Thursday – February 26, 2009
Boring. At sea – not much to look at but a lot of ocean.
Friday – February 27, 2009
Boring – then a turn for the worse. Weather has drastically gotten better. The wind is Category 2 (hurricane force winds), and the sea is generating bigger and bigger waves. The wind is coming from the south, and the ship is listing to the port side. We have been told not to go outside – which isn’t a problem for me, since I am pinned to my cabin. I missed both lunch and dinner, as I literally couldn’t open the door to my cabin without wanting to hug the toilet. I felt as bad as I did with Karon on the catamaran ride out of New Zealand searching for whales – one of those days when you pray for someone to put out of your misery. The ship seems to moving in many directions at once – and my stomach is all over the place.
I should mention that when I say ‘hurricane winds’ that it doesn’t mean that there is a hurricane we are in the midst of like those in the Gulf of Mexico (i.e. Katrina). It just means that the winds, off the low, are blowing that hard.
Saturday – February 28, 2009
The wind has abated, and I feel much better. Watched albatrosses off the stern and got to eat again. I learned that at dinner last night, much of what was on the dining room tables ended up on the floor due to an aberrant wave. Reminds me of driving the campervan in New Zealand! We should be arriving at Tristan da Cunha on Monday morning. Guess who can’t wait to get on shore!
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
South Georgia to the open sea
Monday – February 23, 2009
Today we visited two sites. The first was Godthul where we went on a along hike (and rubber boots are not a good substitute for hiking boots), through mud and tussock grass, dodging baby fur seals and seeing gentoo penguins, some of which had to be walking a good mile from the beach and about 600 vertical feet above the ocean. There were reindeer off in the distance, some which had more than 20 points on their antlers, caused by inbreeding.
Then we landed at Jason Harbor among fur seal babies and king penguins. It was not quite as intense as the large colonies, but actually easier to get photographs. It is always interesting to see how the Kings and seals manage sharing the same area. Actually they do quite well together.
Tuesday – February 24, 2009
Our first stop was Prion Island in an area known as the Bay of Islands. It is a difficult area to land, as the government of South Georgia is trying to protect the nesting area of many sea birds, and permission to land is difficult to get. Prion Island is free of rats, which make it desirable for birds like the wandering albatross, giant petrels and others to nest. Most of the albatrosses we saw were just sitting on their nests (which are on the ground), but a few were soaring on the wind. None were landing, so it was very different from what Karon and I saw in Dunedin, New Zealand, a few years back. There the birds were in a courtship mode, and making all the overtures of one in love. But today it was mostly about incubating the egg in the nest. This island again was shared with fur seals, gentoo and king penguins, and many different birds.
The weather finally caught up with us Tuesday afternoon. We were to have a zodiac ride (meaning no shore landing due to the topography, but a close up look at the area) at Hercules Bay. The highlight was to be the macaroni penguins. The only other place I saw these flashy penguins didn’t have any light at all, so my photographs are blurry and/or dark (besides the low light, I was shooting from a bobbing zodiac). When we approached Hercules Bay the weather had turned to wet and windy (50 knots), which is not safe for zodiac cruising. So we will head for Cumberland Bay and anchor there at Grytviken off King Edward Pt. Grytviken was the first shore-based whaling station and is the final resting place for Sir Ernest Shackleton.
Geoff with King and Gentoo penguins on Prion Island.
Wednesday – February 25, 2009
Rain and wind were on hand when we stopped at Grytviken today. The highlight was the visit to the cemetery there, and seeing Shackleton’s grave. What you have to do there is toast the ‘Boss’, which is what Shackleton’s men called him. The toast was made with rum, so while some touched my lips, non was consumed. After a sip, we threw the remains onto his grave. The rest of the time there was spent viewing the remains of the whaling station and the museum and gift shop. The funny thing about gifts shops is that there is one at a British post in the Antarctic, and not to be outdone, Chile and Argentina are setting up gift shops at their outposts in Antarctica.
The wind got a lot worse as the day wore on. We were to duplicate the last 4 miles of Shackleton’s walk across South Georgia from Fortuna Bay to Stromness (another whaling station and one that Shackleton knew about before his expedition became one of survival). The 4 mile hike was not a trivial hike and with the wind blowing at a constant 60 knots, with gusts to 95-100 knots, the hike was scrubbed. So that left us with a short walk in Fortuna Bay – relatively sheltered, but still windy with a little rain, which later turned to sleet.
