Gixer

Are there tours to Kidney Island that you can pick up once in port? Gail

Yes, several tours are bookable to Kidney Island, however finding someone to take you there who isnt already booked up by the cruise ships will be very difficult, most have stopped taking independant bookings from cruise ship passangers and now only deal with land based tourists. I think you would be better off trying secure a tour before you arrive, trying to arrange something when you actually dock would be very difficult, we are only a very small community and its ''all hands on deck'' when a cruise ship comes into town! Most people have already arranged excursions way ahead of time, you will probably end up dissapointed if you leave it to chance, although you will still be able to get to Gypsy cove and there is lots to see around town :)

One final question I have for you is regarding the rockhopper penguins. I understand there aren't any at Volunteer, correct? If I'm also going to see the Magellan Penguins in Punta Arenas, would a trip to Berkeley Sound be a good option? Are there any Kings in Berekely Sound? What about other species? Want to try to get the best balance of species I have available to see.

 

Thank you!

There are no Rockhoppers at Volounteer, Kings, Jackasses and gentoos only. Berkley sound is a passage of water, if your going to the Rockhopper colony at Berkley your actually going to the colony up the coast from Kidney cove. If you choose this tour you will get to see Gentoo, a few kings, jackasses and of course the Rockhoppers, providing your tour stops at Kidney cove first that is and doesnt just go straight up to the Rockhopper colony! If you want a broad spectrum of wildlife then this would be the tour I personally would choose. :)

Kidney Cove is a great trip, because you get too see a little of everything, the Rockhopper Colony is quite large, and will be a mass of Bickering chicks when you arrive, and there are loads of Gentoos and Jackasses, you will also see some kings, but not in vast numbers, and of course the trip still allows enough time for having a look around town.

If I wanted a ''wildlife taster'' so to speak the Kidney Cove tour is the one that I would personally choose, but if your ''all about penguins'' so to speak, then a trip to Volounteer is a must, it is unique, the second largest breeding colony of Kings in the world, and you arrive at a great time, right when all the chicks are hatching. So unless your cruise takes you to the breeding sites at South Georgia, you really will be seeing nature at its best at Volounteer, and something very few people in the world ever get to witness.

For anyone taking a trip to Volounteer or trying to decide if you should book it, I am hoping to take a trip out there either next saturday or the one after, I will let you know and take plenty of photos so you have an idea of what its like :)

Hi,

As far as the Rockhopper tour goes, if that is what you particularly want to see then you willl get a chance to see them during the tour, but not the mass colonys that you would probably hope for. There are stragglers left until mid April and they are all gone by the end of the month, I guess it just depends on how badly you want to see rockhoppers and if you would be happy seeing a smaller crowd of late moulters instead of hundreds and hundreds of squaking, bickering, fighting, bad tempered lil'guys!

Tribeca007 -

Nobody can predict the weather, but I think its pretty safe to say that you stand more chance of being able to dock if you arrive in January, infact we had some of our best weather this year at the end of Jan and all through Feb. Volounteer point is an awesome trip, if your a keen photographer or serious wildlife enthusiast then this is definatley the trip for you!

Is it reasonable to take a trip to Volunteer Point (or is it Volounteer Point?) in very later December IF we're only in port from 8am - 4pm??? Is that enough time?

 

IF NOT - what do you suggest for plan b?

A trip would be possible, but you wouldnt have much time at the colony. Depending on what your intersts are there are lots of options, you could do a trip to Bluff or Sparrow cove in the morning then spend the rest of the day exploring town, take a taxi up to gypsy cove, if you enjoy hiking then a climb up tumbledown mountain to the war memorial and spectacular views is great on a sunny day, or maybe a trip out to one of the farms to see shearing demonstrations and get a view of camp life. (anywhere on the Islands that is outside of town is called camp)

Be sure to call into one of the pubs though for a warm welcome, unfortunatley no local ale is brewed on the Islands anymore, but a quick beer in one of the pubs will give you a great insight into Falkland Islands life and there are always people happy to chat to you about the Islands, its history and what its like living here :)

I tried to phone Ian today to double check his email but I think he is out of the Islands at the moment, as soon as I get some info I will post :)

I agree with all the info being spread over a lot of pages makes it difficult to trawl through and people dont always have time to read 5+ pages. All the info of tour guides, contact details/email addresses etc and lots of other great info can be found at www.visitorfalklands.com I will see if there is a way to incorporate the website into a signature or something at the bottom of each of my posts.

