Very.
Rating: * * *
Why Visit?
Shopping! This is the most popular gift shop on the peninsula, as well as a British Post Office. Many miss that it is also a fabulous museum of British life on the peninsula, with a fully rebuilt base displaying Antarctic life as it was in the early days of occupation. This is also one of the best spots to get up close and personal with Gentoo penguins and a stunningly beautiful site.
Where is it?
Goudier Island is tucked up next to Doumer Island that in turn shelters against Wiencke Island, on the southeast of the Neumayer Channel between Anvers and Wiencke Islands.
Challenges?
Keeping your shopping dry during the ride back to your ship – even those who don’t think they came to Antarctica to go shopping will usually find a book, map or t-shirt that needs to go in their suitcase. Otherwise, this landing is one of the most welcoming and straight-forward of them all.
Wildlife
The Gentoos own the island, but are very willing to share. There are around 800 breeding pairs of Gentoo penguins on Goudier Island, but it will seem like many more than that. These penguins arrived long after the human population did, and have settled into the British life very well. There are also many attendant Snowy sheathbills, Kelp gulls and skuas breeding, and seals regularly rest on shore.
Human activities
Goudier Island was discovered by Charcot’s French Antarctic Expedition of 1903-05. The location was named Port Lockroy for the politician who assisted with arranging government backing for Charcot’s voyage. The island itself was named for the engineer on the vessel, the Francais. The British military set up WWII Operation Tabarin Base “A” on Goudier Island in 1944, then a year later handed it over to British civilian control. It was eventually abandoned in 1962, and repair and rebuilding began in 1996.
Photos, Voting and more coming soon!
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