So the Antarctic portion of the trip is over, and we have now entered the Southern Seas, for the 4 to 4 ½ day voyage to the small island group of Tristan da Cunha and Nightingale Island. As I write this, the ship is already doing that roll thing from side to side. Earlier in the day we had a wave that hit the bow and the spray got all the way up to the bridge (some 30-40 feet above the sea).
Things will be pretty boring the next few days, unless we see some whales or some albatross. There won’t be much to write home about.
Today we visited two sites. The first was Godthul where we went on a along hike (and rubber boots are not a good substitute for hiking boots), through mud and tussock grass, dodging baby fur seals and seeing gentoo penguins, some of which had to be walking a good mile from the beach and about 600 vertical feet above the ocean. There were reindeer off in the distance, some which had more than 20 points on their antlers, caused by inbreeding.
Then we landed at Jason Harbor among fur seal babies and king penguins. It was not quite as intense as the large colonies, but actually easier to get photographs. It is always interesting to see how the Kings and seals manage sharing the same area. Actually they do quite well together.
Tuesday – February 24, 2009
Our first stop was Prion Island in an area known as the Bay of Islands. It is a difficult area to land, as the government of South Georgia is trying to protect the nesting area of many sea birds, and permission to land is difficult to get. Prion Island is free of rats, which make it desirable for birds like the wandering albatross, giant petrels and others to nest. Most of the albatrosses we saw were just sitting on their nests (which are on the ground), but a few were soaring on the wind. None were landing, so it was very different from what Karon and I saw in Dunedin, New Zealand, a few years back. There the birds were in a courtship mode, and making all the overtures of one in love. But today it was mostly about incubating the egg in the nest. This island again was shared with fur seals, gentoo and king penguins, and many different birds.
The weather finally caught up with us Tuesday afternoon. We were to have a zodiac ride (meaning no shore landing due to the topography, but a close up look at the area) at Hercules Bay. The highlight was to be the macaroni penguins. The only other place I saw these flashy penguins didn’t have any light at all, so my photographs are blurry and/or dark (besides the low light, I was shooting from a bobbing zodiac). When we approached Hercules Bay the weather had turned to wet and windy (50 knots), which is not safe for zodiac cruising. So we will head for Cumberland Bay and anchor there at Grytviken off King Edward Pt. Grytviken was the first shore-based whaling station and is the final resting place for Sir Ernest Shackleton.
Geoff with King and Gentoo penguins on Prion Island.
Wednesday – February 25, 2009
Rain and wind were on hand when we stopped at Grytviken today. The highlight was the visit to the cemetery there, and seeing Shackleton’s grave. What you have to do there is toast the ‘Boss’, which is what Shackleton’s men called him. The toast was made with rum, so while some touched my lips, non was consumed. After a sip, we threw the remains onto his grave. The rest of the time there was spent viewing the remains of the whaling station and the museum and gift shop. The funny thing about gifts shops is that there is one at a British post in the Antarctic, and not to be outdone, Chile and Argentina are setting up gift shops at their outposts in Antarctica.
The wind got a lot worse as the day wore on. We were to duplicate the last 4 miles of Shackleton’s walk across South Georgia from Fortuna Bay to Stromness (another whaling station and one that Shackleton knew about before his expedition became one of survival). The 4 mile hike was not a trivial hike and with the wind blowing at a constant 60 knots, with gusts to 95-100 knots, the hike was scrubbed. So that left us with a short walk in Fortuna Bay – relatively sheltered, but still windy with a little rain, which later turned to sleet.
So the Antarctic portion of the trip is over, and we have now entered the Southern Seas, for the 4 to 4 ½ day voyage to the small island group of Tristan da Cunha and Nightingale Island. As I write this, the ship is already doing that roll thing from side to side. Earlier in the day we had a wave that hit the bow and the spray got all the way up to the bridge (some 30-40 feet above the sea).
Things will be pretty boring the next few days, unless we see some whales or some albatross. There won’t be much to write home about.
