A fantastic day spent literally knee deep in King Penguins. This morning we visited Saint Andrews Bay, home of a massive King Penguin colony. A staggering sight. Everywhere you looked nothing but Penguins. Thousands of chicks, big brown bundles of feathers flapping around. Some walking, some squarking and some running around in blind panic. And then the older birds, strolling about the beach wondering what on earth were all these red jackeded invaders doing. It wasn’t just Penguins. There were the Elephant Seals as well. Massive things grunting and belching and generally defending their neighbourhood.. The Beachmaster with his great hocked nose, covered in scars and wounds gained while protecting his territory, warning all pretenders to keep clear and keep their slimy paws off of his women. And the Fur Seals, snarling and baring their teeth and they tried to prove how strong they were. In the afternoon we moved to Gold Bay, which more than lived up to its name. As we entered the bay a Southern Right Whale left with a flash of its fluke. Not only did the bay have another enormous Penguin Colony, but the whole setting was dominated by a massive glacier on top of a mountain overlooking the bay. As we landed an avalanche sent tons of snow cascading down the cliff. It is a truly beautiful and serene place. After the sun set the whole thing was lit up by the full moon, and from the boat all you could hear was the cornucopia of grunts and squarks from the beach.

Had our first actual landing on South Georgia today. Landed at Fontura Bay, home of a large King Penguin colony. An amazing sight as we walked right up to the colony, picking our way between the fur seals and hoping they would behave. Apparently when they charge you need to stand your ground and clap if you don’t want to be bitten. There was an endless parade of penguins making their way to and from the sea, and in the centre of the colony vast huddles of chicks, shivering in the cold and wet waiting for the return of their parents. From the colony we traced the footsteps of Ernest Shackleton on the last part of his walk across the island. We just climbed over the last ridge into Stromness bay. Shackleton had already walked for 36 hours across the island after several weeks in a rowing boat at sea and 18 months frozen in the ice pack when he did the trek. Some fantastic views over the glaciers and bays as we came down. Stromness has an old Whaling station stations at the bay. It’s rusting and falling apart now, but it gives you a sense of what the place must have been like in the height of the whaling years. After lunch we travelled round to Grytviken - South Georgia town with a population of 25 it is the capital of the islands and the seat of government. The old whaling station has been preserved here and the part of it turned into a museum. It’s very interesting, well worth a visit if you are passing by. Shackleton is buried in the Whalers churchyead and many sailors pay their respects at the graveyard. In the evening we had a barbeque on the ship with some of the locals. The sun came out and it was a glorious setting.

Arrived in islands this morning. A more wild and bleak place can scarcely be imagined, and yet it is teaming with life. We attempted to anchor at Elsehul but conditions were to rough so we moved onto Right Whale bay. It was fantastic. We went for a zodiac cruise past King Penguin, Fur Seals and Elephant Seals, massive great blobs of blubber lying on the beach. This afternoon we moved onto Salisbury Plain, home of a massive King penguin colony. The original plan was to land but it was just to rough so we cruised just off shore, watching the Penguins strolling up and down the beach, watching the fur seals racing up and down, protecting their territory and watching the massive male Elephant seals protecting their harem and making sure their rivals, the so called sneaky breeders, didn’t live up to their name.

It is two days at sea from the Falklands to South Georgia, a distance of over 1000 nautical miles. The ship is an amazing vessel. It was built as an Ice Breaker, which could be useful later, and in 2002 was converted into a polar cruise ship. The maximum number of passengers is 98, although there are 85 on this voyage and 48 staff. About 15 were booked onto a Russian boat, whose voyage was cancelled due to problems with the engine. There is an incredible range of people on board. Mostly British and Swiss but also people from the US, Australia, Finland, Germany, Brazil and India. All ages as well from 20 to 80. The crew are mostly Filipino or Polish. There are also a number of experts on history, ornithology, geology and marine life, so plenty of knowledge around. Getting used to the movement of the ship now. It’s a weird feeling being constantly wobbled from side to side. Like being on the end of a long pole being bounced around. Most disconcerting especially in bed. As we approach South Georgia new protocols kick in. All our outer clothes and bags need to be vacuumed to prevent and non indigenous seeds being introduced. We have crossed the Antarctic convergence and so am now firmly in Antarctic waters. During dinner the bridge announced an iceberg had been spotted and everyone reced outside for a first view. Simply stunning. A massive cathedral of ice standing proud over a moonlit sea.

