This time last year on the blog I was bitching about how nothing had changed. I was referring to climate change and the bushfires that were burning around the country, however other things were about to change in a big way! I also mentioned that I had little planned for this year, except for a trip up to the APY lands in northern South Australia... hmmm. Needless to say that trip was off and I spent a good chunk of the year only being allowed outside my front door for an hour a day to exercise.... this might sound like an exaggeration however by the end of our long lockdown I was ready to take my chances with the fucken' virus rather than live a life that consisted being locked inside for 23 hours a day. I'm thinking some of my fellow Melburnian readers might understand?
This year hasn't started off great either. After a dash to cross the border on NYE (we were in the Australian Capital Territory when we found out we had 7 hours to get back into Victoria if we didn't want to quarantine for two weeks) we then spent the next two days trying to find a Covid testing site that we could get into... good times! That's all travel in the Covid age I suppose, flexibility and adaptability are the key.
Anyway, let's hope that things settle down a bit sometime this year. As you may have guessed I've got bugger all firm plans locked in for this year. The tour company has still got my money for my APY lands walk, although really I can't see how I can venture that far from Victoria in case the borders shut down suddenly and I become a refugee (Dutton might send me to Manus!), so I think I'll have to leave that trip on the table for another year. Until a vaccine comes along and hopefully starts to settle things down a bit it looks like my trips will have to be either in Victoria or within half a days drive of the border... so I'll see everyone up in the High Country... or down The Prom.... or up in the Mallee...or over in the Grampians... actually things aren't that bad really! Happy New Year everyone:)
Adélie Penguin
Chinstrap Penguins
The name Henryk Arctowski Polish Antarctic Station doesn't exactly roll off the tongue however that's the official name of this outpost down on King George Island in Antarctica. Sam and I visited here on our cruise around the Antarctic Peninsula back in 2008, this spot being one of the half a dozen spots that we went ashore in Antarctica. King George Island is part of the Shetland Islands Group that is just off the tip of Antarctic Peninsula and this base is a fairly popular spot for ships to stop on their journey south from Ushuaia or spots further afield.
Heading ashore on the zodiac was an adventure in itself.
Arctowski Station
The shoreline features a lot of these rounded stones which makes walking slow.
Adélie Penguin. There was nothing stopping the penguins coming over to check us out.
It wasn't all penguins down here, this is an Antarctic Fur Seal I think.
I'm guessing that the ships like to stop here for a few reasons, firstly it's a reasonably safe place to bring a zodiac ashore, secondly there is a lot of wildlife close at hand and thirdly the Polish base is a pretty friendly spot - they even had a little gift shop! Our visit today was highly regulated affair though. Firstly we were split into groups on the ship and given a time slot, then when coming ashore we had to go through a boot wash down, we then had around an hour and a half on shore in a designated area to stop us getting too friendly with the wildlife, before finally returning to the ship and going through another wash down.
Adélie Penguins on King George Island.
What the photos don't convey is the smell of this place. The penguins mostly eat krill which haven't got a pleasant smell after passing through a penguins digestive system.
There were some big colonies watching us from the hills.
More Adélie Penguins.
Now I mentioned that we had a designated area to keep us from getting too friendly with the wildlife, however what you have to realise is that while the wildlife were safe from us there was nothing stopping the wildlife from coming over to investigate us. The penguins in particular were pretty curious and more than once they'd waddle up to us to check us out. With King George Island being home to populations of Adélie, Chinstrap and Gentoo Penguins there were plenty of penguins to go around today though!
Yes, I know it's a bit of a self indulgent photo dump.
The red stain on their tummies and on the rocks is the krill.
More Adélie Penguins on King George Island.
Check out my PFD - yes, I'm a big unit.
King George Island, Antarctica.
The mother ship anchored in Arctowski Cove.
It's wasn't only wildlife here though, the rocky beach near the station also has various bleached whale bones scattered about left over from the old whalers, a poignant reminder that what looks like a fairly pristine place has long been altered by man. Heading back towards the zodiac after our allotted time we dropped in to check out the small shop that the station runs as well as a makeshift Virgin May shrine embedded in a rock outcrop, both fairly incongruous sights down here.
Leopard Seals waiting for a snack.
The penguins have got the seals scoped out now.
King George Island.
Here's something different - these guys are Gentoo Penguins...
... and these are Adélie's.
The beach near the station features a lot of whale bones... and some more Gentoo Penguins.
With Sam's retail therapy needs satisfied we jumped back on the zodiac and headed back to the ship. Antarctica was one of those spots where it was hard not to want to be outside on the deck checking out the views however when the ship was in motion the combination of very cold ambient temperatures and the wind meant that it was hard to stay out on the deck for long. So the good thing about the days when we were anchored was that it was generally a little more comfortable outside and this afternoon was one of those good times.
Gentoo Penguins.
Heading back to the zodiac. On a small ship like the one we were on overcrowding wasn't an issue.
There is a small shrine at the station...
... as well as a gift shop. Sam looks happy.
Waiting for the zodiac
Wherever you look down here the scenery is stunning.
We got very lucky with the benign conditions today.
The Dirt.
We cruised Antarctica with a company called Discovery and both the ship and the company don't seem to be around anymore. Arctowski Station is a fairly popular stop with tourists that venture down to Antarctica, there was even a couple of yachts anchored there when we went through.
Relevant Posts.
Arctowski Station on King George Island. Once back on the ship we spent the rest of the afternoon enjoying the scenery.
King George Island, Antarctica.
King George Island, Antarctica.
King George Island, Antarctica.
When we were out of the wind the temperatures were not too bad, when the wind came up though it was bitingly cold.
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