did the landing.

While we were waiting for a group to get together with a guide to lead us to the colony, a massive bull elephant seal decided he needed to venture a little close to another massive bull's harem.  It was really quite scary seeing those huge animals running straight toward us!  Hard-Core Sanna was between me and the bull being chased, and while she backed us up, she also managed to divert the seal.  It happened a few times with different people around.  

Pardon the messy camera work.  I was a little pre-occupied with safety stuff at times!

We were finally ready to head to the penguin colony.  It wasn't the longest walk we've made.  But it was by far the most challenging for me!  I tend to pick up a walking stick when we have landings, and I definitely relied on it this time!  There were a few gentoo penguins living along with the kings.  In the center of the colony was the chicks.  They are old enough that they no longer stay beside their parents, but until they have their first molt, their feathers are not waterproof, so they cannot get wet and can easily get cold.  Because of that, they tend to stay in the middle of the colony, huddled together while the adults hang out in the perimeter, keeping them safe and bringing them food.  This group of chicks (the brown ones) were estimated to be about 10 months old.

When we got back to the ship, I was spent.  I took a shower and a nap and used my TENS unit on my lower back and left hip and thigh.  I've been using the TENS unit and additional meds routinely, but this was the worst yet.  I had even determined what I was going to order for dinner and have it sent to my room.  Without warning, they announced that anyone in the blue or red group who wanted to take an extra zodiac cruise to see a leopard seal that had come up on a rocky spot just off the beach should come to the mud room.  I thought for a little while (just a little) and decided it was worth it.  I really didn't want to move, and it really hurt to do so, but I knew I would really regret not going.  So, I put on some pants and shirt, grabbed my waterproof pants and parka, and headed to the mud room with my camera.  This seal was wonderful.  I think I got some good shots, including some Grinch-style grins! I was so glad I went!

At tonight's briefing, Phil said we are planning to go to Hercules Bay to see macaroni penguins and to St. Andrew's Bay to see the largest king penguin colony in the world.  (You mean there's one larger than this one?!)  My group isn't first this time, so I can sleep in a little bit.  Hercules will be a zodiac cruise and not a landing, so hopefully, I'll get some good shots and won't be angry at missing macaroni penguins on Coopers Bay!  We shall see...

Hello, South Georgia!

Today's landing at Grytviken was awesome!  Blue group (mine) started at Shackleton's cemetery and then moved into town for the tour.  Last night's briefing included instructions on how to respond to aggressive seals.  You make yourself large and back away.  Turning to run will often trigger pursuit, and you don't want one of these guys chasing you, especially not catching you!  Most of us were under the impression that we wouldn't need to deploy this very much.  We were wrong!  They dropped us on a beach that was teaming with fur seals and elephant seals.  The elephant seals didn't really seem to care that we were there.  The fur seals, on the other hand, were very aggressive, and they were not happy about us invading their territory! Guides and expedition staff were stationed in various places around, sometimes managing the seals, but usually redirecting our route.  

At one point, we had to wait for a couple of males to stop fighting and for one to cross back to his spot.  After the excitement and the path was cleared, we started crossing again, and the victor decided he didn't want us there, so he started to charge.  The person closest to him turned and ran.  Fortunately, there were a bunch of us in his way, so he didn't get far enough to trigger that pursuit reaction.

I thought it was cute when one fur seal decided to position himself on the only empty space for us to go past. Guil, one of the guides, headed toward him, just started telling him how there was a better place, and that Mr. Fur Seal would enjoy himself just a little further up the hill. It was effective, and he moved, letting us through.

A staff member of the BAS was giving tours of the old whaling station. I didn't get the whole tour because by the time I got past the seals, the tour was underway, so I joined it in progress. It was really quite interesting. It took two people to strip the blubber from the skin. After many years, regulators required the whole whale to be used, so products other than just the oil because popular, such as corsets from the baleen. 

 Large boats were not required for whaling. Small boats would go out, kill the whales and inject air in them so they would float. Then, they could just be pulled along in strings behind the boat. 

Grytviken is not the only whaling station on South Georgia, but it is the primary station that the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) maintains as their governmental center. It houses the graves of Earnest Shackelton and Frank Wild, his right-hand man (ironically buried on his left). Because our ship is new, it was required to stop in Grytviken before any other locations on South Georgia, so we will be retracing some of our steps. 

