'For scientific discovery give me Scott; for speed and efficiency give me Amundsen; but when disaster strikes and all hope is gone, get down on your knees and pray for Shackleton'.
(Sir Raymond Priestley)
Second day at South Georgia and an early morning zodiac tour around Godthul on the eastern side of the island. Unlike the Falklands, South Georgia has no permanent population, it never has had (no runway, no railway, no roads, this is the sub-Antarctic after all), though there are several active research stations (staffed by people working one or two year contracts) and evidence in a couple of areas along the coast of a long since abandoned whaling industry.
The first and most significant whaling station was established at Grytviken (also the base for the island's very limited government), which operated through the season each year from 1904 until the 1960's when whale numbers were so low continuation was unviable.
The weather was glorious on the day we visited (the pictures are straight out of the camera). We hiked a very boggy mile or so up to Gull Lake, toasted Sir Ernest 'The Boss' Shackleton, who is buried in the little whalers' cemetery, at his graveside, mailed postcards (they've yet to arrive) in the hard to locate postbox, visited the little museum, marvelled at the amazing cloud formations which looked for all the world like flying saucers and remembered my dad on what would have been his birthday.
(Pin tailed duck)