Photo Expedition to South Georgia Island, the Falkland Islands & South Orkney Island

Our journeys to Antarctica begin at the history and wildlife rich Falkland Islands about 400 miles northeast of Ushuaia, Argentina the southernmost city on earth. The Falkland Islands are made up of 2 main islands with about 700 other smaller islands. The Falklands are located at about the same latitude south as London is north and the weather here is cool, wet and very windy. The population is about 3,000 with about 600,000 sheep.

Leaving the Falklands we traveled another 700 miles south east to the Antarctic waters of South Georgia Island with its enormous concentrations of wildlife. As we cruised to South Georgia the winds accelerated to 60 mph and the swells grew to 25 feet, it was quite a ride. South Georgia is about 120 miles long with the topography of the Himalayas with the tallest peak reaching 9,000 feet. Some describe the steep mountainous terrain as Switzerland meets the ocean. South Georgia is 1000 miles from South America and is largely uninhabited except for a few people on two research stations. The island gets precipitation 360 days a year and the weather is very variable and extreme. It is common to experience winds up to 120 knots. Beyond the stunning landscapes and icebergs the most outstanding feature of South Georgia is the abundance of wildlife. King Penguin colonies with 100,000+ pairs of birds, miles of beaches literally covered with thousands of Elephant Seals, Fur Seals, Blue Eyed Shag colonies, nesting Wandering Albatross with their 12 foot wing spans, Gentoo and Rock Hopper Penguins and the relics of old whaling stations from the early 1900s. This is an amazing place like no other on earth.

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