Cumberland East Bay is a bay forming the eastern arm of

Cumberland Bay Cumberland Bay is a bay, wide at its entrance between Larsen Point and Barff Point, which separates into two extensive arms, Cumberland West Bay and Cumberland East Bay, which recede inland along the northern coast of South Georgia. It ...

, South Georgia. It is entered between Sappho Point on

Thatcher Peninsula Thatcher Peninsula () is a mountainous peninsula in north-central South Georgia. Its total area is approximately , with roughly covered in vegetation. It terminates to the north in Mai Point, rising between Cumberland West Bay to the west, and ...

and Barff Point on

Barff Peninsula Barff Peninsula () is a peninsula forming the east margin of Cumberland East Bay, South Georgia Island. It is long and extends northwest from Sörling Valley to Barff Point, its farthest extremity. It was probably first seen by the British e ...

. It is nearly wide, and extends in a southeast direction.

History

This feature was first surveyed by the

Swedish Antarctic Expedition The Swedish Antarctic Expedition of 1901–1903 was a scientific expedition led by Otto Nordenskjöld and Carl Anton Larsen. It was the first Swedish endeavour to Antarctica in the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration. Background Otto Nordensk ...

, 1901–04, who named it "South Bay". It was remapped during 1926–29 by

Discovery Investigations The Discovery Investigations were a series of scientific cruises and shore-based investigations into the biology of whales in the Southern Ocean. They were funded by the British Colonial Office and organised by the Discovery Committee in London, ...

personnel and renamed "East Cumberland Bay", which is more descriptive of its geographic position. The shortened form "East Bay" was simultaneously used. Following the

South Georgia Survey The South Georgia Survey was a series of expeditions to survey and map the island of South Georgia, led by Duncan Carse between 1951 and 1957. Although South Georgia had been commercially exploited as a whaling station during the first half of ...

, 1951–52, the

UK Antarctic Place-Names Committee The UK Antarctic Place-Names Committee (or UK-APC) is a United Kingdom government committee, part of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, responsible for recommending names of geographical locations within the British Antarctic Territory (BAT) and ...

proposed that the name be altered to Cumberland East Bay and that all other names be rejected. This change brings together information about the whole of Cumberland Bay in one place in indexes, and will avoid confusion with

East Bay The East Bay is the eastern region of the San Francisco Bay Area and includes cities along the eastern shores of the San Francisco Bay and San Pablo Bay. The region has grown to include inland communities in Alameda and Contra Costa counties ...

in Prince Olav Harbour, South Georgia. On 22–24 April 1982, during the Falklands War, the British

Special Boat Service The Special Boat Service (SBS) is the special forces unit of the United Kingdom's Royal Navy. The SBS can trace its origins back to the Second World War when the Army Special Boat Section was formed in 1940. After the Second World War, the Roya ...

attempted to cross Cumberland East Bay. They had landed in Hound Bay, and traversed the Sörling Valley, but were prevented from attacking Argentine positions by incessant ice and snow.Bicheno, Hugh (2006) ''Razor's Edge: The Unofficial History of the Falklands War''. London. Weidenfeld & Nicolson.

Major features

Many features within the bay have been individually charted and named by various Antarctic expeditions and surveys.

Western coast

The western headland of the bay is Sappho Point on Thatcher Peninsula. Working south along the west coast, the next major feature is King Edward Cove, approximately southwest. South of that, the glacial plain Hestesletten extends from inland out to the coast.

Moraine Fjord Moraine Fjord is an inlet long with a reef (a terminal moraine) extending across its entrance, forming the west head of Cumberland East Bay, South Georgia. It was charted by the Swedish Antarctic Expedition under Otto Nordenskjöld, 1901–04, wh ...

forms the west head of the bay, separated from it by Greene Peninsula. Nordenskjöld Glacier flows into the head of the main portion of Cumberland East Bay.

Eastern coast

The bay is defined to the east by Barff Peninsula, culminating in Barff Point to the north. Along that coast, the small cove Sandebugten forms the west end of Reindeer Valley. The name "Sandebugten" appears on a 1929 British Admiralty chart but probably was applied earlier by Norwegian whalers operating from South Georgia.

References

External links

South Georgia Geographic Information System
- detailed topographic map of South Georgia Island {{coord, 54, 17, S, 36, 26, W, source:GNIS, display=title Bays of South Georgia Falklands War in South Georgia