51° S Latitude

The colonies are starting to blur. We visited four islands in the Falklands: New Island, Westpoint Island, Carcass Island, and finally Steeple Jason Island. At each island, we saw colonies of Black-browed Albatross and Rockhopper Penguins. The pattern for each island was 6am wake-up call, Zodiac trip to the island by 730am, hike out to the colonies, watch and photograph birds as long as you want, back to the ship, on to the next island. Notable deviation: although each island has a settlement (one family), Westpoint was memorable for the table full of homemade cakes, cookies and scones to accompany afternoon tea. How does she get all of these ingredients? No airstrip on the island so it’s a boat ride to Carcass Island (the nearest airstrip) or an 18-hour boat trip to Stanley, the only town of note in the Falklands, and at the opposite end of the island group.

On New Island I learned that Georgina Strange, daughter of researcher Ian Strange, commuted to her school in Stanley by plane! Instead of a school bus, she had a school plane pick her and other students up from their various islands. I was especially eager to see New Island because a friend in grad school, Stuart MacKay, worked out there for several seasons on prions, the dainty gray seabirds flitting around our ship every day.

Steeple Jason Island was a special treat because it has the 2^nd largest albatross colony in the world, second only to Midway Island in the Hawaiian Islands chain. I waded through the 7-foot high tussock grass and parked at the edge of the colony in a kind of tussock lounge chair. Birds came in for a landing right over my head, parents incubated their chicks just beyond my feet, and Rockhopper Penguins meandered through the chick towers (nests) doing their ecstatic display.



Steeple Jason, named for the pinnacles reminiscent of a church and an island in the Jason group, [I still need to find out who Jason was because I’m seeing that name on a lot of these islands] is also where a gang of adolescent Striated Caracaras (nicknamed Johnny Rooks) followed me in a vaguely threatening manner. Apparently if you feign death they’ll come and pick at you. I just got low to the ground to get a picture of one of their parents. No attack.


After more pics of two adorable Gentoo Penguin chicks chasing around their dad (or mom) for food, we made a late afternoon departure, cruising with the wind along the northern tier of the Falklands. Sitting in an Adirondack style chair on deck 6 basking in the sun, this was likely the last (and first) time I could get away with only a T-shirt and lightweight pants.

Cut to the present, after 72 hours of open water travel, crossing the Antarctic Convergence, snow is blowing sideways as we anchor in Fortuna Bay at the foot of a glacier. Today I wore 4 layers top and bottom, soaked through my wool mittens, and saw sights I’ve only stared at in disbelief in National Geographic Magazine.