Our all day tour to West Point Island, which was conditional on weather permitting was a go since it was a sunny day with only light winds. Our boat, the CONDOR, which was a German built North Sea trawler, was a sturdy and comfortable seaboat and travelled at a modest eight knots.
It is a two hour trip to West Point Island, which has one family living there. Along the way we saw only a few seabirds, namely Wilson's Petrels, some terns and a feeding frenzy of Black Browed Albatross. Ahead of us we could the see the aptly named Slipper Island. Approaching it from the south, as we were, it is shaped exactly like a Romeo style man's slipper.
We did a circumnavigation of the island and arrived at the settlement before lunch time. After a ''mug up or smoko'' as it is called in the Falklands we elected to get a drive to the north side of the island to see the Black Browed Albatross and Rock hopper penguin nesting areas. The two species intermingle freely and except for minor squabbles when the penguins snitch bits of the albatross's nesting material, they get along just fine.
We ate our packed lunch overlooking the nesting area and marveling at the cliffs and high hills on both sides of us. Then we walked back to the settlement and had a rest and another treat of tea and sweets. There are some beautiful gardens at the settlement - all suitably fenced in and surrounded by thick rows of cedar tree windbreaks. There are no native trees on the islands, but many settlements have had rows of trees planted as wind breaks. On Carcass Island there even a few palm trees.
In one of the gardens here there are part of the ashes of pioneer cruise ship operator Lars Eric Lindblad, who was very attached to West Point Island. I visited this island on Lindblad's purpose built ship; EXPLORER, ex LINDBLAD EXPLORER in November 1998, but it was operated by a different company then.
Later we settled in on the CONDOR for the voyage back to Carcass Island. I spent the entire crossing in the wheelhouse chatting with the captain about the CONDOR and his life in the islands. There was barely time for a short happy hour before it was time for another of Chef Hot Stuff's delicious dinners.
The trip was not only memorable for the amount of animals we saw but also for the people and accommodations at the two camps where we stayed. Our first guide, BK, was a wealth of information about the animals, landscape and down to the plants and what they were used for. Everyday out was a learning experience with him. All the people at the camps were gracious and the food was excellent.
Our second camp in the Okavanga was just as good as the first as far as the staff, accommodations, food and animals. After our experience at the first camp we amazed that the high quality remained the same. Our guide, G, made sure we were able to enjoy every experience including a rush through the bush to witness a cheetah and an ensuing hunt that he heard over his radio.
In both camps there were enough guides out that if they saw something the other guides were informed which helped in seeing as much as possible. It was also nice that the concessions were large enough that we did not have vehicles following each other throughout the day.
Normally there is always something in a trip of this length that we think could be improved upon but this is the rare case where we cannot think of anything. From the time we left the States to when we returned it was one of the most hassle free vacations we took.
Perhaps emphasizing the use of the laundry facilities at the camps would be useful because of the luggage restrictions would be the only thing I can think of as an improvement to future clients.
Kenneth Dropek
2 days ago
Mary was so pleasant and professional. She made sure all of our questions were answered.