Sunday, February 22, 2009
King Penguins on South Georgia - 2-22-2009
We’re not in Kansas anymore, but in the realm of the King penguin. After dinner the ship moved to Gold Harbor, and for those of us who felt sleep deprivation was worth, we went out in search of penguins at 6 AM. And to make matters worse, we pushed our clocks up 1 hour (so that now we are 6 hours ahead of Thousand Oaks).
Gold Harbor has the 2nd largest King penguin colony on South Georgia. There are only 200,000 of them in all stages. The King penguins on this black sand beach are here all year, and the breeding season is all year. I saw adults, penguins molting, young penguins in full molt, and baby penguins hatched in the last 2-3 weeks. The King penguins share this space with fur seals, southern elephant seals (real giants, and the big males, or beach masters, here do not have the bulbous nose found on the ones that come ashore in California near Cambria). As the expedition leader said, elephant seals are everything that an 8 year old boy would love – there’s belching, farting, sand throwing and fights.
The King penguins are magnificent. And like the animals in the Galapagos, they are not afraid of man, frequently coming right up to you, making taking a picture of them impossible. And they make incredible noise, constantly calling out – it’s constant since there are so many of them.
In addition to the 6 AM landing, we also had 3 more hours with penguins. Then it was back to the ship and moving to Saint Andrews Bay where the largest population of Kings reside (400,000 – 500,000).
When all is said and done, there had to be ½ million King penguins at St. Andrews Bay. When we landed by zodiac it didn’t look that impressive, but walking a good half mile from where we landed, the sight was absolutely amazing. The penguins were packed in like was seen in ‘March of the Penguins’, only we didn’t have winter conditions. However, there was no sun, and we have really excellent weather throughout this trip (cool – never varying much between freezing and 40 degrees). And finally bad weather caught up with us, for it started to rain. At that point the cameras get put away, and it was back to the ship.
Most of the time when we got to shore, getting into the zodiac is no big deal. Lately though, it has been interesting, and fortunately the crew knows how to get everyone in the zodiacs without getting wet. The problem is that there have been 3-4 foot swells, so as you attempt to board, the zodiac drops away like a rock. Timing is everything, and I haven’t heard of a mishap yet.
Tomorrow is another day – destination unknown at this time.
Gold Harbor has the 2nd largest King penguin colony on South Georgia. There are only 200,000 of them in all stages. The King penguins on this black sand beach are here all year, and the breeding season is all year. I saw adults, penguins molting, young penguins in full molt, and baby penguins hatched in the last 2-3 weeks. The King penguins share this space with fur seals, southern elephant seals (real giants, and the big males, or beach masters, here do not have the bulbous nose found on the ones that come ashore in California near Cambria). As the expedition leader said, elephant seals are everything that an 8 year old boy would love – there’s belching, farting, sand throwing and fights.
The King penguins are magnificent. And like the animals in the Galapagos, they are not afraid of man, frequently coming right up to you, making taking a picture of them impossible. And they make incredible noise, constantly calling out – it’s constant since there are so many of them.
In addition to the 6 AM landing, we also had 3 more hours with penguins. Then it was back to the ship and moving to Saint Andrews Bay where the largest population of Kings reside (400,000 – 500,000).
When all is said and done, there had to be ½ million King penguins at St. Andrews Bay. When we landed by zodiac it didn’t look that impressive, but walking a good half mile from where we landed, the sight was absolutely amazing. The penguins were packed in like was seen in ‘March of the Penguins’, only we didn’t have winter conditions. However, there was no sun, and we have really excellent weather throughout this trip (cool – never varying much between freezing and 40 degrees). And finally bad weather caught up with us, for it started to rain. At that point the cameras get put away, and it was back to the ship.
Most of the time when we got to shore, getting into the zodiac is no big deal. Lately though, it has been interesting, and fortunately the crew knows how to get everyone in the zodiacs without getting wet. The problem is that there have been 3-4 foot swells, so as you attempt to board, the zodiac drops away like a rock. Timing is everything, and I haven’t heard of a mishap yet.
Tomorrow is another day – destination unknown at this time.
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Friday – February 20, 2009
There is nothing to see but the ocean. We are a day and a half away from South Georgia. There are no islands out here, and we haven’t seen whales or albatrosses either. The seas are calmer than yesterday, but it is pretty boring. South Georgia will be interesting. I think we have gained about 12 hours to the projected schedule, so I hope we spend the extra time at South Georgia (4 to 4 ½ days), since once we leave South Georgia, we are at sea for 8 of the last 10 days of this voyage.
