1223: Russia's Ring of Fire 27 May 2012

Sunday 27th, May 2012

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Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy

We boarded the Spirit of Enderby in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy around 2:00pm and enjoyed an excellent lunch prepared by our galley team, Bruce and Jeremy. Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy was founded by the Danish explorer Vitus Bering in 1740, as a departure port for his expedition through the North Pacific Ocean. After lunch we left the 24 km long Avacha Bay, which is named after the Avachinsky volcano. At 6:00pm we participated in the mandatory lifeboat drill, just before a group of Orca and then a Sperm Whale were spotted. We watched them against the backdrop of an incredible landscape of snowy mountains glistening in the twilight. Birders observed Tufted Puffins, Pelagic Cormorants, Slaty-backed Gulls, Ancient Murrelets and Common Guillemots as we headed north towards Bering Island.

Monday 28^th, May 2012

At Sea

Unusually for this area, the sailing last night was just perfect, with flat calm seas. Today we spent a full day at sea in excellent conditions for wildlife watching. Birders spent most of the day with binoculars and cameras on the outside deck. We spotted Dall's Porpoise, Humpback, Fin and Northern Minke Whales, as well as many birds including Pomarine and Long-tailed Skua, Fork-tailed Storm-Petrel, Terns and even the rare Red-legged Kittiwake. Sailing provides a good opportunity for lectures, and today Katya gave us a general overview of the Commander Islands. She was followed by Leonid, who gave a talk about the history of the island where he lives - Paramushir Island. Chris concluded the lectures for the day with his presentation on seabirds of the North Pacific. After dinner our Expedition Leader, Nathan, presented us with the plan for tomorrow on Bering Island.

Thursday 29^th, May 2012

Bering Island

We awoke this morning anchored just off Nikol'skoye, the only village in the Commander Islands. One group led by Chris and Adam went bird watching along the river, while others had free time exploring the town. We enjoyed the village museum featuring Vitus Bering's expedition and the local fauna and flora. This museum is the only one in the world having a Steller Sea Cow skeleton, which was the largest member of the order Sirenia. This animal was hunted to extinction on Bering Island just 27 years after being first recorded by the German naturalist Georg Steller in 1743. While we were visiting the museum, the birders spotted Rock Sandpiper and Petchora Pipit. After lunch, as we were sailing along the west coast of Bering Island, a few Humpback Whales were spotted, some of them breaching, splashing their flukes and even spy hopping. After this spectacular display, Zodiacs were dropped into Bukhta Peresheyek and we cruised along the coast. In an impressive navigable canyon, we found breeding Common Guillemot, Black-leg Kittiwake and the rare Red-leg Kittiwake as well. Sea Otters and Harbour Seals were also observed here.

Wednesday May 30, 2012

Bering Island

Overnight we lifted anchor and cruised to Medny, an even more isolated and beautiful island than Bering. During the morning Adam gave an overview of the marine mammals of the Russian Far East and many people were out on deck to enjoy the abundant birdlife, including large numbers of Fulmars and Laysan Albatross.

As we rounded Cape Monati at the southern tip of Bering Island, we found a sheltered area and the sun came out. There we had the perfect conditions to launch Zodiacs and cruise the coast. Spectacular scenery and geology accompanied us during our two hour Zodiac cruise. The cliffs were covered in Red-legged and Black-legged Kittiwakes, Common and Brunnich's Guillemots, and Red-faced and Pelagic Cormorants. Sea Otters and Harbour Seals approached us warily as we cruised past. At the very southern tip of the island is a haul out for Steller Sea Lions and we enjoyed views of these, the largest of the sea lions, basking in the sun on the jagged rocks. Horned Puffins also nest in the area and it was great to make close approaches to the swimming birds with the Zodiacs.

After returning to the ship we cruised offshore through the rich marine feeding areas. The first of the whales for the season had arrived, so we were treated to excellent views of Orca and Humpbacks plus a distant Sperm Whale. Eventually it was time to set our course westwards to Kamchatka and Grigory gave us a fascinating lecture about his work with the Western Grey Whales of Sakhalin. We spent a very pleasant afternoon sailing over the 7,000 m deep Kamchatka Trench. Here we had occasional sightings of Humpback and Fin Whales, Dall's Porpoise, and some tantalising glimpses of unidentified beaked whales. Following a recap and a tasty dinner, we were treated to a spectacular sunset accompanied by the blows of about a dozen Humpbacks. It really had been a day to remember.