 The BAS removed many of the buildings on Grytviken before we knew the dangers of releasing asbestos into the air. Other stations have been left intact, and they are studying the best way to remove the asbestos from the stations. There is still oil in the ground from the whaling activities. There is no estimate of when that oil will dissipate or how/if it should be removed. 

This was also the closest post office to Antarctica we were going to encounter, so post cards went out. Since it wasn't actually Antarctica, I didn't send to everybody. Plus, I didn't want to spend all of my time in town addressing and writing post cards! 

You also know that I was a HUGE fan of the museum WHICH HAD A "PLEASE TOUCH" SECTION!!

It rained for a while on the island, so please pardon the raindrops on the camera lens!

Unlike many other cruises, you will not get left behind if you don't board on time on an Antarctic expedition ship. During lunch, there were several cabin numbers called to report to reception. A couple of those people apparently decided they didn't need to respond until after several calls were made and people started pressuring them, knowing that we would not start heading to our next destination until all passengers were accounted for.

After finally getting to Jason Harbor, my group set out for a zodiac cruise before taking the landing.  We saw the cutest baby fur seal!  And my camera decided it didn't need to display on the screen; that I would do fine just with the eye viewfinder!  But I soldiered through that horrible first-world problem. And I got a lot of good shots of kelp gulls, pintail ducks, fur seals, and elephant seals.  At the end of the zodiac, we were dropped at the beach, this time among the elephant seals.  There was a group of king penguins (I have to learn the difference between king and emperor penguins!) on the beach and one lone king in the lagoon.  The baby elephant seals with their great big eyes just steal your heart!  They were everywhere!  As well as fur seals.  Some of them pretty aggressive.  In fact, one had his very own babysitter to make sure he didn't attack any of us, though he apparently did chase off another fur seal interloper.

Just as an FYI, these Southern Elephant Seals are MUCH larger than the northern ones on the beach in California!

When we got back, I had time for a quick shower before Phil's briefing (which I watched from my cabin), then dinner, and finally, Neill saved the day by fixing my camera! All in all, another wonderful day aboard the Ocean Victory!

Tomorrow (November 11), the plan is landing and zodiac cruises at Gold Harbour and Cooper Bay.  We should see macaroni penguins!

More Rough Seas

November 6 was a bad weather day. We cruised the Antarctic Sound, though a huge field of icebergs. They were amazing! Phil tried to get us into some zodiacs, but conditions deteriorated quickly. They got two zodiacs loaded, but had to unload them almost immediately. They called it a “sporting” unloading. So we cruised around to look at different things. We cruised into Hope Bay, where an Argentinean research post, Esperanza, sits. This research post is different than most. Entire families come down, and they even have a school. There are currently approximately 15 families there, including children. It is the location of the first Antarctic birth in 1978. There have been 20 births since then. Some families stay up to two years. There is a school from kindergarten through high school. One of my group members and I came to the conclusion that to be a kid growing up there would be a temporary awesome experience, but after a few months would probably be pretty difficult. This is also the location of the highest temperature ever recorded in Antarctica, which was 67 degrees Fahrenheit in 2020. The penguins are a megacolony, which has been monitored for over 20 years, the longest monitoring period. As we cruised by, the researchers came out and welcomed us, waiving and hoisting their flag. There were penguins everywhere! The birders (Rock Jumpers) with their high-powered scopes let us know that the colonies in the bay were mostly adelie.

We then cruised by Brown's Point, where we had originally planned to do some things, but – weather.

Later an announcement came over that an Antarctic Petril was circling the boat.  Not being a birder myself, I didn't recognize the significance of it until Phil also announced that it, too, is a rarely sighted species.  So, off I went to the observation decks to try to get a photo.  Those birders are great people.  They pointed out what made this bird different and helped me track it to get my shots.  As I was taking my picture, a group of Antarctic cormorants took off in flight.  It was a beautiful sight!  And I think I'm getting the hang of shooting birds in flight!

We spent the rest of the day in impromptu lectures.  Because COVID is also growing on board (3 cases now), I watched most of the lectures on the TV in my cabin and worked on pictures.  By nightfall, the seas were getting really rough again, to the point that I had to latch my balcony door again because it opened and closed on its own a couple of times.  Overnight, we'll be heading to Elephant Island, hoping to do some zodiac cruising or maybe even a landing.

It's a good thing we didn't get our hopes up for getting off the ship because the seas would only allow the ship to drive by.  Our captain was able to get us closer to Elephant Island than to Esmeralda, and from my binoculars, I could see that the penguins were chinstraps mostly.

