SOUTH GEORGIA AND FALKLAND ISLANDS C HEESEMANS’ E COLOGY S AFARIS EXPEDITION LOG 2012 CHEESEMANS’ ECOLOGY SAFARIS EXPEDITION LOG South Georgia and Falkland Islands 20 October to 9 November 2012 Aravind Krishnaswamy Carolyn Peterson Paul McKenzie Lesley Gretton Kjerstin Ferm Widlund Cindy Marple Designed by Debbie Thompson and Kate Spencer Written by Dave Shoch, Pauline Carr, Joe Kaplan, Robert Rae and Kenneth Donaldson Images by Passengers and Staff “Goooooood morning shipmates. Partially cloudy, chance of rain.” The mellifluous tones of Ted, our expedition leader, drifted across the tannoy, announcing the start of our next day in this extraordinary place... Cover Photo King Penguins at Right Whale Bay By Michael Viljoen Back Cover Photo Risting Glacier at the end of Drygalski Fjord By Aravind Krishnaswamy This Page Photo Elsehul ridgeline By Katrina Metherall COPYRIGHT NOTICE Copyright ©2013 Cheesemans’ Ecology Safaris Photographers hold the copyright to their work. ii TABLE OF ContentS IDNTRO UCTION Introduction 1 For over twenty years, Cheesemans’ Ecology The Expedition 2 Safaris has operated the longest, most in-depth expeditions to the Antarctic regions, a destina- Flights to Falklands and Embarkation 20 October 2 tion of supreme splendor and serenity that de- At Sea to South Georgia 21 - 22 October 4 serves no less. We are honored that each of you South Georgia Island 6 chose to travel with us on this lifetime journey. Much time and effort was invested, most of it Elsehul 23 October 8 “behind the scenes,” to ensure that you have the Right Whale Bay and Prion Island 24 October 10 same life altering experience that so many of Foruna Bay and Stromness 25 October 12 our previous expedition-mates declare. Ocean Harbour and Grytviken 26 October 14 Our 25-day expedition started in Santiago, St. Andrew’s Bay 27 October 16 Chile, on October 18, 2012 with 75 passengers and 13 expedition staff. On October 20 we arrived in Stanley, Falkland Islands, to board the Ushuaia, our home for the Drygalski Fjord and the South Coast 28 October 18 next 21 packed days. We explored wonderful South Georgia Island, our main ob- King Haakon Bay and Undine Harbour 29 October 20 jective, for ten days. Then it was on to Falkland Islands for three fast but full days. Salisbury Plain 30 October 22 We were sad to see our journey end on November 11, 2012, in Ushuaia, Argentina. Cooper Bay and Gold Harbour 31 October 24 The success of an expedition is dependent on many factors including weather, sea Godthul and Right Whale Bay 1 November 26 conditions, and insightful planning. But the most important ingredient by far is the open attitude and persona of our expedition-mates. Our entire expedition staff At Sea to Falklands 2 - 4 November 28 is very grateful to each of you for making this a successful journey filled with spe- Falkland Islands 30 cial lifelong experiences that we all now share. This expedition has extended the Sea Lion Island 5 November 32 Cheeseman family with many new friends and strengthened it with many enduring friends. Steeple Jason 6 November 34 I would also like to express heartfelt gratitude of your willingness to protect these New Island 7 November 36 remote environments, each in your own way. Your generosity was especially shown At Sea to Ushuaia 8 - 9 November 38 by your generous donations in our auction to benefit the South Georgia Heritage Expedition Staff 40 Trust’s historic rat eradication effort on South Georgia. Postcards from the Field 41 Travelmate Photo Montage 42 Warmest regards, Ted Cheeseman Species List 44 Expedition Leader Friends of South Georgia Island 46 1 20 October 2012 Flights to Falklands and Embarkation Day 1 Meanwhile, the rest of the group enjoyed the first look at a new and diverse natu- ral history along the Stanley shoreline including the beautiful high-plumaged Dolphin Gull, Flightless Steamer Duck, the exquisite Long-tailed Meadowlark with striking red under parts, and both Magellanic and Blackish Oystercatchers in display on a dilapidated dock. Duly noted was the ubiquitous House Spar- row, our first and only encounter of this human-commensal originally from Eu- rope but now found on all continents, save Antarctica. EMBARKING ON THE USHUAIA After a casual (for most) tour of Stan- Flying over the Andes in Chile Edmund Fellowes ley we transferred to and boarded our ship, the Ushuaia, where a champagne By Joe Kaplan STANLEY toast by Ted Cheeseman, our Expedi- tion Leader, and an offer of help from Panic yielded quickly to a contingency FLIGHts TO FALKLAND ISLANDS the group to share clothes and equip- Werner at Dinnertime Kjerstin Ferm Widlund plan to replace the essentials left sit- ment to those without, set