Thursday May 31, 2012 

Zhupanova River

We awoke to a different sort of day as we sailed into a south-westerly swell with about 30 knots of wind and a grey overcast sky. Indoors we had two lectures, with Alison giving us a talk about art and Leonid giving an enthusiastic description of the history of the northern Kuril Islands. The weather improved as we neared the Kamchatka coast and by noon the wind had dropped and blue skies highlighted the spectacular Kamchatka coastline. As we came to anchor off the Zhupanova River, the Karymsky volcano belched black smoke while the Zhupanovsky volcano lay quietly capped in snow. It was a stunning sight to behold, and after lunch we boarded the Zodiacs.

Immediately upon entering the river mouth we were greeted by several impressive Steller's Sea Eagles of various ages. It was a pleasure to behold this behemoth of an eagle at close quarters, both on the mudflats and flying overhead. Proceeding into the estuary we were greeted by many Common Terns and also a handful of the much localised Aleutian Tern. Large numbers of Largha Seals, a localised species endemic to the north Pacific, were also hauled out on a sandbar. Next we entered a portion of the river where the banks were covered in riparian forests, dominated by birch trees. A couple of the larger, older trees had active Steller's Sea Eagle nests in them, although the birds were hardly visible sitting in these impressive structures. We turned off the engines and drifted down-river in the silence, enjoying the snow-capped volcanoes, a few songbirds in the riverside trees and various species of waterfowl flying overhead. When we returned to the estuary some Aleutian Terns gave fantastic views and yet more Steller's Sea Eagles were enjoyed. We made a landing at the fishing camp at the river mouth where birders were pleased to find a pair of Falcated Teal and everyone was pleased to enjoy some delicious red salmon.

Eventually it was time to return to the ship and celebrate another memorable day. It was very lively in the bar with everyone swapping stories and photos and Par shouted champagne, such was the quality of the day! After another fine dinner, we sailed down a stunning stretch of the Kamchatka coastline with beautiful evening light illuminating the volcanic peaks.

Friday June 1, 2012

Bukhta Russkaya

First thing this morning Heritage Expeditions recorded a rare first on their Russian Far East voyages. A Steller's Sea Eagle had landed on the ship's light mast! The regal adult spent almost an hour up there, peering down at us and spreading its wing. Thousands of pictures were taken of this huge bird before it returned to the Kamchatka coastline. What a start to the day!

Blue skies greeted us as we sailed up the stunning fiord of Bukhta Russkaya. A Brown Bear was spotted walking along a snow patch and a few birders glimpsed the rare Long-billed Murrelet. We came to anchor near the head of the fiord and boarded Zodiacs for a landing on the beach where we spent some time poking around the birch forest and small creek. The most notable find of the morning was the white subspecies albidus, of the Northern Goshawk, very different to all other populations of Northern Goshawk.

Later in the day we took the Zodiacs to the mouth of the fiord. Here the Steller Sea Lion haul out was patrolled by a pod of hungry Orca. We could see them from the ship and excitement ran high as we cruised in closer to shore. Over the next couple of hours we observed these amazing animals. It is hard to describe the experience of having a large male Orca surface beside your Zodiac - it was truly amazing. There were perhaps 12 Orca in total slowly working the area and all the while the sea lions sat on the rocks, roaring in anger or fear, not daring to enter the water. We saw some classic behaviour including spy hopping, tail slapping and some animals swimming upside down.

Eventually we returned to the ship and continued south following the coastline. In the afternoon Meghan opened the Sea Shop and Katya gave us a very enlightening lecture about Sea Otters. We drank in the magnificent views of the volcanic Kamchatka coastline. After a recap and dinner, it was another glorious sunset for those who watched from the decks.

Saturday, June 2, 2012

Ptich'i Islands and Atlasova Island.