Woke up to find the ship chugging up the narrow channel to Port Stanley. After breakfast we were ferried over to spend most of the day in the town. It’s a strange place with just over 2000 residents, 85% of the Islands population. The houses are very varied, some of brick looking like a seaside boarding house from Eastbourne, some of wood and some of metal. There are some very new buildings including a new hospital and school, and of course there is Government House, central to so many proceedings in the 1982 war. The place is certainly bleak. Today was sunny but the wind still whistled over the mountains into the bay, whipping up the water and blasting the skin. What it must be like in the winter you can only guess. Prices are all in Pounds, so no complicated calculations to do, which was a relief for this poor Englishman. Visited the Museum and the Cemetery, including the memorial guardian which contains a shrub for every British service man killed in the 1982 war. Very moving to see them all laid out. Had a walk up Thatcher drive, a rather nondescript back alley, and then back to the boa

Arrived overnight in the Falkland Islands and awoke to a fantastically good day. We were anchored in the bay off New Island, part of the Western Islands, in glorious sunshine, which apparently is unusual in these parts. After breakfast we were ferried into the community, which consists of two houses just about as remote as you can be. To get to Stanley there is a 10 hour boat ride, although a helicopter is sometimes available. There was a track which led past an old wreck up onto some cliffs which were alive with Albatross, Penguins and Cormorants. It was a stunning site and fascinating just to sit and observe. The Black Browed Albatross’s so graceful in the air and so clumsy on the ground. Most of them sitting on high mud built nests and seemed untroubled by the presence of so many red jacketed tourists invading their space. Alongside them the Rock Hopper penguins, living up to their name and hopping by with a curious look. How on earth did they manage to hop up to the top of the cliffs and just how long did it take them? And then there were the Cormorants whistling past and landing to dig out clumps of dirt to make a nest. The afternoon was just as good as we moved up the archipelago to West Point Island and another wonderful colony. The same family has lived on the island for seven generations. The two current owners, now in their eighties, were very welcoming and gave us tea and cake. Again stunningly good weather, with sapphire blue seas contrasting against the velvet green grass. And to cap it all as we powered back to the ship on the Zodiac boats, we were greeted by a pod of dolphins playing in the wake of the boat.

Yesterday I joined the boat in Ushuaia and set off down the Beagle channel. Fantastic scenery along the channel and as we left the channel we had a wonderful snowstorm. Had a safety briefing and were warned it would be rough. Apparently heading into a force 9 storm. The doctor happily dishing out sea sickness pills. I declined. Could have been a big mistake but this morning was a lovely sunny morning in the south Atlantic and despite the swell I felt OK. Some not so lucky although most people are starting to get their sea legs. It was wonderful standing on the back of the ship looking at the Albatross`s and Pectorals following us. A glorious feelings being so far from the hustle of the modern world. A tanny announced the results of the US presidential race and it didn’t seem to matter less.

Today I join the ship which will take me as far south as you can reasonably go, down to the shores of the Antarctic. I will be out of Internet access for three weeks so won`t be able to blog. I`ll keep a note of what happens and hopefully update everything when I get back to Buenos Aires in 3 weeks time.

Down at the Fin del Mundo or the end of the world. Staying in Ushuaia capital of Tierra del Fuego and the southernmost city in the World. The town certainly feels remote, surrounded by mountains. The locals seem to spend their days circling the town in their cars. It`s the thing to do. Either that or parking fees are horrendous and they have to keep moving. Today we got the bus out to the National park, stunning scenery and lots of bird life. A very close encounter with a large woodpecker, which I`m still not sure wasn`t a puppet. Tomorrow we set sail for Antarctica.

Spent today exploring the Ciudad de la Santissima Trinidad y Puerto de Nuestra Senora la Virgen Maria de los Buenos Aires, Thank goodness they shortened the name. The change of language is a bit of a pain. I keep saying obligado when I mean gracias. It`s been a beautiful sunny day today, despite this website saying it is raining. The hotel is fantastic, it`s an old Tango house. It`s so posh the toilet flushes with hot water.