We have received a quite extensive handout of what to expect upon reaching South Georgia. The King penguins are the highlight with upwards of 500,000 breeding pairs on the island. Fur seals are even more numerous with an estimated population of 3,5000,000. Wandering albatrosses are also numerous here, with 4,000 annually breeding pairs, half of whom are found on Bird Island which is situated at the northwestern edge of South Georgia. The island is the breeding place for millions of seabirds.
Saturday – February 21, 2009
Being on a ship with nothing to see but water and more water in every direction for hours on end is a little nerve-racking. It just goes on and on, and how anyone survived in a wooden sailing ship without going nuts is beyond me. I guess you really have to like being on the water, with all everything that means. I’m proud to be a landlubber, and the time spent getting to Cape Town after South Georgia will attest to that I’m sure.
The good news is that I’m either ‘getting my sea legs’ and/or the patch and Sea-band are working.
South Georgia is a very isolated land. The powers to be are so concerned about introducing foreign animal or plant life to the island, that there is a whole list of things not to do. We had to vacuum our backpacks and fanny packs to insure that nothing on them would take on the land. They have learned from mistakes in the past – there is a reindeer herd on the island (and that’s not native).
We also have been taking other precautions throughout the voyage. Getting into and out of the zodiacs which take us to land, we have to scrub our boots and also step into some kind of solution that sterilizes the boots. There is also a procedure when leaving the ship that insures that no one is left behind when it is time to move on. Each passenger has a plastic card which gets him/her into his/her cabin. They also took a picture of everyone when we boarded the ship. So when we leave the ship, we scan the plastic card which then shows them a picture of who is leaving, and when we return doing the same thing it shows that we are back. We haven’t lost a passenger yet.
We arrived at South Georgia late today at the southern tip of the hundred mile long island running north to south. All our landings over the next 4 days will be on the east side of the island. Tonight we had a short visit to a cove where we saw King penguins, baby fur seals (who are really quite aggressive for being so small), and Macaroni penguins (they have orange feathers on their head). Tomorrow we should see one of the gigantic colonies of Kings.
There is nothing to see but the ocean. We are a day and a half away from South Georgia. There are no islands out here, and we haven’t seen whales or albatrosses either. The seas are calmer than yesterday, but it is pretty boring. South Georgia will be interesting. I think we have gained about 12 hours to the projected schedule, so I hope we spend the extra time at South Georgia (4 to 4 ½ days), since once we leave South Georgia, we are at sea for 8 of the last 10 days of this voyage.
We have received a quite extensive handout of what to expect upon reaching South Georgia. The King penguins are the highlight with upwards of 500,000 breeding pairs on the island. Fur seals are even more numerous with an estimated population of 3,5000,000. Wandering albatrosses are also numerous here, with 4,000 annually breeding pairs, half of whom are found on Bird Island which is situated at the northwestern edge of South Georgia. The island is the breeding place for millions of seabirds.
Saturday – February 21, 2009
Being on a ship with nothing to see but water and more water in every direction for hours on end is a little nerve-racking. It just goes on and on, and how anyone survived in a wooden sailing ship without going nuts is beyond me. I guess you really have to like being on the water, with all everything that means. I’m proud to be a landlubber, and the time spent getting to Cape Town after South Georgia will attest to that I’m sure.
The good news is that I’m either ‘getting my sea legs’ and/or the patch and Sea-band are working.
South Georgia is a very isolated land. The powers to be are so concerned about introducing foreign animal or plant life to the island, that there is a whole list of things not to do. We had to vacuum our backpacks and fanny packs to insure that nothing on them would take on the land. They have learned from mistakes in the past – there is a reindeer herd on the island (and that’s not native).
We also have been taking other precautions throughout the voyage. Getting into and out of the zodiacs which take us to land, we have to scrub our boots and also step into some kind of solution that sterilizes the boots. There is also a procedure when leaving the ship that insures that no one is left behind when it is time to move on. Each passenger has a plastic card which gets him/her into his/her cabin. They also took a picture of everyone when we boarded the ship. So when we leave the ship, we scan the plastic card which then shows them a picture of who is leaving, and when we return doing the same thing it shows that we are back. We haven’t lost a passenger yet.
