Having spent 30 hours and over £2,000 travelling to the Falklands, I was eager to spend some time exploring this island rather than just passing through it for Antarctica. So I was very much up for going on a day trip when my fellow traveller Anthony suggested it. We had a full day the day before we set sail, so we decided to visit Volunteer Point, which has the biggest colony of King penguins in the Falklands region.
Volunteer Point is a headland in the north eastern tip of the Falkland archipelago. On the map it looks quite close to Stanley, in fact a direct line between the two is just under 20 miles. However in reality there is a bay between the two places and to actually get there requires off-road driving in a 4x4 and takes about 3 hours. None of us had off-road driving skills, nor would the car rental companies provide the insurance for such a potentially hazardous endeavour, so getting a local guide to take us was the only option.
We went with a lady called Charlene who Anthony found on the Falklands Tourist Board. She was very friendly and talkative, and was willing to answer any questions we had about life on the island, which made the 3 hour drive much shorter and more pleasant.
For a day trip to Volunteer Point, tea and coffee included but BYO lunch, we were quoted £150 for 1, £280 for 2 or 3, and £330 for 4 people (as of February 2013). Cash payment only so make sure you bring enough Pounds to the Falklands as there are no ATMs on the island and the only bank (Standard Chartered) charges a fee to withdraw cash (see packing list here).
We had been told to meet at 7am to beat the cruise ship that was making a landing in the Falklands that day; apparently there would be about 200 people filling 60 or so 4x4's. Really not my idea of how to see penguins. Luckily they landed the day before, so we didn't have to fight for space, and we didn't have to leave til 8am. The extra hour of sleep was bliss, and it still meant we got there by 11am and still had a good 3 hours exploring and photographing penguins.
There were plenty of mine field signs in the East Falklands, especially around Stanley - a stark reminder of the recent Falklands War. I'm still not sure how slowing down would help though if you were driving through a minefield...
After three hours of on and off road driving, stopping for the occasional scenic shots, and lots of bumping up and down (apparently it was good practice for sailing), we arrived and left our lunches and bags in a small huts provided as shelter for visitors. It had a coffee table and a few chairs, with some information posters and maps on the wall. Next to the hut were 3 portable toilets and a tap that didn't work (mental note to self, don't get hands dirty, and don't drink too much tea). Just imagine what it would have been like if those cruise boat tourists descended on this place.
Apart from the usual "don't leave any rubbish" rule, Charlene emphasised two specific ones:
1. Don't touch the penguins (that includes hugging, picking them up, stroking, harassing, booting...)
2. Don't cross the stone circle around the king penguin colony. The circle marks out where they generally breed, lay eggs and raise the chicks. Going inside the circle means getting too close which in turn means potentially scaring them off and leaving their eggs or chicks exposed.
We were first greeted by a small group of king penguins, who looked on with an air of dignity and indifference. In fact, most of them didn't even bother looking, and just carried on walking about minding their own business. We followed them down to the main colony, stopping to photograph their comical movements and behaviour, and a few astray gentoo penguins.
At just under 1m tall, the Kings are the 2nd tallest penguins behind the Emperors, but just as colourful and beautiful. Their back and flippers are charcoal grey, while the front is a beautiful white. Towards the neck the white plumage smoothly gradients into a brilliant golden orange, which extends around the neck like a collar, while the rest of the head is black. Kings are also characterised by a black and orange bill.
The vibrance of their golden necklace illuminated the scene. Some stood tall, raising their heads and scrooching to the rest of the crowd; some just lay down to rest, while some pretended they could fly...
Volunteer Point is a headland in the north eastern tip of the Falkland archipelago. On the map it looks quite close to Stanley, in fact a direct line between the two is just under 20 miles. However in reality there is a bay between the two places and to actually get there requires off-road driving in a 4x4 and takes about 3 hours. None of us had off-road driving skills, nor would the car rental companies provide the insurance for such a potentially hazardous endeavour, so getting a local guide to take us was the only option.
We went with a lady called Charlene who Anthony found on the Falklands Tourist Board. She was very friendly and talkative, and was willing to answer any questions we had about life on the island, which made the 3 hour drive much shorter and more pleasant.
For a day trip to Volunteer Point, tea and coffee included but BYO lunch, we were quoted £150 for 1, £280 for 2 or 3, and £330 for 4 people (as of February 2013). Cash payment only so make sure you bring enough Pounds to the Falklands as there are no ATMs on the island and the only bank (Standard Chartered) charges a fee to withdraw cash (see packing list here).
