We have tried to find words to describe the past day and a half on South
Georgia Island. All we can come up with is, Wow!! Yesterday morning we
cruised by Zodiacs into bays and fjords for up close and personal encounters
with hundreds of fur and elephant seals and penguins. Then in the afternoon
we moved to another anchorage to walk ashore on the Salisbury Plain among
thousands of penguins and fur seals. The penguin rookery went on as far as
one could see. At one point Tom just stood very still and a King penguin
came up to give him the once over by pecking at his leg and tugging on his
parka. What a thrill to be able to interact with such unique creatures. We
also had to assume the defensive position with some fur seal males as they
charged to assert their territory. It could be a little unsettling as they
are intimidating critters-mean set of teeth. The young penguins were just
balls of brown fluff as they were shedding their baby plumage for the adult
feathers. But the most precious of all were the fur seal pups. You just
wanted to pick each one up and give them a hug. Their constant crying for
their mothers to come feed them creates an eerie sound that can be heard
from quite a distance even when we are sailing by in the ship. It is a
haunting sound that we don't think we'll ever forget. This morning we went
ashore for more trekking through the seal and penguin colonies and also saw
Reindeer herds. They were transplanted here by the Norwegians during the
days of whaling as a food source. We have been taking photos by the
hundreds. We just hope they turn out and can capture the experience. More
later!
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