We arrived at South Georgia late today at the southern tip of the hundred mile long island running north to south. All our landings over the next 4 days will be on the east side of the island. Tonight we had a short visit to a cove where we saw King penguins, baby fur seals (who are really quite aggressive for being so small), and Macaroni penguins (they have orange feathers on their head). Tomorrow we should see one of the gigantic colonies of Kings.
Friday, February 20, 2009
Wednesday – February 18, 2009
Last night we reached Mikkelson Harbor, a small, rocky islet located in the protected bay at the southeast corner of Trinity Island. The plan was to get out real early and kayak in the bay, so by 7 AM I was getting into the zodiac for a short trip to where the staff was setting up a dry way of getting into the kayak. By the time we got to the islet, plans for kayaking were starched, as the wind came up very suddenly, making waves. So I spent a few hours wandering around a gentoo penguin colony (with one lone chinstrap), avoiding beached fur seals and getting close (5 ft) to a Weddell seal (which looks a lot like a leopard seal).
Mid-afternoon will find us at Deception Island, which is essentially a giant caldera created by multiple volcanic collapses where the central underground magma chamber has receded deeper into the earth, creating a passageway, for the ship, into the middle of the caldera. Deception has erupted 9 times in the past two hundred years, the latest being 1967, 1969 and 1970.
If I failed to mention it on the prior posting, I did set foot on the Antarctic continent yesterday, at the Argentine research station where we also did a hike.
As we cruise to Deception Island, I am sitting on the top deck of the ship in the library/observation area. The view is about 300 degrees, with only the bridge in the way of allowing a total viewing area free of any obstructions. We are watching for whales, and icebergs like the one that just slipped by on the starboard side (I now know starboard (right) from port (left)).
After Deception, if things go to plan, we are to sail to Elephant Island, the place where Shackelton and his men ended up after their ship became trapped in the ice, and later was crushed by the ice. It was from here that Shackelton and a few sailors made their way across hundreds of miles of sea to South Georgia Island (this in itself was an amazing feat), then crossed a mountain range and several glaciers until they found a whaling station. Then they returned to rescue the remaining sailors. There was zero loss of life in the nearly 2 years spent in the Antarctic waters by this expedition.
These is lands are in the South Shetlands.
Thursday – February 19, 2009
We made our way through moderate seas to Elephant Island (named for the elephant seals that once populated the island, until whalers killed them all off). The seas were too rough to have zodiac rides to shore, so got in as close as possible with the big ship and then sailed out into a ocean, with nothing in our way until South Georgia Island. The waves started to kick up again, and the spray came all the way up to the 4th deck above sea level. With that, I retreated to my cabin, and slept the afternoon away.
Friday – February 20, 2009
We are at sea. Nothing to see - no whales, albatrosses or land. We make landfall at South Georgia in the afternoon on Saturday. Not much to report until then.
Last night we reached Mikkelson Harbor, a small, rocky islet located in the protected bay at the southeast corner of Trinity Island. The plan was to get out real early and kayak in the bay, so by 7 AM I was getting into the zodiac for a short trip to where the staff was setting up a dry way of getting into the kayak. By the time we got to the islet, plans for kayaking were starched, as the wind came up very suddenly, making waves. So I spent a few hours wandering around a gentoo penguin colony (with one lone chinstrap), avoiding beached fur seals and getting close (5 ft) to a Weddell seal (which looks a lot like a leopard seal).
Mid-afternoon will find us at Deception Island, which is essentially a giant caldera created by multiple volcanic collapses where the central underground magma chamber has receded deeper into the earth, creating a passageway, for the ship, into the middle of the caldera. Deception has erupted 9 times in the past two hundred years, the latest being 1967, 1969 and 1970.
If I failed to mention it on the prior posting, I did set foot on the Antarctic continent yesterday, at the Argentine research station where we also did a hike.
As we cruise to Deception Island, I am sitting on the top deck of the ship in the library/observation area. The view is about 300 degrees, with only the bridge in the way of allowing a total viewing area free of any obstructions. We are watching for whales, and icebergs like the one that just slipped by on the starboard side (I now know starboard (right) from port (left)).
