South Georgia - Jason Harbour/Grytviken

After 2 1/2 days at sea we woke this morning at South Georgia Island - "discovered" by Captain Cook and claimed by England it became a major sealing and whaling outpost as well a major stationing point for Antarctica expeditions for the likes of Scott and Shackelton - the last settlement before the South Pole.
It was a misty, wet and cold morning as we alighted at Jason Harbour to be greeted by multitudes of southern fur seals - cavorting in the water, harrumphing at us on the beach and occasionally trying to get a little to close for comfort. The was a huddle of King Penguins on the beach as well showing signs of moulting which they do each year. Most impressive though were the female elephant seals lolling about on the beach and up in the tussock grass - the thought of them dragging those big bodies up into the grass is exhausting!
We got well and truly soaked by the time we got back on the boat for a hot shower despite our wet weather gear.
Next stop was the old whaling station at Grytviken - a Norwegian company with Argentinian backing and whalers from Scotland and Scandinavia - they used to process 30 -50 whales a day here. 400 men worked here at it's peak. This is one of three whaling stations left relatively intact - the other two being Albany in WA and one in the Faroe Islands. There was a lovely museum, and historic walking tour amongst the blubber, muscle and bone boilers used to extract oil and a visit to Ernest Shackelton's grave in the cemetery - he died here from a heart attack in 1922 whilst about to embark on an expedition to circumnavigate Antarctica.Läs mer