We were greeted this morning by the most beautiful sunrise over the Northern Kurils. A Zodiac cruise around the Ptich'i Islands was scheduled before breakfast and we set out in four boats to explore these rocks which are alive with sea mammals and birds. We slowly and cautiously approached, being careful not to get too close and risk disturbing the animals in this little sanctuary. Clearly otters from all around the area were gathering there to rest. The numbers were truly remarkable - they were hauled out everywhere on the flat sandy spits around the islands and on the rocks themselves. There must have been a good four hundred creatures, creating the impression that this is the main population in the Kuril Islands. There were also a good number of Largha and Harbour Seals on the nearby beaches and the sky was busy with birds flying around their nesting colonies. We also saw Kuril Island Guillemots, Parakeet Auklets and Ancient Murrelets.

Sea and weather conditions remained spectacular as we sailed through the Second Kuril Strait, allowing us to observe birds and animals at our leisure from the bridge and decks. Before lunch Nathan gathered everyone in the bar for an introduction to our upcoming landing on Atlasova Island. He gave us some background to the features of this small island which has the highest volcano in the entire Kuril chain - Alaid. After lunch Adam led a landing on the gravelly beach between two ancient lava flows. We split into three groups - the artists, the birders and the general naturalists. The latter immediately spread out and began exploring the island, taking in the little lighthouse, Vladimir peninsula (which was created during one of the eruptions of the Alaid volcano), and kelp forests along the rocky coastline. The birders found success in the bush, finding a good number of songbirds and other interesting species. Everyone made the most of the three hours ashore and returned to the ship happy and tired after some good exercise.

Sunday, June 3, 2012

Onekotan and Ekarma Islands

A quick look out the window confirmed that it was worth getting out of bed early once again as the day was glorious with the first rays of sunshine over the Nemo volcano on Onekotan Island. After breakfast Nathan gave a briefing about the day, and Chris and Katya gave us some information on the birding and historical background of the area. As we landed on the beach we spotted a fox running up the hill and saw a raven overhead. From the hills on both sides of the sheltered valley we could see earth mounds. These are all that is left of the dwellings of the Ainu people. We split into several small groups - the birders, hikers, artists and slow/history walkers. Everyone enjoyed the morning with a number of interesting birds seen, including an unexpected Asian Rosefinch. The long walkers made it to the Black Lake on the slopes of the Nemo volcano. This volcanic cone was named along with the bay after Captain Nemo from the novel by Jules Verne. They very much enjoyed the scenery, particularly seeing some newly opened flowers along the way. Fog was drifting in and out as we walked, but it finally retreated, allowing us beautiful weather all morning. We were all back on board by 11am when the Spirit of Enderby sailed for Ekarma Island.

After a pleasantly quiet afternoon we approached Ekarma Island to see great flocks of Northern Fulmars circling around the ship and a pod of Orca in the distance. We dropped Zodiacs into the water and set out on a new excursion. The number of fulmars was astonishing as they flew in and out their colony. There were also a good number of Tufted and Horned Puffins on the water. On the way back to the ship we stopped for a few Crested Auklets and one lone Whiskered Auklet which became the star of the day with several photographers pointing big lenses at it. Back on the ship we enjoyed a recap and the regular reading of the bird list.

Monday, June 4, 2012

Simushir and Yankicha Islands

We were certainly enjoying great weather on this voyage as once again we woke to calm seas and sunshine, this time at Simushir Island. We planned to land in the giant caldera of the extinct volcano, at the site of the abandoned Soviet submarine base Kraterniy. It was built in 1978 and operated until the mid-1990s when many military bases were abandoned due to the lack of funding. The impressive installation held 5000+ soldiers and officers and was a support base for the North Pacific fleet. After abandonment, many things remain at the same spot they were previously used, slowly falling apart and being overrun by nature. It was fascinating to learn that an Ainu settlement, a Russian-American Harvesting Company base and later a Japanese submarine base preceded the Soviet village installation on this very spot.

After breakfast Nathan informed us that another ship was in the vicinity so we landed early and made the most of our time ashore. We wandered off in all directions, birders following Chris and others scattering amongst the buildings. It was appropriate to reflect on the history of the region and the system and ideology of the Soviet regime. Some of the propaganda murals were still intact inside the buildings and we studied them with interest.

