Gypsy Cove

Ten minutes from Stanley, Gypsy Cove delivers the archipelago's promise in miniature: magellanic penguins burrow the headland turf above a white-sand crescent, commuting their upright errands past visitors on the marked paths, while night herons work the kelp, dolphins cut the bay on good days and the cove's turquoise-over-white does its polar-Caribbean trick in sunshine. The headland circuit rounds to Ordnance Point's old gun with harbour views, interpretation boards tell the wildlife's calendar, and the whole outing - the capital's classic first afternoon - asks only weatherproofing and the paths' respect.

Background

Gypsy Cove is a small bay on the western side of Yorke Bay, which opens northward into Port William with Canopus Hill behind it to the south. The area sits on a peninsula, linked to the rest of East Falkland through the Boxer Bridge and a slim isthmus called The Neck, 800 metres north of Port Stanley Airport and 6.4 kilometres northeast of Stanley. Most cruise ships pass the cove on their way to dock in Stanley Harbour. Yorke Bay has an international reputation as a nesting ground of the threatened Magellanic penguin, and it already appears on an early map by Dom Pernety from 1769.

Source: Wikipedia, "Yorke Bay"

The landscape

• The magellanic burrows - penguin errands at path's edge.
• The white crescent - turquoise cove below the turf.
• The headland circuit - Ordnance Point's gun and harbour views.
• The kelp birdlife - night herons and oystercatchers working the wrack.

When to go

November to February for burrow season and longest light; the cove walks well in any bright weather - wind is the resident condition.

Good to know

Paths are marked for the burrows' sake - stay on them absolutely; the beach itself may close seasonally for wildlife, and swimming is for penguins. Wind chill outruns thermometers.

Nearby

Stanley's waterfront, Cape Pembroke's lighthouse and the Bluff Cove lagoon tours.

Key facts