Grytviken, Historical whaling station in Cumberland East Bay, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands.
Grytviken is a former whaling station in Cumberland East Bay, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. The site sits at King Edward Cove and includes industrial buildings, a museum, a church and a cemetery against snow-covered mountain slopes.
Norwegian entrepreneur Carl Anton Larsen founded the station in 1904 and processed 195 whales during the first season through Compañía Argentina de Pesca. Operations continued until 1964 and shaped the maritime economy in the region for several decades.
The museum occupies a former manager's house and displays objects from whaling days and polar expeditions. Visitors see tools, photographs and personal belongings of the people who once worked and lived on this remote island.
Tourist ships anchor in the bay between October and March and bring visitors ashore to see the museum and visit Ernest Shackleton's grave. Weather can change quickly, so bring warm and waterproof clothing.
The station once processed a blue whale measuring 33.8 meters (111 feet) in length, one of the largest animals of this species ever documented. Ernest Shackleton is buried in the local cemetery and his grave draws many visitors.
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