Date: Jan 31, 2008 6:28 PM
Subject: 1/31/2008
1/31/2008
PORT STANLEY, FALKLAND ISLANDS, UK
Finally one that was a lot of fun.
I think you must have to be some kind of nut case or English to live here. This was one of the best days they get all summer. It reached a high of 53 which isn’t bad with the sun out. The 40 mile an hour wind did lead to much discomfort though.
We had a tour that left the ship at about noon. We boarded a northeast style boat provided by locals. It was about a 40 footer and had seating installed for about 12. There was more room outside where the two crew had to stand and freeze. It was pretty
fast and got us to shore in about 20 minutes.
We totally passed the town of Stanley and went directly to the uninhabited part of the island. There, waiting for us were 4 X 4s. Mostly Land Rovers of various ages, all old. They all had huge tires with very aggressive off road tread. The one we got in was a 1992. Mechanically, it was in remarkably good condition and rode very well considering. The looks did not match.
Besides the driver there were six of us. Me in the front, three behind and two in the rear in seats across from each other. Very tight but we did fit.
Our driver was Tony. His regular jobs were as a carpenter and an undertaker. He put up with my jokes about that last job, very well. I did accuse him of trying to drum up work for his other business with these trips to the penguin rookeries. I also complemented him on well he spoke English. (This is a UK possession and English
is the language spoken).
This was no dirt road that really doesn’t require 4 X 4s. We went across country. Up and down very steep hills, through deep mud holes, and over terrain that would be difficult to walk. The very long suspension did help a lot but we did experience an awful lot of bounding up, down and side ways. We could hear on his two way radio that several of the vehicles had broken down. One lost a shock, another an engine, and another a tire.
He drove us right up to one of the rookeries. There were penguins all over the place. They had no fear of the vehicles or people. When we got out the wind was so strong it could blow you over. It would chill you very quickly even with warm clothing. Many of the Penguins were lying down to minimize the effects of the wind.
We walked right up to them and they mostly paid no attention to us. There was a rope surrounding the area where people were not
supposed to cross but the penguins did not obey the rules. They just waked all over the place. One thought something was wrong with one mans shoe and started pecking at it.
We walked to a second much larger rookery. These guys were just as noisy and both had a lot babies with gray fuzzy feathers. We were quite a way from the ocean. I am guessing they go there to be safe from the sea lions. They are really a bunch of clowns. They flap their wings and holler and run around in circles.
After freezing for awhile and taking pictures of these very formal looking birds, we walked a distance to a warm up hut. They had tea, coffee and hot chocolate. There were also some cookies and brownies. The wind was so strong it was rocking the small building.
There we waited until Tony came to pick us up. There was another ship at the same time. The Oceana, and they had to haul both ships people up and back in shifts.
There were no trees anywhere. There were not even any bushes. It is always so windy that nothing grows except some grasses and a low shrub that produces a berry they make into a jam. I have no idea what they used to build houses from or what they use for fuel to heat and cook.
We never got to go to the town. We left soon after we returned to the ship. I might have liked to see it. The people seemed very friendly and their accent sounded a lot like Australian. I still have no idea why anyone would want to live here, except maybe for a penguin. We know they have very small brains. There were not even any natives when it was first colonized by Europeans.
This was really a great experience. I would love do this one again if it weren’t so very cold.
PORT STANLEY, FALKLAND ISLANDS, UK
Finally one that was a lot of fun.
I think you must have to be some kind of nut case or English to live here. This was one of the best days they get all summer. It reached a high of 53 which isn’t bad with the sun out. The 40 mile an hour wind did lead to much discomfort though.We had a tour that left the ship at about noon. We boarded a northeast style boat provided by locals. It was about a 40 footer and had seating installed for about 12. There was more room outside where the two crew had to stand and freeze. It was pretty
fast and got us to shore in about 20 minutes.We totally passed the town of Stanley and went directly to the uninhabited part of the island. There, waiting for us were 4 X 4s. Mostly Land Rovers of various ages, all old. They all had huge tires with very aggressive off road tread. The one we got in was a 1992. Mechanically, it was in remarkably good condition and rode very well considering. The looks did not match.
Besides the driver there were six of us. Me in the front, three behind and two in the rear in seats across from each other. Very tight but we did fit.Our driver was Tony. His regular jobs were as a carpenter and an undertaker. He put up with my jokes about that last job, very well. I did accuse him of trying to drum up work for his other business with these trips to the penguin rookeries. I also complemented him on well he spoke English. (This is a UK possession and English
is the language spoken).This was no dirt road that really doesn’t require 4 X 4s. We went across country. Up and down very steep hills, through deep mud holes, and over terrain that would be difficult to walk. The very long suspension did help a lot but we did experience an awful lot of bounding up, down and side ways. We could hear on his two way radio that several of the vehicles had broken down. One lost a shock, another an engine, and another a tire.
He drove us right up to one of the rookeries. There were penguins all over the place. They had no fear of the vehicles or people. When we got out the wind was so strong it could blow you over. It would chill you very quickly even with warm clothing. Many of the Penguins were lying down to minimize the effects of the wind.
We walked right up to them and they mostly paid no attention to us. There was a rope surrounding the area where people were not
supposed to cross but the penguins did not obey the rules. They just waked all over the place. One thought something was wrong with one mans shoe and started pecking at it.We walked to a second much larger rookery. These guys were just as noisy and both had a lot babies with gray fuzzy feathers. We were quite a way from the ocean. I am guessing they go there to be safe from the sea lions. They are really a bunch of clowns. They flap their wings and holler and run around in circles.
After freezing for awhile and taking pictures of these very formal looking birds, we walked a distance to a warm up hut. They had tea, coffee and hot chocolate. There were also some cookies and brownies. The wind was so strong it was rocking the small building.There we waited until Tony came to pick us up. There was another ship at the same time. The Oceana, and they had to haul both ships people up and back in shifts.
There were no trees anywhere. There were not even any bushes. It is always so windy that nothing grows except some grasses and a low shrub that produces a berry they make into a jam. I have no idea what they used to build houses from or what they use for fuel to heat and cook.We never got to go to the town. We left soon after we returned to the ship. I might have liked to see it. The people seemed very friendly and their accent sounded a lot like Australian. I still have no idea why anyone would want to live here, except maybe for a penguin. We know they have very small brains. There were not even any natives when it was first colonized by Europeans.
This was really a great experience. I would love do this one again if it weren’t so very cold.
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