Trollhul to Larsen Harbour - Blog 11

I wanted to go from Trollhul to Diaz Cove further up the coast.  Two years ago when we landed at Diaz Cove the beach was full of Elephant Seals, King and Gentoo Penguins.  We had not seen many Gentoo Penguins on this trip. 

It was a rough passage to Diaz Cove and the Cove was unlandable because of shifting, gusty winds.  Visibility in Diaz was not that good either and I could not see much of anything on the beach.  Jerome suggested we turn around and return toward Cape Disappointment.  He did not think going further up the coast would be very advantageous as he was concerned the weather would just get worse, with thicker mists-fog, bigger headwinds, colder temperatures, in fact all the normal conditions amplified.  We reversed course and left Diaz Cove without landing. 

Running with the wind down the coast to Cape Disappointment was relatively uneventful and fast.  The Golden Fleece did not have to crash swells broad-siding her or hitting the bow straight on and this made for a smoother ride with the opportunity to watch the passing coast rather than hanging on to prevent being tossed about and injured.  It was still not an easy passage and we had to hang on, it was just not for dear life and limb. We passed the Harmer Glacier before Cape Disappointment and noted that it too appeared to be in retreat like so many other glaciers.   

The sky was full of Black Browed Albatross as we came abreast of Cape Disappointment.  They were perched conspicuously on the cliffs.   A mob of Black Browed Albatross gathered in the sky above us and a large flotilla of them were floating on the sea as we began to turn to port [left] and head back toward Drygalski Fjord.  Albatross are a “wonder to watch” and one can watch them at sea in all kinds of weather and wind.  In my private geographical-mind I decided to turn Cape Disappointment into Cape Joy for all the opposite reasons that Captain Cook named it in the 18^th Century.  

We moved into Smaaland Cove looking for a calm overnight anchorage but it was rather bouncy in the Cove and we did not see any signs of life either in the water or on the surrounding beaches and cliffs.  Of course it was another place on South Georgia that I had never been but it was not to be our home for the night.  We decided to return to Drygalski and Larsen Harbour.  I was secretly hoping for another serenade from the local Weddell Seal population.   Drygalski was becoming a known landmark for me and I could identify the headlands and entrance from the sea without reference to the charts.

Sailing up Drygalski Fjord we headed for the face of the Risting Glacier as we could see a lot of bird activity at that end of the fjord.  On a lone bergy bit floating in the middle of fjord was a Leopard Seal who appeared to be sleeping but was really watching us as we closed in on him/her.  Several times the seal would raise it head to see where we were and then layback and close its eyes.  A few minutes would pass and it would check us out again.  It seemed to me the lazing Leopard could care less that we got within thirty or forty feet of its bergy bed.  Like so many places in the world that humanity rarely visits or is not found at all, the resident wildlife has no concern or fear of our being near them.  Drygalski Fjord itself is probably visited by many of the cruise and charter ships that pass this part of the Island, but no one or at best only one or two small boats like the Golden Fleece can maneuver wherever they want to go.

We were shooting the Leopard Seal with our digital cameras and HD video gear.  Once or twice when he/she raised her head she suddenly got the message and smiled at us with that sharp tooth filled, wicked looking smile that Leopard Seals are capable of.  If the Leopard Seal were in a cartoon, children would shudder just knowing the dangerous thoughts lurking behind the smile.  Going closer to the Risting Glacier we could identify hundreds of Antarctic Terns wheeling and diving into the cold, clear water.  There were also a number of Gentoo Penguins swimming and diving in the same place.  Though we could not see what they were all hunting it was apparent that it must be a rich hunting area…even the Leopard Seal on its bergy blind, stealthily floating closer to the Gentoo Penguins suggested this was a complete cafeteria with something for everyone. 

The return from the face of the Risting Glacier brought us to Brandt Cove, another small offshoot of Drygalski Fjord.  I was taken with the large slabs of multi-colored lichen covered rock rising vertically out of the water that dramatically defined Brandt Cove. The sun was near setting, but the angle of the light and falling light contributed to the density of the colors and the shadows that helped define the massive chunks of rock. 

As we pulled into Larsen I could see Weddell Seals on the beach, shags on the rocky heights and fresh snow.  Larsen Harbour is so narrow with its mouth into Drygalski at an angle pointing away from the prevailing weather, that it is probably always calm.  One can only enter its narrow confines in a small craft or zodiac.  For this reason I would guess very few people have enjoyed its wonders or heard its local soloists and chorus. 

We were soon at anchor and preparing our evening meal.  I was very tired.  The morning spent crashing our way north to Diaz Cove and then the run south was very physical.  Unlike strenuous hiking there are no moments when you can let go of your handhold or sit and get your strength back.  The transit in rough seas is continuous and unrelenting.  Dinner was generally silent and another obstacle to getting to our bunks.  Shortly after the chores were completed we all retired and the ship became uniquely people silent with only boat and nature sounds.  I just knew the Weddells would soon be singing.  I fell asleep and awoke in the morning.  Nothing disturbed my night.  Everyone reported no seal sounds in the night.  One in three nights we had singing all night.  The other two nights total silence.  The thought dawned on me with the morning light that there are billions and billions of experiences that people have and yet most of them may have never heard the equivalent of the local Weddell Seal songs.  With the destruction of the natural world in our own time, fewer and fewer still will even know or hear those local songs.  Maybe Captain Cook was correct in naming it Cape Disappointment and I am a little too Pollyannaish to make it a personal Cape Joy only because I have taken the privilege to experience the remote and wonderful South Georgia Island. 

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