After a loooong 35 hours of travel, I finally made it to Fremantle, Australia. A lightning strike affected the airport operations upon arrival so things took a little longer than expected, but I was settling onto the ship in the late afternoon on Saturday. While the ship is similar to the R/V Brown which I sailed on before, there are definitely quite a few differences (not surprising). After getting settled and unpacked in my room (on the lower level this time...no porthole for me) I headed out with a couple other scientists to enjoy the warm evening air and get a beer. Thanks to Pete for a great brewery suggestion in town- right on the water with wonderful views! |
Sunday was my only truly free day to explore the area before we were heading out so a couple of the other girls and myself took a ferry over to Rottnest Island, about a 30 minute boat trip away. It is a gorgeous little retreat. Somehow we managed to stumble upon an amazing sandy bay with only a handful of others in the area. We spent a couple hours snorkeling and swimming and sunning- I was in heaven. My first dip in the Indian Ocean! After we had our fill of beach time to walked back to the ferry, but not before encountering some of the local wildlife. This island is known for the Quokkas, small bunny-like animals native to the island. We snapped some photos, recognizing how docile and accustomed to human interaction these creatures were, then headed back to Fremantle. |
In the evening I went up to explore the Fremantle Prison which was quite interesting and taught me a fair amount about the local history (even though I missed the last tour of the day). The city was essentially built by convicts shipped over from Australia, and this limestone prison in the middle of town served as the main prison for the area up until 1996! Now it is a UNESCO World Heritage site and people get married in it.
Monday came (too quickly) and with it came departure day. I got up extra early to fit in one last run on dry land which was a wonderful treat. I spent the morning at a local coffee shop getting some last minute work items taken care of before heading to the grocery store for a couple last minute items (peanut butter, honey, and chocolate :). Our cast-off went smoothly and we were underway before we knew it. The weather was cloudy and windy so we only stayed out for about an hour to watch the land drift into the distance. So far no seasickness for me although we are all feeling a bit run down as the first 12 hours afloat tick on. We have 3-4 days of steaming before we get to our first station. Looking forward to sharing more about the ship on my next post. Until then, cheers mate!