Feb 23

Today is February 23, 2009. We are going to make three landings today. One is right before breakfast and one is right after breakfast and the third is right after lunch. I am excited for the landings, because on the second landing there is a nice hike you can do.

Today we had a 6:00 wakeup call. Everyone was going to the landing, but the winds were too strong. They were hurricane force. It was too much for the zodiacs to handle – they can flip in high winds. So I fell back to sleep till breakfast. Right after breakfast we pulled into Godthul.

In Godthul there are wonderful places to hike. We took one there that went right up a steep hill through the tussock grass (which is strong and you can hold on to it). It was a little muddy, but it was fine. There was a lake on the other side of the hill. It was very wonderful. We walked up to a waterfall to take some pictures. South Georgia is WAY different from Antarctica – where it is so cold that no plant life can grow.  During the hike, one man climbed up a HUGE rock. It was very tall and steep. My dad took pictures of him for him. I imagine that it was very windy up on the rock.

         When we headed back down to the landing site the winds had really picked up. There were almost 100 knots! Stephanie (one of the staff members) was yelling, “Please come back to the zodiacs NOW! This is an emergency! The winds have picked up and you have to leave now!”

         On the zodiac ride back to the ship, I was nearly soaked to death. Everything on me was drenched in water. My hair was soaked. The whole ride it seemed like the zodiac was going to tip over. It was really fun though. If I could, I would have gone again. It was like a roller coaster. It was the best part of my day. Throughout the Antarctic region (which South Georgia is also a part of), you really learn to have a lot of respect for nature - as the weather can turn so quickly and so violently, that it can quickly kill you if you’re not always prepared.

Once everyone had dried off it was time to go to lunch. After lunch we went to Jason Harbour. My dad and I walked around and sat down with some baby seals. They were all up in our faces sniffing at us and biting at our boots. When some big ones came along we would clap at them, so they back off. We had a nice time.

         We walked down the beach a ways and came back through this marshy muddy land. That is where I met Sarah. We picked up Sarah and her dad from another boat during the day. Her dad is running some type of lecture series that is going to happen during the sea days while we cross the southern Atlantic Ocean on our way to Tristan de Cunha. I think that my dad said that he is from the Aspen Institute.  Sarah is 12 and in the 8^th grade. She is nice. I am glad to possibly have a friend that is about my age. Until today, I was the only kid on the ship.

         We came back to the boat and had dinner. After dinner people from a different boat of the same company as ours – National Geographic - came over for a cocktail party. It went on till about 1:00am.  A lot of people got drunk.

 

Bye for now,

 

Emily