Falklands adventure

The Battle of the Falkland Islands was the first British naval victory of World War I.  It was an encounter fought on 8 December 1914.  It is widely celebrated on the Falkland Islands - no doubt helped by being a public holiday!  This battle followed the first British naval defeat in more than a century at the less well known Battle of Coronel (off Chile) that had been fought on 1 November 1914. Memorial to the battle of the Falkland Islands At Coronel the German East Asia Squadron comprising two modern armoured cruisers and three modern light cruisers under Admiral Von Spee had sunk HMS Good Hope and HMS Monmouth (both older armoured cruisers) for no losses of their own.  HMS Glasgow (a modern light cruiser) and HMS Otranto (an armed merchantman) escaped. HMS Canopus (a pre-dreadnought battleship) that had only be reprieved from the scrapyard by the outbreak of war had been sent to the South Atlantic - however it was only able to make 16 knots and could not keep up with the other Brit

Today four of us were meant to go to Whale Point - however the weather was so dreadful at 6am - and with rain forecast we decided to go to Bertha's Beach instead - as off road driving would not be required there.  No-one wants to get 'bogged.'  As it turned out the forecast poor weather did not materialise. Bertha's beach is close both to the Mount Pleasant airbase complex and the MoD deep water port at Mare Harbour.  It is about an hours drive from Stanley.   Bertha's beach has gleaming white sand that seems to extend for ever.  Our 10 mile walk allowed us to explore less than half of it.  However in that short distance there was abundant wildlife.  We saw black necked swans, turkey vultures, petrels, dolphins playing in the surf, teal ducks, geese and three types of penguin including the Gentoo penguin's nesting sites. One of the first sights we saw on the beach was a King penguin walking towards us.  The penguin came very close to us and was entirely comforta

Giant southern petrel - known locally as a 'Stinker' - a scavenger.   Turkey vulture  

  King penguins MV Scout - the vessel the brought my personal effects nearly 8,000 miles

 Well its taken nearly two months - but at last I'm becoming established in Stanley.  Last week:  I was paid for the first time;  my bank account is now fully open;  I've been issued with a cheque book - yes we're still on cheques here (and no guarantee card); my car has arrived - and has Falkland Island plates; and my personal effects have arrived and are un-packed. Now that my car has arrived I'm able to shop at will and at my own pace - and go and explore. Yesterday, after running the Cape Pembroke parkrun I went to Gypsy Cove and Yorke Bay in search of penguins.  I found them and much more besides.   I took my Canon camera with me - but only one lens that turned out to offer no more magnification that my iPhone.  So today I went back to Cape Pembroke with a longer lens to explore the area around the lighthouse - which includes the memorial to the Atlantic Conveyor.  I also went back to Yorke Bay and was rewarded and was fortunate to get some penguin pictures - just

 

Such has been the pace of life recently that, even though I emerged from quarantine nearly three weeks ago, yesterday afternoon was the first afternoon I’ve had when I haven’t been rushing from one thing to another or having to balance UK and Falkland Island commitments.  It was refreshing to be able to wander around Stanley at my own pace, mooch around the shops in an unhurried fashion, take in my surroundings, watch the wildlife and take a few photographs.   You’ll all be delighted to know that I now understand the pricing of penguin toys! One of my first stops was Stanley Cathedral.   There was a quilt exhibition on - including some pristine examples from Colonial America - ie before they decided they preferred to go it alone!   The Cathedral itself dates from the 1890s and is the seats for the wonderfully titled Bishop of South America. The Cathedral has the usual stock of Battle Standards you’d find in most Anglican Cathedrals.  It also has the Shackleton standard which should b

Today a group of us went walking around the Fitzroy settlement.   It was a fascinating, largely coastal circular walk from the main farmstead to a now derelict bridge that used to carry the road from Goose Green to Stanley and back to the farmstead.     Fitzroy is close to Bluff Cove where the RFA Sir Galahad and RFA Sir Tristram were bombed during the conflict with Argentina.  The chance was taken to sail the ships to Bluff Cove after a telephone call was made to the Fitzroy settlement to check whether there were any Argentinian forces nearby.    Having seen the topography - even if there weren’t any Argentine forces near Fitzroy - those on the surrounding hills and mountains would, as became all to painfully apparent, have had a clear view. Today wasn’t about the 1982 conflict though.  Today was about experiencing the unique wildlife and the stunning scenery.  We were fortunate that we had Dawn and Helen were with us.  Dawn is a Falkland Islands registered guide and Helen has devel