During lunch on Feb. 4, we sailed a short distance from Godthul to Grytviken in Cumberland Sound. Grytviken is a famous whaling station that was established in 1904 by Capt. C.A. Larsen after he convinced British and Norwegian backers to finance the establishment. Virtually all the work here was done by Norwegians. We wandered the ruins of the whale station, the old Norwegian church and the excellent museum.

But the highlight of our visit to Grytviken was a chance to pay homage to Ernest Shackleton at his final resting place. He was born in 1874 and died in 1922 after making 4 trips to Antarctica. We were given shots of rum (his favorite drink) to toast "The Boss" - one sip for us and one for him. To learn about his almost fatal expedition on the Endurance, go to the Elephant Island Newsletter.

Lying along the walk to the grave site were piles of elephant seals.

For more photos of Grytviken, go to Grytviken Photo Gallery. To read about the next location visited, go to Fortuna Bay.

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