Ascension Island – Comfortless Cove
Comfortless Cove is a beach in the next bay to the north of Long Beach. It was used by vessels infected with yellow fever and was originally called Comfort Cove but it’s name changed and got stuck. It is a small bay and would normally be dismissed out of hand as a beach destination. However, it has one advantage over the majority of beaches on Ascension in that it is possible to swim in the sea here. Much of the sea surrounding the island is too dangerous to swim in, with dangerous currents and breakers making it foolhardy to venture in.
Comfortless is about ½ hour walk from Georgetown but, I have been finding out to my cost, nothing is ever straightforward on Ascension. Directions normally consist of ‘follow that road’ while pointing vaguely to a cross-section. After a false start I got more distinct directions and a basic map and headed off. After a good half an hour I was less than halfway there and the day was hotting up, but a kind offer of a lift got me there in much better time. Directions for the shortcut back also brightened up my day.
The cove is, like much of Ascension, surrounded by brittle lava. The beach itself is a tiny inlet with beautiful golden sand and two outcroppings which provide walls to the sea, and a rope barrier preventing you from going out to sea.
Apart from a spell of about 20 minutes I had the place completely to myself. I alternated between swimming and sunbathing. The water was surprisingly cold and there was quite a steep shelf and strong current. I was certainly glad of the rope barrier although I didn’t need to use it. There were fish all around, mostly blackfish, but some other species were also around although I don’t know what they were. Crabs were abundant on the rocks around.
Everything was good until I decided I was getting quite hot and should probably head back now. This, in retrospect, probably wasn’t the smartest idea as it was approaching the hottest part of the day. I set off along the track that I was told to follow. Almost immediately this track broke up into several different paths. I decided to be conservative and follow the most prominent, and therefore (hopefully) most used track. After a while of walking through this bakingly hot environment I saw a distinct footpath. I thought that maybe this was a shortcut as footpaths can go routes that vehicles can’t. So I headed along this footpath.
The scenery was spectacular. It was barren and red, just as I imagine Mars. The rock was clearly volcanic in nature, with lumps everywhere with large holes in them where, I suppose, gas was contained. At first I enjoyed the landscape and the walk but soon the footpath began to disappear. I had gone on quite a way from the main track and didn’t really want to backtrack so carried on. Paths came and went and I began to get a bit worried. I could see Georgetown in the distance but the rock was beginning to feel impenetrable. Deep gullies, steep ridges and a highly unstable surface set with in a landscape more like honeycomb than anything prevented me from seeing a clear path ahead and with the sun getting hotter by the minute I began to get a little bit worried.
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The ground had got so hot that standing still hurt your feet. My water was getting almost too hot to drink and there was no shade anywhere. Even a lee in the rocks wasn’t any good because the sun was directly overhead. I felt quite stupid. Here I was within sight of the town and I was as lost as I’d ever been and getting into potentially dire straits. The heat was really uncomfortable now and I could feel myself burning. I put on sun block but even factor 40 didn’t seem sufficient in this climate.
As you already know, seeing as I’m writing this, there was a happy ending. After about ½ an hour of wandering around endless trails I found the main track. I’ve never been so happy to see signs of civilisation! I was about 15 minutes away from town and staggered back to my room (via the supermarket to pick up plenty of cold drink), showered and slept!
Despite having been prepared for the heat I’d not been prepared for getting lost and it was quite scary to think that I could pass out here and no-one would be in any hurry to find me. It was a similar feeling to that I had on Sea Lion when I got scared by the elephant seals but here it was the environment that was out to get me. Ascension is a very inhospitable island. Even after thousands of years without eruption there is little vegetation that settled here naturally. The rock is incredibly dry and brittle. The way that the heat attacks you from every angle (sun above, radiated heat from the rocks around and below) is something I’ve never experienced before. I’m not really a hot-climate person, preferring the cold (there’s only so many layers you can take off to get cool while there are innumerable layers you can put on to warm up!) and I think the lack of experience in these conditions really set me up for a fall. Luckily I was able to get back to town with nothing more than a bit of sunburn but I’m well aware that it could have been much worse. Even the best planning is useless if you don’t know what you’re planning for.
