The Enormity of it all...


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December 29th 2013
Published: January 11th 2014
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Welcome to South Georgia!
Shag Rocks are an impresive group of jagged, cormorant infested rocks poking out of the ocean about three quarters of the way between the Falklands and South Georgia. We couldn't stop the ship near the rocks as the sea was too rough but we did get to watch the tens of thousands shags (cormorants) that nested there. As the ship sailed past he rocks we saw a blow! This was a blow of a large whale! We set our eyes on the northern horizon and watched the whale come closer. At about 100 metres from the ship this mighty whale revealed itself as it rose from the water like a submarine. It was colossal! A blue whale - the mightiest creature to have ever lived on this planet was right before our eyes! It was one of the most amazing moments! A truly amazing sight and an absolute honour to have shared a moment of my life with such an enormous, magestic animal! Words cannot do justice to the enormity of these beautiful whales!

The next day we arrived at South Georgia, a mountainous and glaciated island in the Scotia Sea and nothing could have prepared me for the overwhelming beauty of this place. South Geogia is an overseas territory of the United Kingdom and is essentially a wildlife reserve. There is no permanent human population, but scientists and researchers are always present on the island at various locations.

Our first stop was at Elsehul, a somewhat sheltered bay in the north of the island. The scenery was staggering and the wildlife was overwhelming!
Thousands of king penguins, fur seals and elephant seals lined the beach - the scene was awesome! The noise was deafening and the smell was a total
olfactory overload! Penguin poo and seal poo all mixed with carcasses - good stuff! The wildlife is strangely tame as they've evolved with no land-based
predators so the penguins are curious and come quite close. The fur seals on the other hand aggressively protect their section of beach and will charge
at anything that gets too close! It was a lot of fun dodging grumpy fur seals as we explored the area! It isn't every day that one can say, that for Christmas, they were dodging fur-ocious seals... (Theresa gets credit for that one. hehe)...

As if all that wasn't enough stimulation for the day, the captain repositioned the ship and we we made a landing on the beach at Rosita Harbour, also on the north of the island! This place had even more wildlife and all of our senses were stimulated to the max! It is almost impossible to describe these places as our feeble minds can barely "take it all in". They are spectacles that can barely be imagined!
And then there was Salisbury Plain! OMG!
Enjoy the photos...
D.


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Salisbury Plain


11th January 2014
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Awesome!
Great post guys. What an amazing experience. Thanks for the amazing post!
12th January 2014

Hi Dave. Wow lots of penguins, we see lots of it on discovery on tv. What a nice trip that your at. Theresa is anxious to be there with you and se all those things. I really enjoy reading all your trips. the two of you. Well have a good day. Enjoy it all. Mom Crann
13th January 2014

Absolutely spellbinding! Wow! Best to you Dave!
13th January 2014

Hello From Montreal
Awesome photos! Can't wait to here more...
13th January 2014

Awesome! Thanks Dave and Cheers and Hugs!! Rachel and Carter
13th January 2014

Get a change of clothes to blen in a little and then get a shot of yourselves in amongst the flock so that I can make a * ? where s Theresa and Dave card ( There\'s waldo type of card) You go to do this! Too cool cuz............ Thanks for sharing :) XOXO
15th January 2014

LOVE these amazing photos! Must be an incredible experience for you; thanks for sharing it and allowing us to experience it through your words & photos!

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