11 Aug 2017

SOE: A dunny with a view at Kolyuchin Island

 11 August 2017

Sunlight splashed across the eastern cliffs of Kolyuchin Island as we approached just before breakfast. We could just make out huts of the walrus hunter camp on the southern point, and a lumpy walrus haulout tucked into a rocky alcove along the coast. By the time we had eaten, Captain brought the ship around the northern end of the island, a scout boat was launched and in short time, word came back that a landing was possible. And what a landing it was. We made our way up the steep slope and through the remnants of life before the meteorological station closed down. An old track marked where coal was hoisted up from the shore, large buildings where people had once lived and worked. A crate of 16 mm film reels released to the elements and a dunny (toilet) with spectacular views of mainland Chukotka, some six nautical miles to the south.

But it was the bird cliffs on the north coast that captured our attention. Perfectly formed granite ledges stacked in layers, each packed with common and Brunnich’s guillemots; delightful pedestals where horned and tufted penguins showed off their fishing success; towering sea stacks where glaucous gulls owned the high ground, the perfect place for their chicks to grow. Kittiwakes had beautiful chicks as well, some tucked neatly beneath the clifftop, but easily visible to photograph. On sheer ridgelines, pelagic cormorants stood regally, silhouetted against the blue sea below. We had just enough time to sate the hungry memory cards, before returning to the ship and set off for Wrangel Island.

But first, to the north, we passed through a highly productive patch of ocean, where clouds of seabirds  hurried to land and whale blows punctuated the horizon. Captain slowed the ship as we were surrounded by both humpback and gray whales, rising to catch a breath, before diving down for another feed. Absolutely spectacular.

After lunch, Sarah gave an amazingly informative talk on the Alcid family (puffins and friends). Hopefully we can now identify the difference between various auklets, guillemots and murres, but how many eggs each species lays and why some are more pointed at one end (to ease the impact of the guillemot’s stalled-landing technique?) and wonderful anecdotes on chick rearing. After a short break, Chris and Grisha introduced us to Wrangel Island, and why it’s so unique. By the end we were all keen to get there. The only thing standing between us and a landing, was a combination of northerly wind and rising swell . . .