Back at the farm
Once back at the farm we passed a mess of steel-work that was all that remained of an Argentinian fuel cell that had been brought here from Stanley and more Land Rover Defenders ‘at rest’.
Sheep shearing had been taking place before the rains came . In the shed we could see the results of the raw product before it was bailed and sent off the Bradford for processing.
We climbed back into the Transit bus for our journey back to Stanley. As we left the farm gates we stopped by a pile of stones, sticks etc. This was the remains of an Argentinian lookout post. The farm buildings had been taken over as 5 Brigade approached Stanley.
Despite all the words we’d heard from the lecturers on Fram (this was the one that I walked out in disgust), the Argentinians did mistreat the Islanders and needlessly damage property. For example the farmhouse had been trashed and every room used as a latrine by the occupying soldiers.
As Adrian explained this to us I realised the impact that the invasion had had on Islanders and how it still affected those that had lived through the occupation.
Adrian stopped on the way back so I could photograph his father-in-law’s Series 1 Land Rover ‘resting’ in a field. This Land Rover had made the journey countless times from Stanley to the farm.
Drive through Stanley
We were driven back into Stanley stopping at the war memorials for WW1 and the ’82 invasion. A small memorial celebrated the freedom of the town for the Royal Marines in recognition for all their service to the islands over the years.
A right turn took us away from the main street away from the bay. We passed a garden in which was parked an Argentinian armoured car. This had been recently restored. At the top of the street we joined the by-pass. This is the road that leads to RAF Stanley at Mount Pleasant.
Along this road we stopped up above a stone corral left from the 19th century that was now used as a picnic area. This corral was close to where the Argentinians first came ashore when they invaded. Adrian showed us where two Royal Marines had hidden to watch the invading force before going back to the Governor’s House.
We turned around and went back into Stanley. As we descended back down to the main street an RAF Chinook flew down the inlet. Adrian told us that this was the Chinook that had arrived on the island in ’82. Since then it has seen service all over the world and it seems that she has come ‘home’ where she was made famous. This will probably be her last assignment before she retires and probably stays here in the Falklands.
Before dropping us off at the bus stop Adrian pointed out the best places to buy souvenirs and best of all where we could get fish and chips for a late lunch.