At 5a I was up on the top deck again just as we passed the north tip of the South Georgia Island. It was 10C, dead calm and sunny with just a touch of fog at the base of the islands. We couldn't have had a nicer weather. A few seals and penguins put in an appearance.
South Georgia lies north east of the southern tip of south america and was the center of the sealing and then whaling industry in the late 19th and then early 20th century. Today the island is a wildlife sanctury and according to our crew much more abundant in wildlife than the Antarctic Penninsula. It is very mountainous with numerous glaciers. There was much less snow and much more greenery than I imagined.
After breakfast we headed out on our trusty zodiacs for a beach landing in Right Whale Bay right smack in the middle of a mob of fur seals and king penguins. As soon as I stepped on the beach I was practically nose to nose with a very large and not so friendly looking male fur seal. Fortunately he decided to relocate away from the invaders. Our guides had us wade though a shallow river and head inland a bit to give everyone a bit more breathing room.
I didn't wander too far afield and mostly just stood still and watched. The king penguins are gorgeous. They have similar markings to the Emperor Pengys but are a bit smaller. They weren't overly curious but a few did come over to check me out. As I said, it was AWESOME!
I gave the seals a wide berth. Even the little dudes were a bit aggressive. The crew didn't tell us that you were supposed to just stand your ground and yell and clap or wave your hands to disuade them. I think that they enjoyed watching some of the guests being chased. I know I did. A few of my shipmates do not understand the concept of keeping a distance and were constantly in the seals' faces with a camera. I swear that one of them will end up with a nasty bite before the end of the trip.
After 3 hours when it was time to head back I tread very carefully back across the river trategically waiting for the male seals to face off with one another so I could slip by. Right at the pick up point, there were half a dozen females nursing pups that were so young you could see their umbilical cords. We had to clear a way through the penguins in order to get to the boats and the crew took care of shooing the male seals away.
I was surprised that the smell on the beach was not so bad but at the ship it was a different story. Because there are mountains behind the penguin beach the air on the windward side hits the mountains, cools rapidly and flows down the lee side and out to sea taking the pee-pee soaked heck-hole (apologies to Kent Brockman) smell out to our waiting ship. ick.
Over lunch the wind picked up and the sky hazed over. The surf and the surge was too sever to make a landing so the rest of the day was spent cruising along the glacier filled coast to drop anchor at our next landing location. The morning was so rewarding that I don't think anyone minded.
Tomorrow if all goes well we have a very cool hike planned...
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Awesome!
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