‘Just Back’ from 31-Day South American Cruise on the Oosterdam.

[GeorgeCharlie]

 

Yes, busy hauling grass back to it's nest.

[GeorgeCharlie]

It was starting to drizzle when we departed volunteer Point.

 

Overall we had a great tour of the penguins at Volunteer Point.😎

 

 

 

 

[GeorgeCharlie]

One thing you notice while flying over the landscape is the total lack of trees.

The ground is either bare rock/sand or covered in small plants.

 

There are no native trees that survive on the islands, this is due to the very high winds and poor soil conditions found there.

 

Otherwise, the only trees you are likely to see are the ones people have brought to the islands and planted by their buildings.

 

Almost 40 years ago, when the military built their base at Mount Pleasant, they also planted some trees.

Personnel deployed there are met by the sight of trees, but they aren’t just any old trees, these trees grow … er, sideways.

 

Personnel have been posting their pictures online showing themselves in a variety of poses, making the most of the bizarre sight of the slanted trees.

 

Sideways trees RAF Mount Pleasant Falkland Island: Picture by Kristina Klug

 

The then local government began a program to plant trees right across the island in the hope that it would introduce further wildlife and plants – although this failed to branch out.😉

[GeorgeCharlie]

 

After stopping in at the airport to get our footwear sanitized, we then headed out to see the rockhopper penguins.

 

 

At the point where we turned to follow the coastline, Tom pointed out a small colony of rockhoppers, which could be reached by 4x4 vehicle.

 

You will notice, due to the high/gusty winds, Bill ended up having to back into the parking area. Ah, the advantages of helicopters - which we don't have when flying regular fixed wing aircraft.🤠

Edited March 11, 2023 by GeorgeCharlie

[GeorgeCharlie]

 

Rockhoppers – “the penguin with an attitude “ 

 

 

The colorful feathers on their heads make it hard to mistake them, and the crazy colors that are on all feathers going in all directions, remind people of the punk rock generation.

 

Despite being amongst the smallest of penguins, Rockhopper penguins are perhaps the most aggressive. They show little fear of people or of birds and animals larger than themselves. Anything that comes within range of an incubating bird will be pecked, including another Rockhopper, or the long wings of neighboring albatross.

 

 

Rockhoppers have an average length of around 52cm (20 in), and an average weight of about 3kg (6.6 lb). A yellow stripe above each eye projects into a yellow crest and these are joined behind the head by a black occipital crest. The eyes are red, the short bulbous bill is reddish brown, and the feet and legs are pink. The females are slightly smaller than the males but have similar plumage.

 

Their preferred nesting sites are steep rock gullies, above approaches into deep water. 

 

The gully this colony uses for access to the ocean. 

 

The nesting area.

 

 

Colonies are often shared with nesting albatross or cormorants.

 

Rockhopper penguins not only return to the same breeding site each year, but they also utilize the same nest, which they refurbish with stones, sticks, vegetation or any other suitable material.

 

While males wait for their partners, they claim last year’s nest and cover it with new material. When the females show up, the process of courtship begins, being an indicator of acceptance when the female starts to reorganize the all new material that the male deposited in the nest.😉

Two eggs are usually laid a few days apart during early November in hope that at least one will survive, and the second egg is usually larger than the first. The first-laid egg is often kicked out of the nest by the adults prior to hatching time.

Eggs hatch about a month later and the mother will have food for the chick.

 

 

[GeorgeCharlie]

 

A short video showing rockhoppers going down to and coming back up from the ocean.

 

 

Also shows why they are called "Rockhoppers".

[GeorgeCharlie]

A short video of the nesting area.

 

 

[GeorgeCharlie]

With only the two of us going out to see the penguins, it was decided that Bill would get off with us and give us a tour of the area. Tom would then make two more trips, bring three more people each trip.

 

The helicopter landing on one of those trips.

 

[GeorgeCharlie]

 

Tom then flew us back to Stanley, while Bill stayed with the other two groups.

 

 

On the way back Tom again pointed out many areas of local history, such as, locations of some of the original large sheep farms, areas first settled by the French before they turned over their land claims to the English. Also. a lot of this part of the Falklands endured heavy fighting during the '82 war. When we got closer to Stanley he showed us some of the places where extensive sections of land had to be dug up while removing landmines.

[GeorgeCharlie]

 

Close by the airport is Gipsy Cove. At just 6.5 km (4 miles) from Stanley, it is the most accessible wildlife site from Stanley. It is part of the Cape Pembroke peninsula which is a National Nature Reserve. The small bay with its white sand beach is sheltered from prevailing winds. There are also some Magellanic penguins which nest there. On nearby Ordnance Point are the remains of World War Two guns.

 

Gypsy Cove from the air, with the Oosterdam in the centre background.

