This morning we anchored in the Bay of Isles off a small island named Prion Island, after the many small birds of the same name that inhabit it. The weather was slightly wet with low cloud cover but we did not let this deter us from our adventures and we soon boarded the Zodiacs to head ashore.
The landing beach was filled with cheeky fur seals and after navigating around them we were met by our naturalist guide who gave us a briefing on what to expect during our time on the island. We soon started the ascent along the boardwalk up to the albatross colonies, which in theory sounded very easy but in reality was quite challenging as the fur seals had taken ownership of the boardwalk and did not let us move past without us taking their photos first.
Once we reached the summit of the island we were rewarded with an up close and personal view of the magnificent wandering albatross both in flight and resting on their nests. The motor drive of camera shutters could be heard firing away like machine gun fire as we all attempted to get that perfect photo of the impressive 3.5 meter wing span of the wandering albatross soaring above us.
Many other bird species could be seen from this picturesque vantage point and we quickly spotted South Georgia pipits, giant petrels as well as the always menacing skuas. All too soon our time was over and we followed the boardwalk back down to the beach and headed back on board for a nice warm meal after a spectacular morning ashore.
The Boson quickly hauled the anchor and the Captain set a course for the Falkland Islands and soon we were away, followed closely by many albatrosses gliding slowly in our wake. Our time in South Georgia might be over but our treasured memories of this remarkable island will certainly stay with us for the rest of our days.
After dinner the lounge was transformed in to a psychedelic disco, for a ‘Wild Women’ party with many fancy frocks and wild hairdos. Even some of our crew members partook in the festive atmosphere!