Thanks aswell for all the lovely comments, its a pleasure trying to help!

Ohh I almost forgot, the camera I use is just a panasonic FZ8, its not expensive and I am by no means a ''photographer'' I have it on the easy/automatic setting so it does all the focus etc for me :o The photos usually come out pretty well I think because you get so close to the wildlife, you dont have to zoom in from miles away so end up with grainy shots!

Hi guys,

Sorry I havent posted for a while, its school holiday time again!

Bright Sky - You will definatley see penguins when you visit, the Kings at volounteer point are resident all year round, and trips out usually go in a convoy of at least 2 vehicles so if one gets bogged the other can pull it out. Your guides will all have been out track marking well before your arrival and will know the best route to take in any weather, so the chance of you getting bogged with a guide who knows where they are going is very slim.

If you stay in Stanley and just visit Gypsy cove then you will see the ***** penguins, they arrived at the beginning of October and are busy getting their burrows ready.

These isnt that much difference between Sparrow cove and bluff cove, both tours last about the same length of time and you will see the same things, ***** penuins, gentoo's and maybe the odd king, at both sites you may be lucky enough to see seals/dolphins etc and plenty of birdlife. The only real difference between the two are the methods of transport, the bluff cove trip is all overland and on the return trip you can be dropped of in the middle of Stanley for shopping or a walking tour of the town, Sparrow cove involves a boat trip then an overland journey, if your prone to seasickness in small craft then bluff cove may be better, but thats the only real difference. The chances of getting bogged at either is possible, but not very likley at all.

Terry - Bluff cove is a good choice, you will get to see plenty of wildlife, the journey isnt overly bumpy, and you will still have lots of time to explore town, so you get the best of both worlds!

Cruiserus - the journey to Sparrow can be very bumpy, the sea can be quite rough and the terrain in the 4x4 can certainly jolt you, but the road to gypsy cove is fine, you will have no problems at all going there!

Hope this helps guys :)

Gixer,

These photos are incredible! If at all possible, I would love to go to Sea Lion Island when I am in the Falklands 1/08. Which animals are likely to be there mid January?

Thank you for posting these photos!!!

January is a wonderful time to visit Sealion Island! The seals will have finished pupping by then but will still be hanging around the beaches moulting, all the Sealions will have hauled out and will have large creches of sealion pups which is an increadible sight, and you will see all the Penguins that were in my photos, instead of penguins sitting on eggs though there will be hundreds of fluffy chicks, and they are always happy to come over and say hello to you :D

The visiting King penguins (there are about 8 which visit Sealion Island) are usually there in Jan/Feb and the Orca's are also usually patrolling the cliffs where the Sealion pups are, so you will get to see a wide variety of wildlife all within a very easy/accesible walk.

I didnt know that there were day trips available to Sealion Island for cruise ship passangers, if you get the chance to go then it will probablly be pretty expensive but sooooooooo worth it!

Hello!

Thanks for the lovely comments about the photos :)

The King Penguin eggs starts hatching from November onwards, when we were there last Feb we saw quite a lot of chicks that were only a few days old, so dont worry you will definatley see plenty of fluffy chicks! There are also Gentoo's and ***** penguins at Volounteer point, and you will sometimes find Sealions or seals hauled out but they dont tend to breed there (like my piccies of Sealion Island) I cant find my disc with all the photos on it from Volounteer, all I have at the moment is this one which was on my laptop, I will try and dig some more out for you so you have a better idea of what to expect.....unless of course you want it all to be a suprise when you get here!

This Gentoo was also very proud of her egg -

A ***** penguin getting his burrow ready -

A Baby seal suckling -

Another cute, cute newborn -

I hope you all like the photos!

My daughters with the Gentoo colony, they love these penguins because they are so friendly and curious -

My Daughter helping a Gentoo build his nest, she felt sorry for him because all the other penguins kept stealing his scrub!

He was very grateful for this big piece of Diddle dee bush!

We watched this Gentoo lay its egg, she seemed very suprised when she looked down and found it in the nest!

Continued.....

Cutest baby in the world -

This big Bull was very laid back and didnt mind us watching his harem -

Am I the most gorgeous thing or what!?!?

Continued.....