After Deception, if things go to plan, we are to sail to Elephant Island, the place where Shackelton and his men ended up after their ship became trapped in the ice, and later was crushed by the ice. It was from here that Shackelton and a few sailors made their way across hundreds of miles of sea to South Georgia Island (this in itself was an amazing feat), then crossed a mountain range and several glaciers until they found a whaling station. Then they returned to rescue the remaining sailors. There was zero loss of life in the nearly 2 years spent in the Antarctic waters by this expedition.
These is lands are in the South Shetlands.
Thursday – February 19, 2009
We made our way through moderate seas to Elephant Island (named for the elephant seals that once populated the island, until whalers killed them all off). The seas were too rough to have zodiac rides to shore, so got in as close as possible with the big ship and then sailed out into a ocean, with nothing in our way until South Georgia Island. The waves started to kick up again, and the spray came all the way up to the 4th deck above sea level. With that, I retreated to my cabin, and slept the afternoon away.
Friday – February 20, 2009
We are at sea. Nothing to see - no whales, albatrosses or land. We make landfall at South Georgia in the afternoon on Saturday. Not much to report until then.
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Feb 13 - Feb 17, 2009
Friday – February 13, 2009
The last blog was written when I was very tired and not putting all my thoughts into the blog. When describing the room at the Radisson in Santiago, I also meant to convey the fact that it was so much nicer that camping or sleeping in the car.
Today we flew from Santiago to Ushuaia, and after being driven to Tierra del Fuego National Park (and the very end of the Pan American highway, we boarded a catamaran for lunch and the short voyage via the Beagle Channel back to the National Geographic Explorer.
Then it was find our cabin, take everything out of the suitcases and get organized in the cabin. This was much nicer to do with only myself in the cabin. This was followed by ‘an abandon ship drill’ with parkas, headgear, etc., including life vests. Cocktail hour (yes they have soft drinks on board), followed by dinner, and now it is time for bed and I hope catching up on much needed sleep.
We should be in Drake Passage around midnight, and for the next 36 we will be in the Drake Passage on our way to Antarctica. I’ve got the patch on, and haven’t felt bad at all, but it is only an hour or two before being in much rougher seas. I can feel the ship moving much more than an hour ago, but all is still good.
Saturday- February 14, 2009
As we moved further into the Drake Passage, things got very dicey for me. In fact, this Valentine’s Day is one I would like to forget. Simply put, I was exhausted from throwing up all day. If I wasn’t doing that I was sleeping the rest of the time. A pretty miserable day. The only good news was that there really wasn’t anything much to see. The bad news was to most people who had been here before (and there are a lot of them on this trip) they all said the passage was very calm.
Sunday – February 15, 2009
I’m still alive!
Hopefully the worst is over. I have actually eaten a little breakfast and lunch, and the food is still staying inside me. We have spotted land just before lunch and the hope is that we will land in the Zodiacs around 2 PM on Barrientos Island. The island is too small to develop a permanent ice cap, so here we will have open ground from which to observe chinstrap and gentoo penguin colonies, as well as: predatory skuas (birds who prey on the young penguins and penguin eggs, as well as other birds and their eggs) and seals. And we will be on solid land. There were many gentoos and chinstraps present upon landing from the mother ship to the zodiacs, in the hundreds of each species. They were very curious, and while we were told to stay at least 15 feet away, if they approached us, which they did, then it was OK to stand your ground (as they would come up to you and peck at whatever interested them. For some reason they thought my knee pad was something to sink there beak into.
At one point one of the naturalists was explaining why some penguins were chasing another. It was the baby’s attempt to get the mother to regurgitate more food into their gullet. So my natural reply, which was voted the best one-liner of the day: ‘If I’d been here yesterday I could have fed at least 20 penguins. Okay, it sounded better in context.
Monday – February 16, 2009
Today was a day filled with sunshine. The mountainous terrain looked great, there were plenty of penguins (gentoo, chinstrap and Adeleis ), as well as whales (humpback and minke), leopard seals, and the crazed skuas. Skuas are aggressive birds that will attack your head, sometimes with reason if you are, in their opinion, to close to their nest, and other times just ’for the hell of it’. I was bombarded by a pair of them, and these are big and powerful birds, about 10 times. It was tough to keep them away from my head when the pair would attack from two sides simultaneously. Fortunately I had a hiking pole to wave them off.
