We left on Wednesday and arrived in Australian waters on Thursday. On this memorable day we thought we saw four rarities. As it turned out there were only three and they were the only rarities of the trip for most of us. On Saturday, Damien saw a Band-rumped Storm Petrel. Unfortunately no one else did. I was standing right beside him and couldn't see the bird. This is a comment as much about my eyesight as about how difficult it was to see the bird. Generally, all birds were difficult to see on this trip.
Our three exciting birds were: a Fiji Petrel, a Heinroth's Shearwater and a Tropical Shearwater. (At the time we also claimed a Pink-footed Shearwater, but unfortunately, it was later decided that this was a pale plumaged Flesh-footed Shearwater.)
This does sound very exciting - and it was - but it didn't last long. We all went to bed on Wednesday night thinking we'd all come home with extraordinary, incredible birdlists. Little did we know, that was it. There would be nothing else to add to our lifelists. Most of the trip had very, very few birds. Nothing was attracted to our berley. We did not have good views of most birds. The Red-footed Boobies that roosted on our mast were one exception, and we saw thousands of Wedge-tailed Shearwaters, but most birds were (for me) just dots on the horizon. But mainly, it was just the horizon.
I did not enjoy the trip. I was ill. Richard was ill. Hedley was ill. The sea was rough. We weren't seasick, we had some virus I believe. At least this meant that, when I wasn't fed, I wasn't so hungry.
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| Me having fun, photo by James Mustafa |
I had a cabin to myself. Down a steep ladder. On the first night an intruder entered my cabin. Whoever it was did not answer my questions and did not obey my demand that he or she leave. Perhaps he or she didn't speak English. My room was a store room full of towels. This intruder calmly helped itself to an armful of towels, then left in its own good time. I locked the door thereafter and had no more problems. But I never felt quite easy after that. Hedley and Irena had a dodgy door handle, which came off in their hands, leaving them locked inside their room. Mike and James' room leaked when it rained. I didn't like the boat at all.
We were buzzed by the Border Force a couple of times and they contacted the ship to check up on us. They asked the second mate to spell the name of the ship, but he found that spelling the name 'Surveyor' was quite beyond him. We stifled our laughter.
One interesting phenomenon we came across was a yellow substance in the water. Glen gathered some in a bucket, but closer examination didn't help to identify it at all. He suggested it might be coral spawn.
Some fish were caught, but watching them being dispatched was not a vegetarian's delight.
When it was apparent that we could not make the seamounts we were headed for, we turned back, hoping that we'd come across the large flocks of feeding birds we'd seen on the way. Perhaps with another rarity, or even better views of the same rarities.
It was not to be. Usually when I return home with a tick or two under my belt, I feel pretty pleased with myself. Not on this occasion. This trip was a mistake.
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