History of West Falkland

The lack of wood is somewhat surprising, as while there were no trees growing there, driftwood frequently washes up on Falkland beaches. This may be accounted for by the sheltered nature of Bold Cove. Strong named Falkland Sound, which gave its name to all the islands.

While the first recorded landing on the main islands of the Falklands was on West Falkland, it was settled remarkably late. In 1867 there were no settlers on West Falkland. The government issued a proclamation offering leases of grazing stations on very moderate terms and in 1868 all the available land was occupied.

Modern West Falkland is also home to two RAF Reporting Posts: Mount Alice, which is near Port Albermarle in the south of the island, and Mount Byron in the north.

In early 2007 the Falkland Islands Government awarded a contract to supply an East-West ferry to Workboat Services Ltd. The service runs between Port Howard and New Haven.

Falklands War

West Falkland saw some activity during the Falklands War in 1982; Fox Bay, Port Howard and Pebble Island were all occupied by Argentine troops during the hostilities and were subjected to occasional British naval bombardment and air attacks.

The most significant skirmish on West Falkland was perhaps the skirmish at Many Branch Point, near Port Howard.

Shag Cove saw several Argentine helicopters downed after British Harrier jump jets attacked them. The raid on Pebble Island has gone down in British Special Forces history.

The island has fewer