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Published: February 17th 2018
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“Above all else we wish that the name of South Georgia will forever represent an icy paradise, a place where nature is still mostly robust and the way of life of millions of birds ,and seals goes on almost unaltered by the peripheral presence of humans. A clean, pure spring of icy water in our collective consciousness, a soothing, refreshing balm amid the upheavals wrought upon the earth. A special place to cherish.” Tim & Pauline Carr.
Paradise is a term we typically use to mean peace, quiet, relaxation or perfection…
I think paradise is a hostile place - a place where we cannot live as mere humans - which is why it is a paradise. This paradise has a fluctuating equilibrium. Balance is chaos - and everything we do in efforts of conservation has neither a positive nor a negative outcome - it just has an effect, be it detrimental, catastrophic or beneficial. What is beneficial to one species, must therefore be devastating to another. Is paradise a Utopia?
Mother Nature can be brutal. I watched in awe as a newly-fledged king penguin chick was hacked to death by a Southern Giant Petrel. Several minutes later the battle was won - with a trail of blood and guts floating on the gentle swells at St Andrew’s Bay. This is survival of the fittest - the weak, the young, the old - they must go…
I love South Georgia… If insanity had feathers, this is what it would look like.
Some say that South Georgia’s weather is somewhere between uncertain at best and treacherous at worst. Of course, one could argue that the
weather is the weather and that is that. It made me think that the weather isn’t really bad - it just interferes with our plans. Therefore, when we say that the weather is bad - are we really just being selfish because it may affect our incomes or daily routine?
We made the most of what we got. It was wet and wild, and utterly incredible.
Anus Anus georgica. One has to love the Latin name for the South Georgia Pintail Duck. It was an honour to spend time with a birder whilst in South Georgia, as more often than not, many of the species get overlooked due to the overwhelming penguin population. I got to spend some quality time with the pintails and the elusive and endemic South Georgia Pipet.
Violence “There is nothing more enticing, disenchanting and enslaving than the life at sea.” Joseph Conrad.
We had a force 12 storm on the way to South Georgia! The captain made the decision to turn the ship around and head back to Berkeley Sound in the Falkland Islands to find some shelter from the 10 to 12 metre swells and the 120 knot wind that screamed at us.
Never have I been in such
a violent sea.
The sea is big and indifferent.
The crests and troughs were truly awesome.
I have few words to describe the storm and indeed South Georgia.
The best word I could come up with to describe all of this is ‘honesty’.
Mother Nature is raw and honest. So she gave us another storm as we crossed westward across the Scotia Sea…
D.
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Home and Away
Bob Carlsen
My favorite quote about weather comes from Norway...
"There is no bad weather; only bad clothing choices."