Desolation Island: Book 5 (Aubrey-Maturin)

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L.L. Ivanov. Antarctica: Livingston Island and Smith Island. Scale 1:100000 topographic map. Manfred Wörner Foundation, 2017. ISBN 978-619-90008-3-0 a b Sea Level Measurement and Analysis in the Western Indian Ocean, UNESCO Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission The Waakzaamheid is armed with 32 pounders. Here is a short video of 32 pound field howitzers being fired (without, alas, murderous chunks of iron issuing forth): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IOo5ZuwnkmU , and another beautiful vid of the Victory’s rolling broadside: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_FpYLnNhVw. In addition for those with a yen to know more about the science and physics of gunnery, here’s a lovely new place on youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wTN7UErLVkQ Although he had never set foot on the islands, Kerguelen returned to France claiming they were inhabited, with forests, fruit, pastures and untold riches. In his much-exaggerated account, Kerguelen called them La France Australe, while the British explorer Captain Cook, who was to arrive here later, rather more candidly described the area as Desolation Islands. Nevertheless, Kerguelen's deceit won him the royal approval for another expedition. The island was discovered on 15 October 1819 by Captain William Smith in the English merchant brig Williams during his second visit to the islands. The anchorage Blythe Bay at the southeast side of Desolation Island was frequented by the early Nineteenth century English and American sealers.

Cook Glacier covers nearly one third of the island, and the abundant rainfall combined with glacial meltwater keeps numerous streams and lakes full of water. Peat marshes, lignite, and guano deposits are found on the island. Satellite Islands The Kerguelen Islands are an overseas territory of France. But their far-off location in the southern Indian Ocean places these islands far closer to Antarctica than to mainland Europe. In fact, the islands are so remote and the landscape so harsh that they have also been called the “Desolation Islands.” Among those in the vanguard of asserting the importance of Chile in Darwin’s thinking is Alvaro Fischer, director of the Foundation for Science and Evolution in Santiago. For Fischer, it has become something of a mission to restate the significance of Darwin’s time in Chile. “Since Darwin is best known for his theory of evolution by means of natural selection, and apparently – and I stress ‘apparently’ – there is no direct link between what he did and recorded while in Chile with the theory he later developed, that part of his trip has been greatly ignored.The main island, called Grande Terre or Isle of Desolation, has an area of ​​6675 km² and is the most difficult place to reach in the world.

Over the years, numerous explorers and captains of whaling ships have remarked on the monumental formation. Tales told by whalers from New England were most likely the inspiration for its mention in a novel written by Edgar Allen Poe in 1838, The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym [2].Maple Leaf Adventures explores the B.C. and Alaska coasts aboard three expedition yachts. In October, their 1912 tugboat Swell and 12-cabin catamaran, Cascadia, are based in Desolation Sound. “If the Great Bear Rainforest seems too far and too expensive, Desolation is an incredible alternative,” says Maureen Gordon, co-owner of Maple Leaf. “Its landscape is so dramatic with the snow-peaked Coast Range rising straight out of the fjords.” I ought to be able to find something to criticize about it, but I can’t. Sorry, nothing but uncritical adoration here.

The main island, Grande Terre, is 6,675km 2 (2,577sqmi) in area, about three quarters of the size of Corsica, and is surrounded by a further 300 smaller islands and islets, [4] forming an archipelago of 7,215km 2 (2,786sqmi). The climate is harsh and chilly with frequent high winds throughout the year. The surrounding seas are generally rough and they remain ice-free year-round. There are no indigenous inhabitants, but France maintains a permanent presence of 45 to 100 soldiers, scientists, engineers, and researchers. [5] There are no airports on the islands, so all travel to and from the outside world is conducted by ship. After passing Shoal-water Bay (now called Baie Norvégienne), they were eventually able to find an area suitable for monitoring passing ships at Long Point (now called Pointe Charlotte) on the east coast of Courbet Peninsula, where they built two comfortable cabins which they baptized Hope Cottage. (see satellite view)Carroll, Paul (29 June 2003). "19th Century History of Kerguelen Island, South Indian Ocean". Btinternet.com. Archived from the original on 30 July 2012 . Retrieved 30 March 2012. Wondering where is Desolation Sound? Desolation Sound Marine Park is located between the BC mainland and Vancouver Island. One such natural phenomenon is a unique basalt formation situated on a tiny peninsula near the northern extremity of Loranchet Peninsula on Grande Terre (see map). It was first discovered in January 1774 by the navigator Chevalier Kerguelen-Trémarec on board Le Roland, during his second expedition to the region. On his charts, Kerguelen named the structure "Le Portail" (en. portal or gate).