Penola (yacht)

The Penola, originally laid down in Finisterre, Brittany,[1] was a fishing schooner named Alcyon,[2] and was later acquired by John Rymill for the British Graham Land Expedition to the Antarctic Peninsula in 1934.

Given its robust construction, the Penola was inherently well-adapted for the challenges of the polar seas, and it had an impressive carrying capacity relative to her size.

The Penola (capable of a modest 4 knots) was the main transportation and most of the party travelled from England via the Falkland Islands and South Georgia to Antarctica in this vessel.

[4] The expeditionary crew, predominantly amateur, consisted of 16 men led by John Rymill, an Australian, who also acted as surveyor and second pilot.

The shore party of nine included several Cambridge graduates, some of whom had acquired experience of polar conditions in Greenland as members of the British Arctic Air Route Expedition led by Gino Watkins.

The exploration of south Graham Land was a problem considered by Gino Watkins after his return from Greenland in 1931, but he was unable to raise the necessary funds, and was forced to abandon the project.

Naming geographic features after vessels, especially in regions like Antarctica, is a longstanding tradition, reflecting the historical significance of exploration and discovery.

[12] After the completion of the British Graham Land Expedition, the Penola returned to the UK and was purchased in 1938 in Amble by the Vyner family (or the Fountains Abbey Settlers' Society) from Yorkshire who utilized her as a grain or timber carrier between their small Highland estate of Isle Martin, Loch Broom and Liverpool.