This baby is so cute peping over the top of the sand -

ROCKHOPPER PENGUINS -

My Mum and Daughters hanging out with the Lil' guys -

A Caracara or ''Johnny Rook'' as they are know in the Falklands -

My Daughters enjoying a day on the beach with the seals -

Continued......

As promised, here are some photos of my favourite place in the whole world, Sealion Island, we actually only saw 7 Sealions during this trip, they dont usually haul out until November, but we saw them in abundance in Feburary and this weekend was all about watching the Elephant seals, we just missed the Orca's but have seen them before on several occasions, I hope you get lucky and see them when you visit! :D

ELEPHANT SEALS -

Continued.......

I will be on the Explorer II at the end of January and they offer an Helicopter excursion to Sea Lion Island. It's a bit pricey so and I'm not sure if it's worth it. I'm wondering if anyone has been there or knows anything about it and whether they would recommend a 6 hour excursion to Sea Lion Island.

I just got back from a weekend at Sealion Island today! It was awesome, if you have the chance to visit then please go, words cant say how special this place is, I am waiting for the photos to upload then I will post them and you can see for yourself, whaterver the cost of the trip then I can assure you it would be worth every penny!

Dear Gixer,

 

Thank you very much for your help! I became concern when you mentioned that some ships weren't able to dock during the summer. My friend and I are thinking of taking NCL in December 2008 and the Falklands is a stop (one of the reason why we're going). Is December going to be okay or should we go during a different month?

 

Sincerely,

Hanh

December and January are typically our best summer months, lots of sunshine and big blue skies but with that usually comes a very strong wind. Nobody unfortunately can ever predict the weather, I couldnt even give you a ''general guide'' as it could be gloirious sunshine in the morning, followed by snow blizzards in the afternoon.

The weather changes very quickly, and everything as always down here is weather dependant, that doesnt stop the people who actually live here though, if it did then we would never be able to plan for anything or get anything done, if we decide we are having a bbq on saturday then thats when we will have it, if it happens to be snowing we just bbq in the garage :o

If the ships are able to dock then your tour guides would still get you to see the penguins or whatever else you have decided to do, but its up to the captain if he feels it safe enough, several ships have come unstuck and run aground on rough seas and a lot of captains wont take the risk, usually the smaller the ship your on the easier and more likley it is that you will be able to dock, as they can sail right into Stanley harbour where its usually always calm.

Please dont worry, last season only 4 ships out of hundreds were not able to dock and tender people ashore, it does happen sometimes, but its not ''the norm''

p.s - Iv also got the same concern about our cruise, Disney's castaway cay is the highlight of our trip but during the winter months the ship sometimes cant dock at its own island! I will be pretty upset if we miss that stop but will have to make sure it doesnt ruin the rest of a great trip :)

Gixer

 

Thank you for taking the time to post all this information.

One question remains in my mind, though. We are on Star Princess

January 13 in Stanley (weather gods permitting). We are led to believe

that all of the local tour operators have been booked by Princess for

their shore excursions, so we will most likely be booking one of these.

It is a choice between Sparrow Cove and Bluff Cove. After searching

extensively, I have yet to locate Sparrow Cove on any maps. The itinerary

calls for a 20 minute boat ride, then by 4x4 to the cove. Would you be so

kind as to give me an idea of where Sparrow Cove is?

Sure!

Bluff Cove is quite easy to find as its a settlement, sparrow Cove is just a cove, its actually part of the Murrell farm estate, but you would probably need an OS map to see it, I will try my best to describe where it is!

If your in Stanley its to the north across Port William (which is where your ship will probably dock) So when you arrive at Port William and can see Stanley then look behind you and to the east a bit and thats where Sparrow cove is! If you can find a map that has the mountains on it then Sparrow cove is the bay directly below Mount Low, if your at Sparrow cove and head east then you will arrive at mengeary point, and just above that is Kidney island.

Sorry for the rubbish description! you will actually sail past the entrance to sparrow cove as you sail into dock at Port william.

Gixer, Which place do you recommend for pingoin for someone with some difficulties for walking over uneven terrain ?

Thanks,:)

This is quite a tough one to answer, the ground at Bluff/Sparrow cove is very boggy and rough, there are no roads and its all off track, there are no paths either, its not a long walk from where the 4x4 stops to the breeding grounds but it is very uneven and full of penguin burrows that you need to navigate around.

