Sat 30 Nov & Sun 1 Dec, After the night anchored off Saunders we hauled anchor at approx 04.00 (I had taken the 02.00 to 04.00 anchor watch) arriving at our next destination, Pebble Island, at approx. 11.30. Guides went to check out the landing beach and confirmed it to be viable for landings after lunch although, due to largish swell running, the Zodiacs would have to approach the beach stern first and we would be disembarking over the pontoons at the stern. There was a better than average chance of getting a dousing during this manouvre.
Pebble Island is so named due to the occurance of pebbles through out the island many of which are agates. These are collected by some of the locals for producing jewlery. We didn’t find any 🙁
Our walk here was from the landing point on Tamar Beach out along the cliffs of Tamar Point and then back round to the start. We passed a number of Malleganic, Gentoo and Rockhopper penguin colonies along with those of King Comorants. The highlights from an avairian stand point was spotting a hunting Peregin Falcon and a lonely Macaroni Penguin in one of the Rcokhopper colonies.
After the shore party returned Europa set sail for Volunteer point which hosts the largest colony of King Penguins in The Falklands, this would be an overnight transit. Although initially undersail due to unfavourable winds we had to revert to motoring. When under sail Europa is sympathetic to the sea conditions and, although she rolls, pitches and heals to the wind she is a comfortable craft to sail on. However, when motoring she fights more with the sea and gives those of us sailing in her a harder time of it. I’d prefer to be undersail all of the time!
On arrival off Volnteer point it was deemed that the sea conditions were not favourable for a beach landing (apparently this is often the case) so we sailed on too Stanley where we arrived at approximately 09.30. I cannot pretend to be overly stressed by not stopping at the penguin colony as by this point I was becoming rather ‘penguined out’.
