Exploring the Sights, Sounds and Smells of South Georgia with...

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Exploring the Sights, Sounds and Smells of South Georgia with @captainmaji

For more photos and videos from Mary’s trip to South Georgia, follow @captainmaji on Instagram.

It took a flight from Chile to the Falkland Islands, then a harrowing five-day ship ride across the turbulent and unforgiving Southern Ocean before Mary Bransfield (@captainmaji) finally set foot on the remote shores of South Georgia island.

Mary lives in Chicago, but feels at home on the road, her lifetime of travels taking her to more than 70 countries — from Scotland to Botswana to Ecuador’s Galapagos Islands. “South Georgia first captured my interest through the early explorers’ stories, and more recently with conservation efforts,” she explains. “But it is the natural, pristine beauty that absolutely captivates me.”

With nine other tourists and two biologists who study penguins, Mary spent 16 days exploring and documenting the island’s wildlife, which included hundreds of thousands of king penguins and an elephant seal population in the throes of mating season.

“The trick was to avoid getting between the alpha male seal and his challenger,” Mary explains. “Once you made sure you were not in their path, it was a spectacle to watch these duels. Their thunderous and throaty roars would go right through your bones,” she continues. “My photos and videos don’t convey the decibel level of the sounds coming from the animals, nor, thankfully, their pungent smells.”

by via Instagram Blog