The only place I guess that would be suitable for someone with walking difficulties would be Gypsy cove as there is a purpose built path, it is not paved but has little stones all along it, but it isnt steep, its pretty flat and its only about 100 yard walk along it until you see the penguins :)

Hello - sorry I havent been to the boards for a while, the kids have been on school break :o

There is a grocery store just a hundred yards from the Jetty centre called the West store, its out local supermarket, its next to the Cathedral. You can purchase pretty much anything you need there, toiletires and pharmacy items, snacks, alcohol, camera film, batteries etc :)

Thanks for all the good advice on St Martin & St Thomas! We were thinking of hiring a charter boat at St Thomas for a half day trip and then doing some shopping, at St Martin I think we are going to do an Island tour and do some more shopping, I plan on being in shopping heaven for most of our trip! :D

If we are here in Jan 09 it would be lovely to see you, we are thinking of possibly a month tour of Australia in Jan 09 as thats when the kids have their long summer break - but Im still working on hubby with that one;)

How far out of town is the signpost with mileage to different cities around the world? I think I read somewhere its on the airport road. Would we need a taxi? Cost?

 

We will hopefully be able to get ashore there in March. Where do we go for tea and cake with you?:D Will you have a "welcome cruisecritic members" sign outside your home?:D

LOL! when you get to the shipwreck just look for the house with a couple of horses in the Garden that will be me :D

The sign is down the airport road, its about 1 1/2 miles from town, if you go straight up the steep hill from the jetty centre it will bring you out onto airport road, go left and just keep walking, once you get past the service station and the Garden centre its just at the top of the rise right on the side of the road. It is walkable but for $5 you could go there in a taxi, and go to boot hill aswell, Boot hill is a place where years ago someone found a boot on the side of the road and proped it up on a stick incase the owner came passed and could see it, but over the years more and more boots have been added, sometimes a whole family will go and put their old boots up there its very ''quirky'' :D

Sometimes tours do go by boat, but they can only get part of the way (due to lack of docking areas) and usually have to transfer to 4x4 for the last part of the journey, the seas are VERY unpredictable so unless calm conditions are guaranteed then it is safer to go overland. (sometimes the seas are so bad that cruise ships have to pass on stopping in the Falklands altogether, I think last summer about 4 ships never managed to get passangers ashore) Going by boat doesnt really make much of a difference time wise. If your going to visit Volounteer then you will have very limited time in Stanley, maybe just enough to quickly look around a few of the gift shops by the Jetty and grab some souveniers.

H2so4 - great photos! I can see the wreck of the Juhelm now as I look out of my living room window :D

I am confused by all these different Penguins. ;-)

 

So if only going to Gipsy Cove, using the minibuses at the dock is sufficient.

 

However, anything else, such as the Bluff Cove, one must arrange for a tour (or using the ship's excursion which is what I would try to avoid.)

We dont get Emperor's here, there have been the odd one or two that have strayed to our Islands but this is very rare. You will need to pre arrange any tours either with local guides or one of the ships excursions if you want to explore beyond Town/Gypsy Cove, the local mini buses to the cove are probably the best way to see the penguins. Something else you may be interested in - you can hire a 4x4 for the day from Stanley services then explore on your own, you could get down to the lighthouse on Cape Pembroke or go out to Goose Green settlement if you hired a vehicle, you just need to be careful if you go off track so that you dont get bogged, and you will need to contact local farmers in certain areas to ask permission to drive across their land.

There are Falkland wool products in all the gift shops but the best selection is at the actual Falklands wool shop itself. Its just around the corner from the jetty and marked on the free tourist maps that are available (pick them up at the jetty centre)

Diddle dee berries are small and red, a bit like a tiny cranberry. The taste sort of similar too, sweet but slightly acidic. We eat it with roast turkey or lamb, and it is delicious with pate or cold cuts. I have been known to mix a little with vodka & lemonade too ;)

Ohhh dear! you will be surrounded by Jackasses on your trip here and not all of them are of the penguin kind :D

Just to confirm, The trips to Gypsy cove are $10pp round trip. You jump in a mini bus at the jetty, travel for 5mins to the cove, you then have 45mins to view the penguins and then hop back on the mini bus and are taken back to town. On cruise days there is always a conservation ranger on hand at the cove to answer any question you may have.

The $10pp on a mini bus to Gypsy Cove, is that one way or is it roundtrip?

Thanks for all of the information you have give us.

I think its $10pp round trip, I'm not 100% on that though, I will double check and find out for you :)