We were supposed to be at sea on our way to S. Georgia, however, we are staying in the Falklands’ protected harbor to wait until the storm passes. We were tied up at the dock but another ship is coming in and needs the dock so we need to move and anchor in the harbor.
The impromptu program for today is to go to Bertha’s Beach which lies on the east coast of East Falkland. We were on the bus before 8 as they need to move the ship by 8. It took about an hour and a half to get to Bertha’s beach. Unfortunately our bus had an engine problem and we drove quite slowly. On the way, our guide told us about the islands. We passed the military base which houses about 2,500 military personnel.
Once at the beach it was very, very windy, probably 30-40 knot winds. I walked along the beach with Adam, our bird naturalist, and we saw some coastal birds. Rick found a king penguin and followed him around hoping the penguin would lead him to more penguins but unfortunately he only saw the one penguin. According to Adam, the penguin was about to start molting. They molt once a year and can not go in the water to feed during that time. The molting process takes 3-4 weeks so this penguin will probably get quite hungry. The orange feathers on the chest and head dull just before the molt.
Here are some pictures from the walk.
On our way back to the ship we saw some rock runs. These rock runs form in areas of permifrost. I believe that it is the result of freeze/thaw cycle. Over millions of years the frost melts and the water runs down the hill. Each time the water runs down the hill, it removes sediment and moves the rocks a little bit and eventually the rocks are moved to the water runoff path. They look like rock pathways. It’s hard to see but here’s a picture of the rock runs.
We had a lecture that afternoon.
Here are some pictures of Stanley, taken from the ship anchored in the harbor.
It got so windy that evening that we were not allowed on the deck.
Seb, the expedition staff specializing in history, was a member of the team that recreated Shackleton’s sailing trip from Elephant Island to S. Georgia and climb over S. Georgia. PBS made a three part documentary about the trip called Chasing Shackleton. They showed the first part that evening and then Seb answered questions.