Susan R. Eaton
February 28, 2010

Antarctica: Dispatch Number Nine

We awoke this morning, to a news update on the 8.8 magnitude earthquake
that struck Chile – unfortunately, the death toll has climbed to 300
people.

As we continue to cross the South Atlantic Ocean, enroute to Ushuaia,
the Professor Molchanov is being buffeted by 50-knot winds and
10-metre-high waves. We’ve been informed, by the crew, that the seas
are going to get worse before they get better… It’s quite an explosive
show on the bridge, as the waves break across the bow, and hit the
ship’s bridge.

More than half of the Elysium Explorers have retreated to their cabins,
and are dealing with nausea and motion sickness. The dining room is
uncharacteristically half-full. Despite originally hailing from the
Maritimes, I’m feeling queasy; my sea legs are buckling under the
prolonged assault of the ocean. However, the prospect of climbing the
ladder, to my top bunk, and rolling around in the bunk, is a far worse
proposition than writing this blog in the ship’s bar. I’ve adopted a new
technique of typing on my laptop – my sentences are timed to synchronize
with the pitching boat, the table and my body…

Back to the magic of South Georgia:

Back at Salisbury Plain, home to 300,000 King Penguins, Wyland, the
Elysium Expedition’s Official Artist, met his harshest art critics: the
King penguins checked out Wyland’s art, turned up their beaks and
quickly walked away. One penguin literally tried to pry the brush from
the artist’s freezing hand. To add insult to injury, a Fur seal knocked
over Wyland’s canvas, spilled his paint pots, and then jumped onto the
original painting, adding his unique fur strokes. Wyland later confirmed
that this encounter represented his first artistic collaboration with a
Fur seal.

On February 24th, we landed at Fortuna Bay, to visit and document a King
penguin colony. We also saw large numbers of Fur seals and reindeer.
During the height of the whaling days, domesticated animals were
introduced to South Georgia Island: reindeer, cattle, pigs, chickens,
cats and rabbits. Today, only the reindeer (and rats) remain. While
there is an eradication program for the rats, the two existing reindeer
herds are being left alone. We saw several young calves in the reindeer
herd.

While amongst the penguins at Fortuna Bay, I unfurled a banner from
APEGGA, the Association of Professional Engineers, Geologists and
Geophysicists of Alberta. APEGGA is one of my expedition sponsors, and
I’m very thankful for the organization’s support – I look forward to
telling the Elysium Expedition’s stories to APEGGA’s membership, and to
the students who APEGGA encourages to enter into careers in science.
Jonathan Shackleton led a group of ten Elysium Explorers on the last leg
of Shackleton’s walk, from Fortuna Bay to the Stromness Whaling Station.
I didn’t participate in the hike, as I was cold and wet from the Fortuna
Bay shore visit, and was saving my energy for an afternoon snorkel
excursion.

Although it was windy and visibility was not good, the intrepid group of
Explorers struck out, intent on following in Sir Ernest Shackleton’s
steps. During the 5.5-kilometre-long hike, the visibility improved and
the wind died down.

Let’s place this hike into historical perspective: after completing the
840-mile ocean crossing from Elephant Island, Shackleton and his crew on
the James Caird landed at King Haakon Bay, on the south side of South
Georgia Island. Without the advantage of mountaineering gear, Shackleton
and two of his men trekked 20 miles across mountains, glaciers, and
crevasses, arriving at the Stromness Whaling Station in 36 short hours.
Shackleton enlisted the Norwegian whalers to rescue his men on Elephant
Island.

Shackleton’s historical trip occurred during the winter – while the
Elysium Team’s summer conditions were not particularly difficult, the
snow provided an authentic feel for the trek. When the Team reached a
topographic vantage point – seeing Stromness Bay for the first time –
they shared, in small measure, the elation that Shackleton and his men
must have felt almost 100 years ago.

From this vantage point, Shackleton and his men climbed down a frozen
waterfall – in contrast, the Elysium Explorers took an easier route down
snow-covered slope, walking along the flats to Stromness Bay where the
Professor Molchanov was waiting. The Elysium Explorers couldn’t tour the
Stromness Whaling Station, due to unsafe building conditions and
asbestos contamination.

Readers who wish to follow the Elysuim Team’s Shackleton trek, can use
these coordinates:
Start at Fortuna Bay: lat 54o 08.85’ long 36o 47.11’
Finish at Stromness Bay: lat 54o 09.45’ long 36o 42.60’