Another good day of sailing, although under cloudy and rainy conditions
Today, for the whole journey rainy, foggy, windy. Although both air and water temperature are above the 3ºC, it feels cold. Sailing over swells that now and then flood the lee side of the main deck. It is not until late at night that the conditions abate. Then the seas calm down and the wind eases, although out on deck ceaseless rain falls.
It was Frank Worsley who, describing these waters and the 16 days epic traverse of the Scotia Sea on the James Caird, wrote “wet, cold and miserable”. And they still are…
Although they led the most famous expedition on those stormy seas around South Georgia, many ventured here before. The 16 hundreds saw the merchant captain Anthony de la Roche being blown off his course and reporting for the first time the existence of the island. A sighting confirmed in 1756 by Gregorio Jerez aboard the ship “Leon”. But without any doubt, the most renowned of all was Captain James Cook, who set foot on it and claimed for the British Crown, naming it after King George III. But to get there, either by chance or intentionally, they all first had to deal with the wild character of the waters that stretch for 800nm across between Tierra del Fuego, South Georgia, the South Sandwich Islands, the South Orkney Islands, and the Antarctic Peninsula. Although well known, they remained officially unnamed until 1932, when it was agreed to give them their name after the Scotia, the ship that William S. Bruce sailed here in 1902-04 during his Scottish National Antarctic Expedition to the Weddell Sea.
Amongst the mist, wet weather, winds and swells that identify these waters, EUROPA made a good progress again today. 164nm in the last 24 hours, under Northwest winds, while at the wheel we sail close to it towards South Georgia. Braces are pulled tight on Port tack. Courses, Top Sails on both masts, Top Gallants follow in the evening together with the Outer Jib joining the rest of the headrig, Lower Staysails and Spanker. She sails now in the area between the Antarctic system and South Georgia. Adding the bad weather to this, it all makes for less wildlife sightings.
Yesterday a Grey headed albatross showed up, a couple of beautiful Light mantled, a bunch of the tireless Wilson and Black bellied storm petrels flutter their small wings over the swell under the rain. Today a handful of Atlantic petrels fly by. Although scarce in the region, sometimes can be spotted as they soar in high arcs above the seas of the Antarctic Convergence along the Atlantic Ocean.
