He followed me home, can I keep him? (Fortuna Bay, Stromness Harbor & Jason Harbor) - 5 February 2009

Today we were supposed to retrace part of Shackleton's epic journey by trekking a couple of miles across South Georgia - basically recreating the easiest part of the crossing he managed. Unfortunately, the weather didn't cooperate - something about "hurricane-force winds." Instead, we did three landings and a zodiac cruise, so it's hard to be disappointed.

At Fortuna bay we saw more king penguins and seals, and this time I plopped down and let the penguins come to me. Ironically the only one posing for this picture is the penguin:


And this guy has lost interest in me:

After Fortuna Bay we moved onto Stromness Harbor and took an abbreviated hike that led us up to a waterfall that Shackleton and his men repelled down on their quest for civilization.

I've mentioned the fur seals before but they're everywhere, and they're aggressive. It's amusing, actually. You'll be walking along and this little seal will come barking at you insisting you leave its territory. You shoo it away and keep on walking, only to have it come after you again once your back is turned. Really, they're too cute at this size - if they didn't grow up they'd make good pets:

The full grown bulls are another matter entirely. They've mostly gone to sea this time of year, but the naturalists are all carrying poles to discourage any overly aggressive ones.

I mentioned previously how gross (and amusing) the elephant seals are, but since I've got a fascination with gross things I thought another picture would help prove the point:

Yep, the one in the center has what I can only assume is drool pooled around its mouth.