June 7-8 Kunashir, bears and sad farewells

This is nigh on the perfect volcano - a cone within a cone.

A heavenly way to start the day 

Today was our last day in the Kuril Islands before heading for Sakhalin and the end of our 'expedition'. We spent a rather poignant morning in the National Park on the largest of the Kuril Islands - Kunashir. Three 'armed' rangers met us on the beach just as the sun was climbing out of the sea to escort and protect us for our morning's exploration - there are lots of bears on the island as well as foxes and wolverines, particularly in the National Park. And just to reinforce the potential for a dangerous encounter, a big brown bear made an appearance along the beach as soon as we arrived. We split up into 3 groups - 2 to go birding and the third to explore the beach (me and a small handful of others ,including a volcano devotee from Paris).

One of our guards

Total tranquillity 

Bears and red foxes foraged on the beach for delicious titbits 

This tangled mass of wave-tumbled debris shows that it is not always so tranquil here

The iridescence in the early morning sky provided a perfect backdrop to a magical experience for me. Each of the groups of expeditioners was assigned a guard. The one that accompanied us beachcombers, Uri, is an entomologist and together he and I rescued a caterpillar crawling on the wet sand - bizarre. He and I, neither really speaking each other's language, strolled together in companionable silence, taking it all in with a shared appreciation.

We beachcombers wandered for over three hours and managed to see 3 bears and 4 red foxes as well as a number of dinnerplate-sized jellyfish and tiny krill, large bones and masses of sea- and beach-debris. It was quiet, tranquil and warm. and just being out there with only the sound of the waves chattering over beach pebbles was nigh on perfect. I collected shells, rocks and lava, and Uri found some beautiful coloured pebbles for my bulging pockets. I tend to clink a lot when I go beach combing and have to keep hauling my pants up because of the weight of my specimens.

This was one of the big jellyfish I found (the tip of my stick for size comparison)

Leonid, our Kuril Island expert, was in his element. It is to this place that he brings school children to camp out under the stars, to learn how to live as the aboriginal Kuril Islanders lived, foraging for food such as krill and shellfish on the beach and in the shallow waters, and to identify and collect edible herbs. What an experience! Lucky kids. (I think he and I bonded over edible plants and wee krill).

One of the many plants Leonid showed me - I don't recall the plant's name

Our leader Rodney took Fujio to visit a plaque dedicated to the fallen Japanese soldiers 

Sadly we said goodbye to Kunashir Island 

The kayaks were stowed

Back on board and after lunch, Leonid gave the final lecture - Russia and Japan in the Kurils at the end of WWII. The conversation about occupation and 'ownership' of these islands continues - it is a bit of a hot potato politically, and I suspect the conversation between Leonid and Fujio is not over.

Our final night on board was quite festive. Passengers and staff dressed up a bit, even if it was just adding a clean shirt, a scarf or a bit of lippy.  The atmosphere was definitely party-lke, and dinner was a special banquet affair.  After a bit of an informal debrief, we finished the night with a slide show of the entire cruise, complete with passengers and staff caught in odd moments. We all received a copy to bring home. What memories we have!

Packing up and saying goodbye was quite sad. Leonid sought me out before we disembarked and he and I spent some final moments talking in our halting Russo-English about his family, us making a return visit, and having a few hugs.  He is such a beautiful unforgettable man who helped make that part of our trip a bit more special for me. Just before I went, he told me that he and the Japanese Professor had agreed to continue their discussions about the Kuril Islands amicably. I think the trip was special for Fujio, made all the most so by being able to visit a plaque dedicatin to the fallen Japanese soldiers. 

Sadly we said farewell to the sea.

Sakhalin - our jumping off point

Culture shock setting in!

Thanks Heritage Expeditions for a voyage of a lifetime and Bev Edwards, our travel agent who brought it all together. We look forward to the next chapter! Our journey continues westwards under the guidance of Sundowners Overland and finessed of course by our agent, Bev Edwards  bev.edwards@travelmanagers.com.au