A little before 09h00 we could finally see Prince Edward Island. It was very cloudy, and we could just see some of the mountains peeking out from the cloud bank, but it was extremely exciting!
We spotted some black dots on the water just in front of the ship’s bow. It was a small group of Macaroni Penguins. I was rather glad they sat still, because when I had a second sighting of them later that day they were moving through the waves too fast to get more than a blurry bumshot!
A couple of times that morning people had seen Common Diving Petrels, but I struggled to spot these lightning fast little birds. Eventually I managed to pick one up through the binoculars. I was surprised how cute they were! They were these chubby little flying machines! Later I managed a couple of blurred photos as well.
The second part of this incredible morning continued with more fabulous bird sightings. These included more Northern Giant Petrels. I just love the light eyes of these birds!
And then the Albatrosses showed up again! It started with a Sooty Albatross.
My next Albatross Lifer followed shortly – a Grey-headed Albatross!
The Indian Yellow-nosed Albatross didn’t want to be left out.
It had gotten very cold suddenly, by far the coldest it has been to date, and I went inside to the cafeteria for mid-morning waffles and coffee. The weather looked quite dismal for a while before clearing up – once again the moods of the Southern Ocean became evident.
I did a bit more birding, and then I did the one thing I really wanted to do (motion sickness permitting) – and that is to go for a run. The ship’s gym is in the bow of the ship and the view was rather great. It was incredible to run on the treadmill while one Wandering Albatross after the other flew across the bow.
After lunch I hastened back to the deck. There were more Subantarctic Skuas flying about.
We spotted White-chinned Petrels throughout the afternoon. I love the contrast of their light bills against their dark plumage.
And again the magnificent Wandering Albatrosses stole the show. I took many, many photos, but there were also times where I just looked at them and enjoyed their splendour. When these birds flew past close enough to almost touch, it created emotions in me that are impossible to describe.
There are too many photos of these glorious birds, and they can be found HERE.
When I think back on the day, I remember how I would look at the huge Wandering Albatrosses, and then the next minute I would see the smallest Storm Petrel flying or Salvin’s Prion past. The contrast in size was incredible.
I looked at the magnificent ocean and wondered about the mysterious world beneath its surface, so much of it still unexplored. Once again I praised God for the splendour of His creation. I was humbled by the thought just how small I was in this amazing and beautiful world.
We were now approaching Marion Island, and we all waited expectedly.