Comfortless is about ½ hour walk from Georgetown but, I have been finding out to my cost, nothing is ever straightforward on Ascension. Directions normally consist of ‘follow that road’ while pointing vaguely to a cross-section. After a false start I got more distinct directions and a basic map and headed off. After a good half an hour I was less than halfway there and the day was hotting up, but a kind offer of a lift got me there in much better time. Directions for the shortcut back also brightened up my day.
The cove is, like much of Ascension, surrounded by brittle lava. The beach itself is a tiny inlet with beautiful golden sand and two outcroppings which provide walls to the sea, and a rope barrier preventing you from going out to sea.
Apart from a spell of about 20 minutes I had the place completely to myself. I alternated between swimming and sunbathing. The water was surprisingly cold and there was quite a steep shelf and strong current. I was certainly glad of the rope barrier although I didn’t need to use it. There were fish all around, mostly blackfish, but some other species were also around although I don’t know what they were. Crabs were abundant on the rocks around.
Everything was good until I decided I was getting quite hot and should probably head back now. This, in retrospect, probably wasn’t the smartest idea as it was approaching the hottest part of the day. I set off along the track that I was told to follow. Almost immediately this track broke up into several different paths. I decided to be conservative and follow the most prominent, and therefore (hopefully) most used track. After a while of walking through this bakingly hot environment I saw a distinct footpath. I thought that maybe this was a shortcut as footpaths can go routes that vehicles can’t. So I headed along this footpath.
The scenery was spectacular. It was barren and red, just as I imagine Mars. The rock was clearly volcanic in nature, with lumps everywhere with large holes in them where, I suppose, gas was contained. At first I enjoyed the landscape and the walk but soon the footpath began to disappear. I had gone on quite a way from the main track and didn’t really want to backtrack so carried on. Paths came and went and I began to get a bit worried. I could see Georgetown in the distance but the rock was beginning to feel impenetrable. Deep gullies, steep ridges and a highly unstable surface set with in a landscape more like honeycomb than anything prevented me from seeing a clear path ahead and with the sun getting hotter by the minute I began to get a little bit worried.
The ground had got so hot that standing still hurt your feet. My water was getting almost too hot to drink and there was no shade anywhere. Even a lee in the rocks wasn’t any good because the sun was directly overhead. I felt quite stupid. Here I was within sight of the town and I was as lost as I’d ever been and getting into potentially dire straits. The heat was really uncomfortable now and I could feel myself burning. I put on sun block but even factor 40 didn’t seem sufficient in this climate.
As you already know, seeing as I’m writing this, there was a happy ending. After about ½ an hour of wandering around endless trails I found the main track. I’ve never been so happy to see signs of civilisation! I was about 15 minutes away from town and staggered back to my room (via the supermarket to pick up plenty of cold drink), showered and slept!
Despite having been prepared for the heat I’d not been prepared for getting lost and it was quite scary to think that I could pass out here and no-one would be in any hurry to find me. It was a similar feeling to that I had on Sea Lion when I got scared by the elephant seals but here it was the environment that was out to get me. Ascension is a very inhospitable island. Even after thousands of years without eruption there is little vegetation that settled here naturally. The rock is incredibly dry and brittle. The way that the heat attacks you from every angle (sun above, radiated heat from the rocks around and below) is something I’ve never experienced before. I’m not really a hot-climate person, preferring the cold (there’s only so many layers you can take off to get cool while there are innumerable layers you can put on to warm up!) and I think the lack of experience in these conditions really set me up for a fall. Luckily I was able to get back to town with nothing more than a bit of sunburn but I’m well aware that it could have been much worse. Even the best planning is useless if you don’t know what you’re planning for.
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