the mood for “The flight you cannot miss” left Santi- ting on the runway in Punta Arenas. a great adventure. ago at 8:10 A.M. passing through Punta With the help of our transfer compa- Arenas and ending in the Falkland Is- ny, the unfortunate travelers were fer- lands. Though everybody made the ried via Land Rover to several stores flight, the same was not true for every in Stanley where the mad dash was on bag. Somehow, the luggage of four pas- to find socks, long-johns, rain-gear, sengers failed to show up at the Mount pants, shirts, boots, toiletries, and for Pleasant Airport – and this quickly the two staff members the quintessen- dampened the enthusiasm for our ar- tial requirement of any Southern Ocean rival in the Falklands. guide: waders for wet Zodiac landings. Fortunately, the outpost of Stanley did right by these weary travelers. Ted welcomes everyone aboard Edmund Fellowes Katrina and Aravind Doris Beaman 2 Day 1 Flights to Falklands and Embarkation 20 October 2012 Third mate Enrique Hank Perry Rosie and Second mate Alan Aravind Krishnaswamy Taking a break from photographing seabirds Kjerstin Ferm Widlund Captain Jorge Hank Perry Ted reviews plans with travelmates Hank Perry 3 21 - 22 October 2012 At Sea to South Georgia Days 2 - 3 By Dave Shoch the Falklands and South Georgia and 26 species from this unique family. one. runs over the South American conti- Staff members Rod, Marlene, Joe and Cetaceans were also in evidence, with DEPArtiNG THE FALKLANDS nental shelf and seamounts like Shag Dave kept a constant vigil on deck, two Hourglass Dolphins riding the bow Departing Stanley we embarked on our Rocks, forcing upward a steady input of sorting out Royal and Wandering Al- of the Ushuaia Sunday afternoon. Nu- three-day voyage east to South Georgia. nutrients to fuel the diversity of life at batrosses, and spotting challenging merous blows of unidentified whales While we all keenly awaited our first the surface. bird species. Atlantic Petrel accompa- were also seen. landfall, our passages at sea were by no nied our ship. This is a fast-flying gadfly means superfluous bookends to our ex- AT SEA Winds were generally from the west, petrel that nests on Tristan da Cunha plorations of the islands. around 30 knots. The sun occasionally Our first morning at sea we were greet- and Gough Islands in the South Atlan- poked through overcast skies. The inev- The sea around us offered an endless ed by black and white checkered Pinta- tic, and more typical of warmer waters itable forecast of “overcast with a chance procession of seabirds wheeling over do (or Cape) Petrels, who would be our north of the subtropical convergence. of rain” became a mantra – maybe this the waves, visible from deck or even constant companions from the begin- Also Gray-backed Storm-petrels, the is the place where Sting was inspired through the windows from the com- ning to the end of our expedition. The smallest oceanic bird seen on our trip, to pen the lyrics to “Heavy Cloud No fort of the lounge. This is a productive Pintado Petrel belongs to the tubenoses, seemingly hid among mats of floating Rain.” stretch of sea, where a massive flow of a family of truly oceanic birds with its kelp. In fact on our first day out more cold Antarctic water is pinched between highest diversity in the southern hemi- than half of the kelp patches contained There were also plenty of activities sphere. By journey’s end we would see Giant Petrel Aravind Krishnaswamy Pintado or Cape Petrel Paul McKenzie 4 Days 2 - 3 At Sea to South Georgia 21 - 22 October 2012 DAY 2 AT NOON... DAY 3 AT NOON... Position: 52°15.1’S, 53°10.4’W, under Position: 52°58.0’S, 46°20.0’W, under sail. sail. Traveled: 170 nautical miles in 24 h. Traveled: 255 nautical miles in 24 h. Weather: Winds 10-25kn SW, 3-5m Passed Antarctic Convergence about swell, air temp: 3°C (37°F), water temp: 4 A.M. 6°C (43°F), partial overcast skies. Weather: Winds 10-20kn SW, 2-4m swell, air temp 1°C (34°F), water temp: 2°C (36°F), partial overcast skies. Antarctic Prion Elise Spata Black-browed Albatross Artie Morris scheduled to prepare for our imminent zone on earth. exploration of South Georgia. Expedi- Now over cold Antarctic waters, our tion staff gave a full roster of lectures seabird observations changed. We saw covering photography and natural his- our first Kerguelen Petrel; this species tory. We also fastidiously vacuumed and was just recently discovered nesting in inspected all of our gear and reviewed March 2012 on the south coast of South bio-security protocols that would be Georgia at Shallop Cove, representing strict observance on all of our South the latest addition to the list of breeding Georgia landings.