In the afternoon we made our way to Yankicha Island, arriving in plenty of time to enjoy the twilight when hundreds of thousands of auklets come back to their colony from the sea. On arrival at Yankicha we launched the Zodiacs and set out towards the caldera. It was a bit rough where the tide met the current, but we successfully made it to the tranquility inside. We immediately spotted a couple of Arctic Foxes playing on the hill. These were Blue Foxes introduced from the Commander Islands by the Japanese. The population initially boomed and then declined again to just a few hundred animals. The seabird colonies here are quite successful and the birds are present in great numbers. After enjoying some time in the caldera and taking photos of the fox and Crested Auklets we landed by the geothermal area and had half an hour ashore, while one boat stayed out so people could keep photographing more auklets. On the way out we saw the auklets starting to come back from the sea. Hundreds of thousands of dark shapes were silhouetted against the sky and created enormous rafts on the surface. Inside the caldera it was mainly Crested Auklets, but outside, Whiskered Auklets were in greater numbers. Our mood was buoyant as we discussed the events of a fabulous day over dinner a few hours after sailing from Yankicha Island.

Tuesday, 5th June, 2012

Novokuril'skaya Bay, Urup Island

After the comparatively late finish the previous evening at Yankicho, many took the opportunity to have a lie in and only a few determined sea-watchers were outside before breakfast. Early risers experience thick fog with visibility consistently less than 50 metres, only a few Fork-tailed Storm-Petrels and Tufted Puffins were to be seen. With conditions unsuitable for a landing on the exposed beach at Chirpoy Island, Nathan took the decision to continue heading south to allow more time on Urup Island. As a result two lectures were offered, with Katya discussing the adaptations of marine mammals in the Russian Far East and Adam telling us about the legacy of Georg Steller who was the naturalist on Bering's second expedition.

At 10:30am the fog suddenly cleared and the northern end of Urup Island came into view. It seemed that our luck with the weather would continue for yet another landing. Following an early lunch, the Zodiacs were launched and everyone was soon ashore in Novokuril'skoya Bay. Many people elected to explore by themselves and with almost three hours ashore, it was possible to investigate the shoreline, sand dunes and the area around an old abandoned fishing community surrounded by forested hills. With blue skies and little wind, conditions were nigh on perfect, and it was very apparent how much more advanced the spring was here compared with further north, as there was an excellent range of flowers and most of the trees were in full leaf. As the best birding was near the old village, most of the birders headed in that direction and an excellent range of birds were found with Middendorf's Grasshopper Warbler, Pacific Swift, Long-tailed Rosefinch, Japanese Bush-Warbler and Siberian Rubythroat amongst the species seen. Both Kamchatka Leaf-Warbler and Japanese Robin were heard but we were sadly thwarted in our attempts to find these despite the assistance of Chris's iPod. We would have to try and find these species further south.

Out in the bay at least a dozen Steller Sea Lions were seen, whilst those who walked along the shore saw a Red Fox. By 4:00pm everyone was back on board the Spirit of Enderby and after the anchor had been lifted, we headed south along the coast of Urup towards Iturup. Although the wind was blowing off the coast, the sky remained almost cloudless with great visibility and as we sailed onwards we saw Laysan Albatross, Orca and Dall's Porpoise. A little later in the afternoon, three Sperm Whales were also spotted and as the nightly log and dinner approached, several dozen Short-tailed Shearwaters were seen. Although we had seen a few of these previously, huge numbers moult in the south-west part of the Sea of Okhotsk and it seemed likely that these were the first of many we would see in the coming days.

Wednesday, 6th June, 2012

Iturup Island

 We arrived off the village of Kurilsk, Iturup Island, during the night and by 6:30am the Zodiacs were in the water. We landed on a beach a couple of miles to the south of the village. Yet again the weather was fantastic and people fanned out to explore while we waited for our transport to arrive. There were several fishing boats hauled up above the beach and the birders were delighted when a couple of new species for the trip were found. Whilst the first of these was the widespread Eurasian Wryneck, the other was a far more range-restricted species, the Chestnut-cheeked Starling, and with two feeding amongst the weed on the beach, we got some great looks at this very attractive bird.

