11 Dec 2015

Macquarie Island Times

Our time at Macquarie Island has flown by and last night we waved farewell to the Tasmanian Wildlife Service Rangers who had accompanied us during our landings. On Wednesday morning we landed at Buckles Bay where the Australian Base is located and enjoyed the hospitality of the station staff after viewing the abundant wildlife on the isthmus including Gentoo, King and Rockhopper Penguins and numerous Elephant Seals who reclined burping and snorting around the station buildings.  Yesterday we spent a magnificent day at Sandy Bay were we delighted in some close encounters with the endemic Royal Penguins. The weather wasn’t great when we started but by late morning the sun was shining.

Now we are headed north towards Campbell Island, happy that the weather and sea is from behind us, making our progress a little more comfortable than punching into it. The El Nino weather system persists with strong westerly airflows. We are scheduled to arrive at Campbell tonight and will go ashore at first light tomorrow.