Our last day on the Antarctic peninsula, the seas were too rough for taking the zodiacs out, so we did a drive-by of Elephant Island.  Phil gave us a running commentary about the history of Point Wild and pointed out the statue bust of Captain Pardo that is kept there among the colonies of chinstrap penguins.

Elephant Island is the place where Sir Earnest Shackleton and his crew finally took refuge after being trapped in the packed sea ice in the semi-failed Antarctic expedition in the early 1900s on the ship, Endurance.  He left his second-in-command, Frank Wild, in charge while he took a lifeboat to South Georgia in hopes of getting rescue from one of the whaling stations there.   He was successful in obtaining a rescue from Puento Arenas, Chile.  The ship's cat for Endurance was a male tabby named Mrs. Chippy.  Unfortunately, Mrs. Chippy did not make it to Elephant Island.

We spent as much time as we could cruising around the bay until Captain Jeremy said we were drifting too close to the rocks, so he turned us around and we headed toward South Georgia via the Scotia Sea.

The Scotia Sea is supposed to be the roughest section of the Drake Passage.  I think I believe it.  Early in our entry into the Scotia Sea, we actually had a wave break against the window in the dining room, which is on deck 5.  The mud room is on deck 4, and we step down to probably Deck 3 to board the zodiacs.  That size swell was not the norm, though, and with the gyro stabilizers, the latest in nautical stabilization technology, that swell really didn't feel any worse than most.  Just like somebody gently rocking a cradle to its limits, but not having the speed and jerking sensations you would expect.

We saw some whale spouts off the starboard aft, but they never got close enough to guess at the type, and a few people (not me) saw a leopard seal.  (I didn't even see the spouts.  My cabin is starboard, and the spouts should be visible on the video, but they aren't!)  Since we are still getting new positive COVID cases, I'm pretty much staying in my cabin, watching from my balcony.  Phil is announcing spottings, and I'll mask up and go out on deck.  I'll also go out on deck on the other side of the ship just for a change of scenery.  But, I'm declining to go into the lecture room, instead watching the lectures on the live stream TV in my cabin.  Today, we had a few historical lectures and a lecture on seals.  One thing of note on the historical lectures, whenever Jeff gives a lecture of a historical expedition, he always makes note of the ship's cat or cats.  I never even knew ships' cats were a thing!

After two days at sea, we plan to land at Grytviken, South Georgia, and expect to spend much of the day ashore.  So,we repeated all biosecurity measures to ensure we don't carry anything from the Antarctic peninsula to South Georgia.  We also had lectures about human and animal behavior on the islands.  Primarily, do not get between a seal and the water and if a seal starts acting aggressive toward you, do not turn your back on him.  Just extend your arms out to make yourself big and back away.  If you turn and retreat, especially if you run, you trigger their predatory behavior to chase.

Since there were no new COVID cases yesterday, I went down for the first lecture to try to attend in person.  There was so much coughing and sniffling, with some idiots taking their masks of to cough, that I left and went back upstairs to watch the lectures on the TV in my cabin.  I did go down for lunch, where we were sitting in a little section of the dining room that is separate from the main room.  I did walk past a lady standing by the reception desk telling someone else that she had tested 3 times and was negative.  She was coughing and hacking and sniffling, so there is, indeed, something other than COVID going around.  To tell the truth, I don't want whatever that is, either.  I just simply don't want to be sick while going to places that are so isolated that this will likely be the only opportunity I will have to visit.  After this cruise is over, if I catch a cold and need to take some time, I can do that without missing anything.  That's not the case while on the boat.

Most of our group has been pretty good about masking and being careful, and it seems most of the sickness is in another group, so I've been trying to be careful not to mingle with that group in particular.  We decided to reserve tables in an isolated area for our group for dinner, which makes me much more comfortable coming down for dinner a la carte, with the whole ship dining at the same time.  I'm still not coming down for lectures in that small lounge with everybody packed into it, but it will be nice having dinner with the rest of the group instead of upstairs by myself, though my stateroom attendant has been wonderful in making sure I had what I wanted.  The crew does seem to be getting serious about enforcing COVID precautions. I'm not the only one concerned.  Another couple has locked themselves into their room, refusing to even allow the stateroom attendant in because they have another excursion after this which requires a negative PCR test.  They are only coming out for excursions.