We have traveled through Errera Channel and landed on Cuverville Island, and later through Paradise Bay, followed by cruising through the Gerlache Strait before sailing through the Lemaire Channel and landing on Booth Island (our most southern latitude – around 65 degrees south). This means we did not quite reach the Antarctic Circle (which is between 66 and 67 degrees south Latitude). I’m not sure why I’m spelling this all out because I can’t find these places named on the maps I’ve seen on board.
The bad news is that I probably won’t be posting any photographic images to the blog. The internet service on board is expensive and slow. If I find I’m not using all my minutes later in the voyage, I’ll do some posting of images from here.
So far all the landings we have made have been on islands, not on the Antarctic mainland. That will change with tomorrow.
Tuesday – February 17, 2009
As I write this just before lunch, I have returned from Port Lockroy and Jougla Pt. (yes, another island) where I saw blue-eyed shags (another form of cormorants) with very fluffy down chicks. There were also gentoo penguins with fluffy chicks (some too young for this time of year) and gentoos sitting on nests with an egg that either was infertile or froze or was in some way compromised. And the young gentoos would just walk right up to you and clasp their beaks around your finger in the hope that some food would be inserted in their gullet. The other thing about gentoo penguin colonies is the constant noise. And the really scary thing is that we are all getting used to the smell of penguin poop….
I want to get this off before we go kayaking in Neko Harbor. As soon as I wrote this, the winds picked up like you wouldn’t believe – from around 10 knots to between 85 and 92 knots. Our plans for Neko Harbor were eliminated. As we were somewhat exposed to the wind, you could feel the ship start to bob and weave like a punch drunk fighter. The captain took us to Paradise Cove were the winds were calm. We hiked through snow for a view of the Bay, then took zodiac rides around the bay where we came within 5 feet of a leopard seal on an ice flow, and watched an iceberg split in half and roll over, which is the reason the zodiacs never get to close to these things as they could easily turn the zodiacs over.
NOTE: The posts will be few and far between. The internet is slow and expensive, and I even had problems getting this to blog. If I can’t get pictures into the blog from here, they will have to be entered when I return home.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Thursday - February 12, 2009 - Santiago, Chile
The trip has begun. After being in an airplane for 13 hours (18 on the clock as Santiago is 5 hours ahead of Los Angeles), I arrived in Santiago at 6 AM today.The flight was uneventful, although some drama was added before I left home as Karon read some documents indicating I was going to be overweight on the charter flight from Santiago to Ushiua, Argentina. So the result was to unpack suitcases in the driveway and get rid of excess stuff.
I must say it is really nice to get to a new foreign country, and after getting in all the necessary customs lines - entry/exit fee, passport control, document for where you are staying in Chile and are you carrying any agricultural products into the country, and no pen to file in the forms, and having all your gear Xrayed just before exiting to the street - to be greeted by someone who then gets you on the bus, gets you to the hotel, registered, etc. etc. Hassle free. And at the hotel we are greeted with water, cookies (at 7 AM!), and then sent to a room with 2 flat screen TVs (never mind that the stations are in Spanish), bathroom, bedroom and sitting room.
This afternoon there is a 2 1/2 hour tour of the old section of Santiago, and a get together dinner tonight.
Tomorrow it's off to the airport very early to catch the charter flight, followed by lunch aboard a catamaran in the Beagle Channel, and then we board the National Geographic Explorer around 5 PM to start the voyage to Antarctica and 2 days at sea. Our luggage will be delivered to the stateroom, where rumor has it that I do have the room all to myself. I have also learned that the meals are buffet style, so bring on the chow!
I must say it is really nice to get to a new foreign country, and after getting in all the necessary customs lines - entry/exit fee, passport control, document for where you are staying in Chile and are you carrying any agricultural products into the country, and no pen to file in the forms, and having all your gear Xrayed just before exiting to the street - to be greeted by someone who then gets you on the bus, gets you to the hotel, registered, etc. etc. Hassle free. And at the hotel we are greeted with water, cookies (at 7 AM!), and then sent to a room with 2 flat screen TVs (never mind that the stations are in Spanish), bathroom, bedroom and sitting room.
This afternoon there is a 2 1/2 hour tour of the old section of Santiago, and a get together dinner tonight.
