Grytviken - South Georgia Island - Part 1

Part 1 - The Wildlife

January 7 – Grytviken – South Georgia Island

Shortly after dawn the Seabourn Quest approached Grytviken.  The terminal moraines of several glaciers were littered with the wrecks of vessels, looking like large rocks on the barely visible shallows. 

Seabourn Quest anchored near King Edward Point, the site of part of the British Antarctic Survey and the former whaling processing station of Grytviken. The station was in active operation until December 1966.  The brisk winds caused the kayaking tours to be cancelled, but the zodiac trips ashore went as scheduled.

The weather was variable, with everything from sun to rain and then some snow,  We visited Shakleton’s gravesite, toured the whaling station, church, museum, post office and walked among the fur and elephant seals while watching the King Penguins wander around.  

Grytviken was a rich photo environment, with the rust tones, the seals, penguins and green tussock grass.  Some of the station has been torn down because of asbestos contamination. Several old whaling vessels are rusting away on the shoreline and will probable be gone in a few years as they collapse into rust.

The first post is some of the wildlife we saw in Grytviken.

Approaching Grytviken from the sea

Miriam with King Penguins

The King Penguins keep cool by standing in water

Sharing the tussock grass with seals

Or just wandering around alone

The King Penguins seem somber

And waiting for their ship to comein.

Totally unconcerned by our presence

The fur seals generally ignored us

But showed teeth every once in a while

The tussock grass makes a good pillow

But apparently ditches work just as well

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The sea lions were having mock battles in the shallows

But for the pups, sleeping on the beach was just fine

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The old machinery makes a great playground

The old ships make a great backdrop

Some of the scientists came on board for lectures about their research and life at Grytviken.  Many of them joined us for dinner, which was apparently better than their standard fare at the station, since they only get fresh supplies every six weeks or so.  They consider themselves fortunate, since their compatriots on the Antarctic continent only get supplied once a year.