Journey to the South (Part II)

On the days at sea we mainly spent our time at lectures (there were 4 per day) on penguins, whales, seals, birds, history, geology, about Antarctica or the sub-Antarctic islands we would visit. The lectures were given by the Expedition Team, who were biologists, historians and many multi-degree type people. The only lecture which was unsatisfactory was the one on Climate Change were Miguel called people who didn’t believe in what he was saying stupid. Never tell your clients you’re stupid.

The first islands we visited were the Falkland Islands, which are British islands east of the Cape Horn. Historically, there had been a war between the Argentines and the British over the territory which really was not so long ago (30 or 40 years ago I think?), so the people are still rather bitter. Our first landing was on West Island.

To get off the cruise ships you must board zodiac-like boats (ours were called Polar Cirkle boats) and then either land on some sort of pier or right into the water/beach. At West Island, the weather was perfect – sunny, warm but insanely windy. I had to wear a toque plus a hood at some points to prevent getting an ear ache. We had a 30 minute walk to the other side of the island where we looked down upon a slope/cliff of nesting rock hopper penguins and black-browed albatross. Rock hopper penguins are highly entertaining because they literally hop up cliffs to get to their nesting grounds. They can climb cliffs that are difficult for humans to climb. It’s really quite amazing (entertaining). The albatross are also beautiful birds, with their natural eye make-up (or maybe it’s Maybelline?).

The next day, we visited East Island at Port Stanley, a nice little British town. Off the pier we got into our 4x4 SUV’s and took an off-road trail past the mine fields (left from the war with Argentina), helicopter ruin, radio tower, and through the wilderness with short vegetation and abundance of salt-water inlets from the ocean. Herds of sheep ran madly around. I never knew a sheep could run so fast!

Rules of off-road driving:

1. Be nice to your drive
2. Always travel in groups (so that you can tow each other out)
3. Avoid the bright-green stuff. It’s mossy which means it’s squishy and sinky and you’ll get stuck.
4. Don’t bump your head on the roof/wall/seats/other passengers
5. Keep your windows mostly rolled up. It’s muddy and dusty!
6. Carry lots of rope, or even better –
7. Travel with a guy with a winch.

Finally we reached the sandy beaches of Volunteer Point. We came here to see the penguins. There are magellanic penguins in their sandy burrows, king penguins huddled in large groups and a few gentoo penguins running around. The scenery was amazing and we all decided not to waste time with lunch and to watch the penguins waddle, slide on their bellies and porpoise through the ocean. We also spent a small portion of time glaring at the people from China who are completely disrespectful to wildlife and rules. *death glare*

We spent only a few hours at volunteer point, but even now this place left me with some of my most vivid memories of the trip. On the way back, we got stuck once and attempted to tow others out. One lady had never gone off-roading before and she was constantly getting stuck. At one point she was driving towards a small pond (which you could not see at any distance) but got stuck nearly in front of the pond when she tried to turn. The rope broke when we tried to tow her. Luckily winch man came to save the day (for at least the 2^nd time). Due to the angle we had to pull (because of the pond), her car began to move when we soon realized that her car was tipping. Her SUV reached approximately 40 degrees. Winch man knows what he’s doing however (he’s almost like an off-roading superhero), and slowly lets the line out and in and out and finally she’s free with no casualties.

Back in Stanley, we went souvenir shopping and walked along the quiet streets. By this time, it was extremely windy. We also saw the church with the whale bone arch. The arch is actually not part of the church structure, but is made from 4 large whale points that make an arch over the sidewalk. It’s very beautiful, and something you don’t see normally.