3 January 2011

South Georgia – Salisbury Plain

After lunch, we are briefed on landing procedures for Salisbury Plain.  Meal time briefings are a JPEGS 2010 12 21 South Georgia - Salsbury Plain-17daily occurrence on this expedition voyage.  Graham’s philosophy for this voyage has been borrowed and modified from Obama’s motto, and is, ‘Yes, We Might”!  The weather in this part of the world changes so quickly that there are no promises made and nothing can be taken for granted.  If you come on a voyage to Antarctica, then be prepared to go with the flow.

JPEGS 2010 12 21 South Georgia - Salsbury Plain-53After lunch we are kitted up once again for our  second excursion to South Georgia.  This time I am not that eager to be the first off, as the weather has changed and it looks cold and foggy outside. JPEGS 2010 12 21 South Georgia - Salsbury Plain-27 As a result, I don’t make the first fifty and have to wait it out till a second run later on in the afternoon.

The seas are choppy and our landing a wet one.  JPEGS 2010 12 21 South Georgia - Salsbury Plain-45 We have landed on a beach where the fur seals are even more aggressive than this morning and I walk quickly to our gathering point for another briefing.  It is too difficult to walk much further, so we will be here on the beach for an hour and then head back.  The conditions once again have dictated how far we can proceed.JPEGS 2010 12 21 South Georgia - Salsbury Plain-46I feel really cold for the first time on this voyage because my gloves and feet seem to be wet from the landing but I am too excited to be too JPEGS 2010 12 21 South Georgia - Salisbury Plain-62 (72) bothered by it.  We wait patiently as a group of king penguins approach us.  They are curious as to who we are and completely unafraid of contact with humans.  While the rules we operate under dictate we can’t get closer than 5 m to these animals, they are completely unaware of these rules and come up close to our group, curious to check us out.JPEGS 2010 12 21 South Georgia - Salsbury Plain-34A baby elephant seal is the next to approach.  As it has a long way to go before it reaches sexual maturity, it is not aggressive and once again JPEGS 2010 12 21 South Georgia - Salsbury Plain-72completely unafraid of human contact.  It is such a privilege and an unforgettable experience to be in such a wild and beautiful place.  I savour the experience and enjoy the wild beauty of this beach, before heading back to the safety for a warm shower and a hot chocolate!  JPEGS 2010 12 21 South Georgia - Salsbury Plain-66

 Man can withstand anything except a succession of ordinary days” Wolfgang von Goethe

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