The sky perfectly reflected in the milky-green water as we entered the bay towards Grytviken this morning. Clouds hovered over the mountaintops, and as we beached the first couple of Zodiacs, the clouds lifted here and there, revealing the dramatic scenery behind the old whaling station.
Amongst old blubber-cookers and peacefully sleeping fur seals, we made our way through to the wonderful museum, the little post office and, of course, the gift shop. A few king penguins posed as the sun peaked out from the clouds, and some elephant seals scared off a very curious skua.
We ended our morning with a visit at the graveyard, where The Boss, Sir Ernest Shackleton himself, is buried. We toasted Irish Jameson whiskey in his memory. Here’s to the boss. A couple of newborn fur seal cubs napped on the beach as we got back into the Zodiacs and left Grytviken.
A stubborn wind met us at our arrival to St. Andrews Bay, and the smell of the thousands of king penguins was solid. After several attempts to put our Zodiacs in the wavy water to take us to shore, our Expedition Leader Lucho decided we would not land here today. Instead, we learned about life in South Georgia from our naturalist Jamie, a researcher for the British Antarctic Survey who we picked up at Grytviken this morning. All the while, we took in the incredible scenery of St. Andrews Bay from the ship, as the sun set behind the mountains.