We had been told to meet at 7am to beat the cruise ship that was making a landing in the Falklands that day; apparently there would be about 200 people filling 60 or so 4x4's. Really not my idea of how to see penguins. Luckily they landed the day before, so we didn't have to fight for space, and we didn't have to leave til 8am. The extra hour of sleep was bliss, and it still meant we got there by 11am and still had a good 3 hours exploring and photographing penguins.
After three hours of on and off road driving, stopping for the occasional scenic shots, and lots of bumping up and down (apparently it was good practice for sailing), we arrived and left our lunches and bags in a small huts provided as shelter for visitors. It had a coffee table and a few chairs, with some information posters and maps on the wall. Next to the hut were 3 portable toilets and a tap that didn't work (mental note to self, don't get hands dirty, and don't drink too much tea). Just imagine what it would have been like if those cruise boat tourists descended on this place.
Apart from the usual "don't leave any rubbish" rule, Charlene emphasised two specific ones:
1. Don't touch the penguins (that includes hugging, picking them up, stroking, harassing, booting...)
2. Don't cross the stone circle around the king penguin colony. The circle marks out where they generally breed, lay eggs and raise the chicks. Going inside the circle means getting too close which in turn means potentially scaring them off and leaving their eggs or chicks exposed.
We were first greeted by a small group of king penguins, who looked on with an air of dignity and indifference. In fact, most of them didn't even bother looking, and just carried on walking about minding their own business. We followed them down to the main colony, stopping to photograph their comical movements and behaviour, and a few astray gentoo penguins.
At just under 1m tall, the Kings are the 2nd tallest penguins behind the Emperors, but just as colourful and beautiful. Their back and flippers are charcoal grey, while the front is a beautiful white. Towards the neck the white plumage smoothly gradients into a brilliant golden orange, which extends around the neck like a collar, while the rest of the head is black. Kings are also characterised by a black and orange bill.
The vibrance of their golden necklace illuminated the scene. Some stood tall, raising their heads and scrooching to the rest of the crowd; some just lay down to rest, while some pretended they could fly...
Slight digression; I still cannot believe I fell for this April Fools'... (full credit to Eric and Simon for making me believe, full credit to me for being gullible).
Photographing the Kings was easy; photographing the Kings' behaviour was way more challenging. But the most comical award had to be this:
We spent an hour or so photographing the kings' colony. We really took our time, I guess partly because we were so excited seeing penguins for the first time, and partly because we wanted to get as much practice at shooting with our cameras before the real deal.
As we started making our way back to the hut for lunch, we came across a smaller and looser group of Gentoos. These were mainly chicks or juveniles, and were far friendlier and more inquisitive. As soon as we slowed our steps, 4 of them came over and crowded around us. Another two just went mad and started running around crazily, screaming and flapping all the time. They got quite friendly mainly with Anthony, pecking/sneezing/spitting, even jumping onto him (including sensitive areas). But we didn't care, the photo opportunity was priceless. When I finally picked a patch of grass where I could not see any penguin poo or snot, I too decided to sit down and one very inquisitive chick came up close and pecked me in the leg. It hurt more than I had expected, and my slight sudden retreat must have startled the chick a little. He kept his distance after that.
Anyway, Charlene said we weren't allowed to touch them, but she didn't say we weren't allowed to let them touch us.
We went down to the beach after lunch, and what a beautiful beach it was. White sand, almost completely unoccupied except for a few Kings waddling around, occasionally jumping into the radiant green turquoise water. The only things missing were palm trees and hammocks. It would have been a paradise if it were not for the penguin poo dotted around, and the extreme windchill which forced me to wear 3 windproof/thermal layers even though it was the tail end of the summer. It was actually so windy that at one point I was transfixed by the constantly changing patterns made by the fine grains of white sand as they were blown ferociously across the beach. It would have been great to take time lapse shots, but hindsight is always bliss - it was only the first day I tried out my brand new Canon 600D properly and I hadn't even heard of the terminology.
Despite the windchill, the penguins seem to love it though, so I guess at least someone was benefiting.
On the way back to the 4x4 we took a quick glimpse of the Magellanic penguins, even spotting a dead one lying on the ground. I didn't get to spend much time with them, although I really would have liked to. It later turned out this was to be our only opportunity to see this species.
It was a great day trip and I would highly recommend Volunteer Point to anyone visiting the Falklands. The 6 hour return journey of bumping up and down in a 4x4 was definitely worth it. Although I only spent a few hours with them, I already had a lot of admiration for these wonderful creatures and their ability to survive under these sub-Antarctic conditions.
What a fantastic prelude to the Deep South.
For more information about Volunteer Point and the various penguin species and colonies in the Falklands, visit the Falklands Conservation website, where you can also adopt a penguin.
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