Fortuna, Stromness, and Grytviken, South Georgia
“In the darkening twilight I saw a lone star hover Gem-like above the bay.” These were the last words Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton wrote in his diary. Perhaps he knew his time was short. Just a few days before, he had quoted a stanza from a Robert W. Service poem,
“I have flouted the Wild, I have followed its lure
Fearless, familiar, alone.
But a day must come when the Wild will win
And I shall be overthrown”
Today, we walked in his footsteps. Sixty-three intrepid travelers disembarked early this morning to re-trace the last 4 miles of Shackleton’s trek over the island of South Georgia. Though the journey included 1,000 feet of elevation gain, we were undaunted, wanting to experience firsthand that same view the “Boss” had in 1916 when he looked down and saw Stromness whaling station, and knew his efforts would tell the world that he and his men were alive. Though the hiking was sometimes tough in the stiff wind, it didn’t stop our Swedish galley staff, including our head chef Stina, from taking a short dip in the frigid waters of Lake Crean. Now that’s impressive.
When National Geographic Explorer repositioned in Stromness later in the morning, the remaining shipmates were eager to walk up the valley to see the waterfall that Tom Crean, Frank Worsley and Ernest Shackleton repelled down with 50 feet of rope and lots of hope.
After lunch, it was time for another trek on this day full of adventures. This 600-foot uphill climb included some incredible views from the rolling hills that connect Maiviken to Grytviken. We knew we had arrived when the white-steepled church came into view. Our time in Cumberland Bay offered something for everyone. For the historians among us, the museum was a treasure trove. For the shoppers, there were multiple possibilities. For those who chose to stroll the grounds of the former whaling station, we learned about the various processes required to render a leviathan into various marketable products.
What surprised many of us were the steps taken by Capt. C. A. Larsen to make this remote outpost feel like home, including a church, a library, a ski-jump, weekly movies and the introduction of reindeer. He also encouraged the foreman to bring their families, and thirteen births were recorded here. But it was the celebration of a life deeply lived that brought us together at the cemetery as a rainbow descended over King Edward Point. The gravesite of Sir Ernest was impressive with its Scottish granite headstone inscribed with the words from Shackleton’s favorite poet, Robert Browning:
"I hold that a man should strive to the uttermost for his life's set prize."