A few minutes later our two specially chartered Ural trucks arrived and we boarded these for the ride up into the mountains. As the vehicles climbed upwards towards the Rubeytsky Volcano, we passed through a mixture of broadleaf woodland and more open areas where the dominant vegetation was Stone Pine.

We stopped at a look-out point above a small crater lake where there were some magnificent views over the forest, across to some distant volcanoes and down to the shore with the blue skies giving us great visibility.

The birders were keen to sight one special species they hoped to see here - the Japanese Accentor. Adam and Chris led those who were interested towards an area which looked promising. The first attempt proved unsuccessful with no response to playback but as we approached a second patch of Stone Pine, Chris spotted an Accentor singing from a perch in the pines. Most saw it before the bird disappeared from view. Fortunately the bird reappeared on a couple of occasions allowing everyone to see it.

Further along another short stop was made and an incredibly obliging Japanese Robin sang happily for the group. Usually this species is very elusive and creeps around in the bamboo but this individual had clearly 'not read the right books'. It sat still for several minutes allowing many to even watch it through the telescope. Our morning had barely started and the two main target birds had already been found!

On arrival at the thermal pools, some of the group went for a swim in the hot, mineral rich waters, whilst others set off on another bird walk led by Chris and Adam. Again this was highly successful, with highlights including a Kamchatka Leaf-Warbler, Red-flanked Bluetail, Japanese Robin and Japanese Pygmy Woodpecker. It had been an amazingly successful morning with the weather undoubtedly helping considerably. Our two trucks reappeared and we climbed aboard and were soon back at the landing site. As soon as the last of the Zodiacs was safely stowed, the ship set off southward along the coast of Iturup. Sailing onward, we passed several pods of Dall's Porpoises, at least forty Orca and the first Rhinoceros Auklets of the expedition. By 6:00pm we had reached the southern end of Iturup and the ship turned to port to enter the flooded caldera of Zaliv L'vinaya Past Bay. Over the next couple of hours we cruised around this spectacular location with the mist obscuring just the tops of the ancient crater rim. We achieved the main objective of visiting this location and saw at least eight Brown Bears, ending another great day.

Thursday, 7th June, 2012

Kunashir Island

 The day began with another early breakfast, but it looked like our luck with the weather had finally ended, as there was thick fog and steady rain. Undeterred, we went ashore at 7.30am. Initially we walked as a group to view a spectacular waterfall which flowed almost directly into the sea and then three different options were available with Adam leading a walk up a steep trail into the forest, Katya a gentle stroll along the beach and Chris a birding walk.

It was hard to see the birds with the rain still falling, although a number of more widespread species were seen, including the local species of Marsh and Coal Tit. Everyone was encouraged to stay together, as there was plenty of evidence of Brown Bears with numerous footprints on the beach. The fresh prints indicated that bears had been wandering along the beach that very morning prior to our arrival.

By 9:15am most people had returned to the landing site and as we returned to the ship, several small flocks of Rhinoceros Auklets were spotted although the inclement weather limited the few birds that were seen during the morning and most of the group were content to begin packing their bags or watch the 'Big Year' movie, which tells the story of three American birders who were all competing to see who could sight the highest number of birds in a single year.

The fog cleared after lunch and we began to pass vast numbers of Short-tailed Shearwaters. These long distance migrants breed south of Australia and almost the entire population comes to the Sea of Okhotsk to moult. As we sailed onwards towards Korsakov, every so often there were flocks of thousands of birds as well as a steady stream of birds passing the ship.

After the settlement of on board accounts, Nathan invited everyone to join him in the Lecture room for a disembarkation briefing which was followed by a slideshow of magnificent photos taken by expedition staff during the voyage. Later we had the final reading of the birdlist which was followed by a wonderful buffet dinner.

Friday, 8th June, 2012

Port of Korsakov, Sakhalin Island

During the night, the Spirit of Enderby continued her north-westerly journey towards the Port of Korsakov on Sakhalin Island. By the time everyone got up, the island was in sight and a little later the ship was tied up at the wharf. Our memorable journey was sadly over. We had travelled 1,936 nautical miles and experienced many sights, sounds and other experiences which would stay with us for a long time. It had been a truly special expedition.