TVB op vakansie na Gough Eiland

[Tom van Brits]

1: The table/bench we made the other day
2: Atlantic Petrel
3: Geo-Searcher from top of the Mountain - Goneydale (Hammocks)

[BMWPE]

Nice sturdy looking bench 

[Tom van Brits]

Nice sturdy looking bench 

Thanks mate, all from 'recycled planks' used to box the water reservoirs when they were flown to the island from the ship a year ago.

[Tom van Brits]

Soon the Trisran Albatross will start bteedibg again with the last couple of fledgelings leaving the island now.
The other day when I was at North Rowette I looked back over the Western side of the island. A large area called Albatross plain. There was in my view a great number of Tristan Albatross and appeared to be more than last year. It may be a lot of young males waiting or hoping to pair up.

I saw 2 x Elephant seals today on seal beach and they are molting. Will try and upload pics later after developing. The Northern Rockhopper chicks are rather large now and some are on their own now.

A lot of fun things planned for tomorrow like some traditional island sports like a treasure hunt (gps coordinates and clues) and more. Then an oxtail and a mutton chop potjie

Happy New Year!!

[Ri]

These photo's are delightful 

[Oubones]

Photo 1 I see you
Photo 2 I am coming
Photo 3 Eish
Photo 4 That was good

[Mr Zog]

Tom, your photography has come so far! You are truly getting really great at it man! Awesome!

Happy new year my friend. It's really good to see you this happy again. Keep it up!

[Tom van Brits]

Thanks everyone!! 

We had a great New Years eve. I was tasked to do the potjie and decided to make 1 x oxtail and 2 x mutton potjie's.
It came out delicious - it was just so good and we did have the same again tonight as there were a lot leftover.

We also had a 'treasure hunt' and was devided in a team Red and team Blue. We had to follow clues and do funny things and collect squires which in the end spelled out 'Happy New Year Gough 63'
Unfortunately no pics of this since it was a race and we were rather competitive. Yes I was in team red and we won! 

I can't remember when last I have laughed so much....it was just hours of endless fun and we all went to do upper air with Santjie and wrote on the hydrogen filled balloon, then took a selfie and released it. She was a bit worried that the balloon would be weakened by the writing but it did make it to 25 kilometers which is good.

We continued the party and did the countdown. Some played pool we were a little group playing pickup sticks and other. Fabrice, Santjie and me decided to go and sit on the roof and watch sunrise....and it was beautiful. I have made use of the opperturnety to speak to captain Clarence and he also notified me that they are leaving and heading to Tristan da Cunha and then to Cape town. After sleeping till 10H30 I went out to do some cleaning and then a bit of photography. I was very lucky to find a Gough Moorhen and small chick, and got a couple of good pictures there and from the ship as they backloaded and departed.

All in all a very good start to 2018! 
I should have a answer soon (within 2 weeks I think) about the departments plans for me since they do not have a lot of time to act, the Geo-Searcher is leaving port again on the 31st Of January and if they plan to release me the new medic will be on the ship and I will then return on the voyage which will only be sometime in March.

[Tom van Brits]

Gough Moorhen - some chicks are very small while there are a few juveniles around as well.
They are rather wild - very afraid of the Scuas. Mice also goes for the eggs ass well as the chicks.

[Stormer]

Nou is ek sommer honger en reg vir potjie.

Thanks TvB for sharing the photo's and experience. May the rest of 2018 be as great as the way that 2017 ended and the new year started.

[ClemS]

Tom, dankie vir die briljante fotos! Mag 2018 vir jou ook net liefde, vrede, voorspoed en vreugde inhou! Voorspoedig my Vriend! 

[Sam]

Hi Tom. Happy 2018 - hope it's a fantastic year for you!

Thanks for the pics - fantastic as always. That bench that you guys made looks like pretty good work - very impressive.

[Tom van Brits]

Thanks everyone!! 

