Day 12 – kayaking and zodiac landing at Grytviken

We had sunny skies, which made for a very fun day. We started the morning with kayaking in the bay in front of Grytviken. Before beginning the experience, we donned dry suits and life jackets for the experience.

We took a zodiac from the ship to the kayaks and started from there. We saw fur seal pups playing in the water and a colony of king penguins in the distance.

Sorry for the crooked photo below, but it was the only shot in which I captured a blonde fur seal and they are somewhat rare – only 1 in every 1000.

Viking Octantis (our ship) is in the background below.

Grytviken originated as a whaling station. Ernest Shackleton died in Grytviken and is buried in the small cemetery there. And there is a Norwegian Lutheran Church that is still being used.

Of course, there is a post office. The mail is picked up every couple of months and is then taken by ship to the Falklands. From there it is sent by air to the U.K. and if it is going to the states, it makes its way there from the U.K. It is a 4-5 month process at times.

We saw quite a few fur seals of all ages on Grytviken.

Biosecurity measures are still with us. We have the bottoms of our boots sprayed when we return to the ship and we walk through a boot wash.

Some flora on the island…apparently, this “beauty” survives anywhere. I hope we don’t see it on the continent.

My favorite shot of the day from the stern of the ship.

What a wonderful Creator we have to make this, and I am so grateful for the opportunity to see it!