March 11 - day 12 Salisbury Plain.


Ahhhh South Georgia continues to torment me as fierce katabatic winds blew all day, sending incoming surf along the beaches hurtling backwards at a furious speed. Prion Island was right at my finger tips as I could see it from where I am camped. White caps laced the entire collection of islands out in the bay, like a guard keeping us away.

The wind is screaming down valleys of glaciers therefore it is frigidly cold. I tried to capture the drama by film but the wind made it impossible for me to keep the tripod and camera steady and my fingers although in gloves could not stand the cold.

My tent poles flexed and stretched making my tent look as though it was in some kind of yoga pose. Many times I was out checking to see if my anchors and pegs were holding. I decided to use my full and heaviest dry bags as sand anchors. Pelican cases make for a fabulous sand anchor too, as long as you don't have a need for any time inside. It has been a long and nerve racking day.

Dean posted a few blog comments on an email he sent to me earlier today. I appreciated the wise and supportive words written by some of you whom are following this journey closely. Thank you for your insight and for taking the time to share it with me, your encouragement has helped over the past two days. And....I have some exciting news to share with you.

Both Dean and Sally with help from Heidi with Quark Expeditions have spent time trying to re-arrange Beth-Anne and my flights back home. We were finally successful at getting our flight moved to April 2nd but it was re-routed to depart from Buenos Aries. The next challenge - us getting from Stanley to BA without traveling through Santiago has been a challenging part. However the problem has been solved. AND it gives US 6 extra days in South Georgia!!!!

Yesterday I did abit of research and discovered that the Prince Albert II, the last tourist ship visiting South Georgia departs March 18th from Grytviken heading to Ushuaia. And so I sent the Captain and Expedition leader an email, stating our need to reach Ushuaia. Within a few hours I received a reply from the expedition leader welcoming us onboard. Keri, Magnus and Brian support this decision and are relieved that we finally have our entire journey back to Canada secured.
Although this still does not allow me time to continue heading north and around to the SW coast...
1. I would need 8 days of continuous perfect paddling weather (it ain't gonna happen - not this summer anyway).
2. And if I did head that way even for a few days, I could be stuck in a bay with a bad weather system which would not enable Northanger to come get me, travel back around to the north then on towards Gyrtviken to meet the ship.

HOWEVER - It sure is better than leaving on March 12 or 13th.
My wish list with the time that we have now been graced with would be to spend 2 days paddling around the North, jump on Northanger and head south, perhaps trying for Prion again. Then jump back in my kayak at the southern tip of Sth G and paddle to Grytviken therefore paddling the entire east coast of South Georgia, alone by kayak to help Save the Albatross. Yahooo!
Unfortunately, even this plan is a little unrealistic because weather still needs to co-operate. But lets see what we can do.
And so I will spend another night here on the Plains of Salisbury, hanging with the handsome Kings, avoiding the rather territorial Fur seals, enjoying the continual symphony of the South Georgia orchestra which never stops playing their splendid tunes. I will touch base with Northanger this evening, get a weather update and make a plan from there. Who knows what tomorrow may bring.

Cheers and thanks for your continual support and interest.

Hayley