On the way to Deception Island we stopped at Foyn Harbour on Enterprise Island to see the wreck of the “Governoren”, the largest ever whale factory ship which, laden with whale oil, caught fire in 1915. The crew all survived after running it aground and abandoning it.

Deception Island

This has the appearance of a circular island but is actually a caldera, a volcano crater with just its rim above sea level, hence the name “deception”. The rim is continuous except for a small entrance.

In 1967 the volcano erupted and was the scene of a dramatic and dangerous rescue where Argentinian pilots flew helicopters in perilous conditions and successfully rescued several research scientists working there.

In the early morning mist, our visibility was poor, so photo opportunities were limited, but here is a nearby rock instead:

And here is a wave coming over part of the rock from the other side (the best I could do I’m afraid):

But at last, here is Deception Island. Actually this is the gap in the rim that allows water to flow through.

That’s all for Deception Island.

King George Island

King George Island has lots of research stations. There are two in the image below, which I think are Chilean and the Argentinian.

Below is the Russian research station with its Russian Orthodox church in the foreground. The church has a resident priest.

As we moved along the coast, I had a “Welcome to China” text message on my phone! We had just passed the Chinese research station.

That’s all for King George Island.

Elephant Island

We had an early start on Monday morning. The fog had cleared and Elephant Island was beautifully displayed before us.

It gets it’s name for two reasons. There are lots of elephant seals there and it’s shape resembles an elephants head with a long trunk.

Elephant Island is where in April 1916 Earnest Shackleton left most of his crew after their ship, the Endurance, had been crushed in the pack ice. He set off with five others in a small boat on an epic 800 mile journey to get help at a whaling station in South Georgia. Returning four months later, he rescued them all.

After taking these photos, I went to the restaurant for breakfast. Our position was close to the end of the elephant’s trunk as the Balmoral set out towards the Falkland Islands.

From the windows in the restaurant we could see sea birds everywhere and then groups of whales all around us. It was a spectacular end to our Antarctic visit. My camera was in the cabin, but the amazing scene will remain embedded in my memory for ever.

The Antarctic was fantastic!