New Island, Falkland Islands, 2/25/2022, National Geographic Endurance
Aboard the
National Geographic Endurance
Patagonia
Today was our final opportunity to go ashore during our epic 30-day voyage. We made the very best of it, with several landings and some people opting to stay ashore all day. New Island is home to two million pairs of slender-billed prions, several penguin and sea lion rookeries, and a black-browed albatross colony. Now a wildlife reserve, the plant and birdlife ashore is spectacular. Wardens of the Falklands Conservation welcomed us, and we had a wonderful day ashore in sunny weather.
For as long as he can remember, Conor has always been preoccupied with the natural world, from the whales to the fungi. For most of his life he has been an islander: growing up in Cobh, Ireland and settling down in Tobermory in the Hebrides, Scotland...
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We entered Bahia Capitan Canepa where the mountains were rounded over by ancient glacial grinding and the valleys had begun to fill in with nothofagus trees and many of the ferns, mosses, and lichens familiar to the rest of this region. Waterfalls were found around every corner, and both sea lions and fur seals were scattered about, playing in the cool water. Some places felt like scenes from Jurassic Park with waterfalls turning to showers before they hit the seawater below, while the wind fiercely blew the scattering droplets about. The rain was steady, but moods were bright as we encountered shags and oystercatchers along the shores of this magical place. Showers cleared by the afternoon while we made our way west to Ushuaia on the final leg of this voyage. The Beagle Channel always feels different depending on what direction we are traveling. At the beginning it is wonderous and full of mystery, but the return trip always feels sad as we prepare to disembark and bid farewell to our newly made friends. This part of the voyage is fun for spotting whales and Magellanic penguins, but we all know it is short for time. By 2130 dinner ended and National Geographic Endurance’s bow thrusters and Azipods were driving us to the pier for our final berthing of this incredible voyage.
Continuing with mythical and epic places, we made it to the end of our trip with a few days to explore glorious Staten Island. Made famous by its treacherous waters, furious winds, hundreds of wrecks during the 1800’s, and the famous Jules Verne novel, ‘The Lighthouse at the End of the World’, it is by nature one of the wildest places in the world. We experienced that with changes in weather that went from 50 knot winds with heavy sleet, to a sunny calm day minutes afterwards.
Today, aboard National Geographic Endurance, we explored Franklin Bay on Isla de los Estados, Argentina. The jagged coastline mesmerized us with its rugged layers of sedimentary beauty. We encountered diverse wildlife, from rockhopper penguins to majestic seabirds like black-browed albatross and giant petrels. Today’s expedition unveiled the untamed allure of this remote corner of the world where no other expedition company takes people, meanwhile etching memories to last a lifetime.