 

[GeorgeCharlie]

13 minutes ago, GeorgeCharlie said:

 

Tom then flew us back to Stanley, while Bill stayed with the other two groups.

 

 

On the way back Tom again pointed out many areas of local history, such as, locations of some of the original large sheep farms, areas first settled by the French before they turned over their land claims to the English. Also. a lot of this part of the Falklands endured heavy fighting during the '82 war. When we got closer to Stanley he showed us some of the places where extensive sections of land had to be dug up while removing landmines.

 

I should have mentioned, the two people waiting for us to land, are Jane, along with Ian Ewen, who is the General Manager of Falklands Helicopter Services.

[GeorgeCharlie]

Another site we flew by on the way back was their wind farm.

 

The Sand Bay Wind farm consisting of 6 wind turbines supplies about 30% of Stanley’s power requirements. The balance is supplied by diesel engine powered generators.

 

 

There are another 3 wind turbines at the Mare Harbour wind farm, which supplies power for the Mount Pleasant Complex. This complex consists of the Falkland Islands' only international airport, along with its Royal Airforce military role.

[GeorgeCharlie]

Some comments in regards to the landmine situation in the Falklands.

 

Approximately 30,000 land mines were laid in the Falkland Islands by Argentinian forces following their 1982 invasion, with a large percentage located around Stanley.

 

The Argentinians expected an amphibious landing by the British to be on the east coast of East Falkland. 

 

There are only three bays close to both Stanley and the airport with beaches capable of supporting the expected amphibious landing. The bays are Surf Bay and Rookery Bay due east of Stanley, and Yorke Bay beach north of the airport.

 

 

 

All of these areas were heavily mined with thousands of anti-personnel and anti-tank mines. 

 

As soon as the war ended, the difficult demining operations began and it was not until November 2020 that the removal of the final landmines was completed. A celebratory event to mark the clearance took place on 14 November at Yorke Bay, which was the final area to be cleared. 

 

Yorke Bay proved difficult to clear as the sand dunes had progressed across the mine field, shifting mines or burying them deeply. This area required large scale excavation and sifting with armoured machinery. Works were carried out in the winter to minimize disruption to the penguin population, who spend that season at sea.

 

This is a picture we took showing long scars across the ground inland from Rookery Bay, which is in the upper left corner of the picture.

 

 

The demining resulted in six deaths amongst the demining teams, along with many serious injuries.

 

Considering the extreme difficulty and danger the removing of the mines caused the British, it is hard to understand, that while it was going on, the Argentine government complained to the United Nations that the their mines were being removed without their agreement. 

 

They have raised formal complaints at the annual Ottawa Convention regarding the British operation. The Ottawa Convention is in respect to the 1998 Ottawa Treaty which prohibits manufacture and use of land mines.

[GeorgeCharlie]

 

After getting back from our second helicopter tour, Jane offered to drop us off wherever we would like back in town. So with still a couple of hours of time on our hands, we had her drop us off at the Historic Dockyard Museum. 

 

 

The museum consists of a two story main building, along with several other outside buildings and displays. The museum complex is well worth a visit.

 

A nice bonus for cruise ship passengers, is that they get free admission.

 

A few pictures from the museum.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Sea42]

5 minutes ago, GeorgeCharlie said:

 

After getting back from our second helicopter tour, Jane offered to drop us off wherever we would like back in town. So with still a couple of hours of time on our hands, we had her drop us off at the Historic Dockyard Museum. 

 

 

The museum consists of a two story main building, along with several other outside buildings and displays. The museum complex is well worth a visit.

 

A nice bonus for cruise ship passengers, is that they get free admission.

 

A few pictures from the museum.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks again for sharing your visit to the Falkland Islands. I really enjoyed it!

[GeorgeCharlie]

1 minute ago, Sea42 said:

Thanks again for sharing your visit to the Falkland Islands. I really enjoyed it!

 

Still have a bit more to cover for the Falklands, then it will be off to Montevideo.🙂

[xjust4fun]

1 hour ago, GeorgeCharlie said:

 

Still have a bit more to cover for the Falklands, then it will be off to Montevideo.🙂

I have been thoroughly enjoying your trip reports.  We are on the SA Grand this coming Oct. So we are learning so much from you.  Thank you so very much for taking the time to write these wonderful posts and for including the excellent photos.  Much appreciated.

 

Diane

[GeorgeCharlie]

Ah, the Grand SA - you'll see many more interesting places then we did on this cruise.😎

[GeorgeCharlie]

One sight I was interested in seeing was the Falklands War Memorial. When I looked at the map and saw that it was a still a ways down the road, I decided was too far to walk.

 

Well, when I got home, I found out they actually have two war memorials. The one I saw on the map was The Battle of the Falklands Memorial, from the First World War.

