Elsehul & Prince Olav Harbor
Thick fog obscured the shoreline as the National Geographic Explorer ghosted around the coast of South Georgia. Entering the cove of Elsehul the wind picked up and the fog continued to mostly obscure the dramatic cliffs and rocky beaches. In this area Zodiac cruises are in order. Half the ship set out in a grey atmosphere that did not seem too promising.
At first the sleek and elegant forms of soaring albatross were seen ghosting through the fog above. As the morning went on the fog moved in and out with gusts of wind eventually lifting with increasing sunshine. Slowly through the patchy moisture the nests of these same albatross were seen nestled in the tussac grass at the cliff tops. Nests were noted by spotting the fuzzy grey dot where a chick was sitting. Black browed and grey-headed albatross as well as light mantled sooty albatross were the nesting birds in this cove. Several of these large seabirds could be seen sitting and preening on the water and were approached closely. On such an approach we could see the black line over the eye of the black-browed albatross as well as the yellow stripe on the beak of the grey-headed albatross, two features that make these very beautiful birds. Elsehul also gave a second chance of viewing macaroni penguins. Out of the gusty winds and in a pocket of sunshine this was the perfect chance to see this colourful penguin with its yellow brow feathers. The huge bank of fog blew past and looked liked a solid thing rolling over the island behind us, but the cruises finished in full sunshine. Time for lunch and a repositioning to our next landing.
Prince Olav Harbor is the site of a historical whaling station. Wooden buildings weathered to soft grey with rusty tin roofs huddled together in this sheltered bay. A hike to the top of a small hill afforded views over the station. Others chose instead of going ashore to kayak around this bay and get an up close look at the wreck of the Brutus a three-masted sailing ship used to haul coal to keep the station warm, left to rust here when the station was abandoned. With tussac grass growing on its wooden decks it was very interesting viewing. Even though the clouds had rolled back in the wind stayed calm and made the afternoon very enjoyable. Many thought this was our last day here in South Georgia, luckily we found out at recap this evening that we still have one last day to enjoy the wonders of this South Atlantic island.