Tomorrow it's off to the airport very early to catch the charter flight, followed by lunch aboard a catamaran in the Beagle Channel, and then we board the National Geographic Explorer around 5 PM to start the voyage to Antarctica and 2 days at sea. Our luggage will be delivered to the stateroom, where rumor has it that I do have the room all to myself. I have also learned that the meals are buffet style, so bring on the chow!
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Trip Itinerary
This trip to Antarctica came along very suddenly. The half-price offer from Lindland Expeditions/National Geographic was too good to let go (and no single supplement either). So here I am preparing to board the National Geographic Explorer ship for 23 days - and this is for someone who has not been a great 'sailor' in the past. So I'll be drugged up with anti-nausea patches, and hope for the best.
The itinerary for this trip is different from most of those going to Antarctica. I will fly from LAX on February 11th via Lima, Peru, and Santiago, Chile, where the group will congregate. After a half day tour of Santiago (if I'm still awake - no sleep on airplanes for me!), we fly on the 13th to Ushuai, Argentina, cruise the Beagle Channel (test out the patches), and board the Explorer.
We cross the legendary Drake Passage (think barf bags) on the 14th, and we arrive in Antarctic waters on the 15th, staying through the 19th, exploring the Antarctic Peninsula and surrounding islands. We will be exploring on foot, cruise in zodiacs and paddle in kayaks. And view lots of penguins and ice.
Next we travel by south Orkney Island - penguins, leopard seals and birds on February 20th, and are traveling to south Georgia Island on the 21st - oh boy, another day at sea. We are visiting South Georgia Island on Feb. 22nd to the 25th.
Here is where the trip is different from all others I've read about. The trip is titled 'Cape to Cape - Cape Horn (South America) to Cape of Good Hope (Africa)'. So leaving South Georgia Island we will cross the Southern Atlantic Ocean and head for Cape Town, South Africa. There will be 4 days at sea before we stop in the middle of the Atlantic and the small islands of Tristan da Cunha and Nightingale Island (two small dots in the middle of the ocean) for 2 days with the 300 souls who live here, and again seeing millions of birds and a unique race of rockhopper penguins.
From march 4th through the 7th we are steaming eastward to Africa. We land at Cape Town the morning of March 8th, and have until the evening of March 9th to explore. Then I catch a plane from Cape Town to Dakar, Senegal, and then onward to New York (early on March 1oth).
Karon will now join me in New York from March 10th through March 14th, for visiting the city, seeing theatre and museums. We fly back on March 15th.
Internet access is limited, but I will try to update this blog every few days when I can. The excitement builds.
The itinerary for this trip is different from most of those going to Antarctica. I will fly from LAX on February 11th via Lima, Peru, and Santiago, Chile, where the group will congregate. After a half day tour of Santiago (if I'm still awake - no sleep on airplanes for me!), we fly on the 13th to Ushuai, Argentina, cruise the Beagle Channel (test out the patches), and board the Explorer.
We cross the legendary Drake Passage (think barf bags) on the 14th, and we arrive in Antarctic waters on the 15th, staying through the 19th, exploring the Antarctic Peninsula and surrounding islands. We will be exploring on foot, cruise in zodiacs and paddle in kayaks. And view lots of penguins and ice.
Next we travel by south Orkney Island - penguins, leopard seals and birds on February 20th, and are traveling to south Georgia Island on the 21st - oh boy, another day at sea. We are visiting South Georgia Island on Feb. 22nd to the 25th.
Here is where the trip is different from all others I've read about. The trip is titled 'Cape to Cape - Cape Horn (South America) to Cape of Good Hope (Africa)'. So leaving South Georgia Island we will cross the Southern Atlantic Ocean and head for Cape Town, South Africa. There will be 4 days at sea before we stop in the middle of the Atlantic and the small islands of Tristan da Cunha and Nightingale Island (two small dots in the middle of the ocean) for 2 days with the 300 souls who live here, and again seeing millions of birds and a unique race of rockhopper penguins.
From march 4th through the 7th we are steaming eastward to Africa. We land at Cape Town the morning of March 8th, and have until the evening of March 9th to explore. Then I catch a plane from Cape Town to Dakar, Senegal, and then onward to New York (early on March 1oth).
Karon will now join me in New York from March 10th through March 14th, for visiting the city, seeing theatre and museums. We fly back on March 15th.
Internet access is limited, but I will try to update this blog every few days when I can. The excitement builds.
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