I have been on a short hike the 30th of Dec to seal beach since the field workers told me there are 2 x Elephant seals on the beach. I first tried to reach them by going down the rope side of the beach but there were just too many sub-Antarctic fur seals so I had to go back up and around - through the 2 x rivers and then down another rope ladder. The thing that caught my eye though was the Northern Rockhopper penguins. Most are now just wandering around the colony and leaving the 'creches. It is rather interesting but the chicks are standing in small groups which is referred to as a creche while they are waiting for the adults to come back from the sea to feed them. Sad to sometimes see how a scua will just grab one from behind and fly off with it a few meters and then feed on it. I suppose it is the circle of life though. Now the Penguins are too big for the Scuas to just grab them. Amazing how quick they grow, and although I do not have the facts here probably one of the quickest growing seabirds from hatch till fledgling.
I still need to develop the elephant seal pics and actually nothing spectacular (photographic view) since they are just on the molt and so lazy - did not do any kind of acting for me other than blowing bubbles in the pool - they know how to do 'lazy 

I will follow up with pics from the day at a later stage.

[frankmac]

Who puts brothel sprouts in a potjie? 

Great pics as per usual, Tom.

I was watching a David Attenborough documentary on the Great Barrier Reef and it was hilarious to see the shearwaters "landing" at night.

They would just plop down out of the dark sky, head over heels into the sand.

[Tom van Brits]

Who puts brothel sprouts in a potjie? 

Great pics as per usual, Tom.

I was watching a David Attenborough documentary on the Great Barrier Reef and it was hilarious to see the shearwaters "landing" at night.

They would just plop down out of the dark sky, head over heels into the sand.

That is our favorite veggie!! 
 

Yes Frank the Great Shearwaters lands like the UN pilots - they bliksem into the ground but always (almost always) get away with it. They say any landing you can walk away from was a good landing. 

[Tom van Brits]

I always feel the poor Elephant seals can do with a bit of help to get that old skin off 

Northern Rockhopper's are really sweet. At times the whole colony's rocks and soil is filled with purple coloured squid so I am sure there are loads of squid in the water around Gough Island.

[Tom van Brits]

I do not think I have posted the images of the 'St Helena' visiting us briefly - only a radio call and a sail by. The Governor is visiting the overseas territory under her command which is Assention, Tristan, Gough, Nightingale and Inaccessible islands. Weather was bad and is still bad....our January looks very different to what I am used to at this time of the year on Gough. It is normally very warm and humid, but we are having constant low cloud and high winds for a while now. Today was supposed to be a stunning day but yet again wind and rain. My rucksack stands outside my room in the corridor - packed and ready for a Western side island hike but once again postponed. Not moaning though - this is Gough island 

[Ri]

Glad you can sign on Tom, been missing your updates 

Our December was also almost winter weather here in the Cape, with rain and cool temperatures. Now though it's hot, dry and windy again 

[Tom van Brits]

Glad you can sign on Tom, been missing your updates 

Our December was also almost winter weather here in the Cape, with rain and cool temperatures. Now though it's hot, dry and windy again 

Thank you Ri!

Good to hear about the rain in WP, and hope the rest of SA will also get enough rain. I hear about heat-waves and thunderstorms in my hometown and elsewhere.
Gough weather like said is totally weird currently. We had a cold and wet January so far, but today was hot and humid with no wind. Currently light rain and tomorrow seems to be wet and windy.

I do not know if you all remember but I always wanted to visit 'Low-Hump' where the Southern giant petrels breeds. Well today I left the base at 8h15 and was making slow progress up the mountain. I was at the Goney dale container at 11am and thought to call it off since I had another few kilometers to hike and that over 'South Rowette' - yet another Mountain. However; I have made it this time around and although I did not spot a single adult I got to see all the young ones in the upper colony. Also visible was Saddle Islet, Rockhopper point and South Western Islet. I still need to develop the pics in Lightroom but here is one of a Souther GP. I was back at base at 18H00. I did loose 10kg now since take over, all due to hiking. Some of my clothes feels weird on me 

Goodnight! 

PS: I was contacted by a couple of people wrt Marion Island, but must honestly say that I do not know what is going on there. I wish not to discuss the Marion issues here but also want to assure you all that we at Gough are really happy, we have more than enough food and we have a fishing licence to fish for lobster and line-fish. I bake rolls, bread, croissants and some team members bake cakes, cupcakes, pancakes and you name it . Gough 63 is healthy and happy!!

[woody1]

Happy for you...enjoy the A-Team.