 

Whereas, the one I was interested in seeing, the 1982 Liberation Memorial, was actually just around the corner from the museum.🙄

 

(From Wikimedia Commons, the free media repository)

 

The 1982 Liberation Memorial commemorates all British Forces and supporting units that served in the Falklands War and helped liberate the Falkland Islanders from Argentine military occupation in 1982. The Memorial is situated in front of the Secretariat Building, overlooking Stanley Harbour.

 

The Memorial consists of an obelisk, on the front of which is the coat of arms of the Falkland Islands surrounded by a laurel wreath above the words "In Memory of Those Who Liberated Us" and the date the war ended; "14 June 1982". On top of the obelisk is a bronze figure of Britannia, the female personification of the island of Great Britain. On the back and sides of the Memorial are the lists of the British Army regiments, RAF squadrons, Royal Navy vessels and the Royal Marine formations and units that took part in the conflict. 

 

The funds for the Memorial were raised entirely by Falkland Islanders and it was unveiled by the Governor of the Falkland Islands, Sir Rex Hunt, on Liberation Day (14 June) 1984, the second anniversary of the end of the war

 

The names of the 255 British military personnel who died during the war are listed on ten plaques behind the Memorial, divided into the service branches.

 

 

Services are held at the Memorial each year on 14 June (Liberation Day).

[Sea42]

How long were you in port? It seems like you had a very full day!

Edited March 12, 2023 by Sea42

[GeorgeCharlie]

 

In response to @DCThunder comment regarding the British feelings toward Argentina's claim to the islands.

 

The islanders' "right to self-determination, as set out in the UN Charter, was determined by a 2013 referendum, where 99.8% voted in favour remaining a British overseas territory. The British government notified the Argentine government that there would be no further talks over the sovereignty of the Falklands.

 

Argentina then disputed the validity of the referendum on the basis, that the Falkland Islanders are not a partner in the negotiations, and only Argentinians have the right to vote in respect to the "right to self-determination".  

 

From what I could see during our short visit, the matter is no longer part of normal day-to-day conversation, and the Islanders consider the matter is now behind them and they are looking forward to the future.

 

And, in comparison to Argentina, the Falklands future looks very bright.😎 

 

In 2020 Argentina once again defaulted on its national debt and it appears to be getting close to defaulting on it's current US$66 billion of International debt. In addition, Argentina has one of the highest inflation rates for any of the middle emerging economies, currently estimated to be above 100%.

 

Whereas the economy of the Falkland Islands is ranked the 222nd largest out of 229 in the world by GDP and ranks 5th worldwide by GDP per capita. They also enjoy an unemployment rate of 1%, with inflation calculated at 1.4%.

 

Falklands now has a strong military presence, which is provided by the United Kingdom. A British military garrison (marine & air force) of 1,200+ personnel is stationed on the islands.

[GeorgeCharlie]

59 minutes ago, Sea42 said:

How long were you in port? It seems like you had a very full day!

 

Tenders were going ashore by 8am and we departed at 6pm.

[GeorgeCharlie]

On our way back to the dock we noticed a number of names spelled out in white letters on a hillside across the bay.

 

 

The signage consists of the names of six historically important ships. The ships are; the Barracouta, the Beagle, the Protector, the Endurance, the Dumbarton Castle, and the Clyde.

[xjust4fun]

2 hours ago, GeorgeCharlie said:

Ah, the Grand SA - you'll see many more interesting places then we did on this cruise.😎

We will definitely now enjoy more all the ports you did, you were an excellent source of information and we certainly appreciated all your tips and recommendations.

[GeorgeCharlie]

 

I have mentioned seeing four different species of penguins while in the Falklands, but there is also a fifth species which nests in the Falkland Islands.

 

They are called Macaroni penguin and unfortunately, we didn't see any.

 

They look like a somewhat larger, more colorful version of the rockhopper. The most distinctive features are the golden yellow crests which extend from the centre of the forehead and sweep backwards above the eyes.

 

 

Adults weigh on average 5.5 kg (12 lb) and are 70 cm (28 in) in length. 

 

Like the rockhoppers, the macaroni penguins breed in colonies on rocky coasts and low cliffs.

 

The Macaroni penguin is the most numerous of all the world's penguins, with an estimated world population of over 9 million breeding pairs

 

Of course, a common question is, how did a penguin get named after a type of pasta?

 

In mid-18th-century England, the term "macaroni" pejoratively referred to a man who "exceeded the ordinary bounds of fashion, with a fashion style of flamboyant clothing with unique and bold ornamentation.

 

When English sailors first reached the Falkland Islands and saw these gold-crested penguins, they called them "macaronis" — the perfect name for this dapper bird with the elaborate crest.