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ANTARCTICA 2003
1.Tuesday 11th November 2003 - Flying
I faced the normal problem of trying too much stuff into my bag but I am not taking more than on any other trip, except for 80 films and loads of winter woollies. The bag seems to weigh a ton though.
The M25 was clear to Gatwick North, I even fell asleep on the way I seem to be very tired, still might be recovering from Friday night. It only took a couple of seconds to check in, there was a guy on the floor trying to repack the biggest bag that I have ever seen he had about 4 bags and a bike. He needs his own cargo plane.
The first leg of the trip to Madrid was a bit late, but the seats on the plane were very close together. It was a 737 and had to change when we go to Madrid. The Air Stewardesses were excellent though they were wearing nice blue fleeces with a little logo on their left breast, reminding me of Star Trek uniforms. The girls reminded me of 7 of 9, not because they were blonde, had a scar over an eye or skin tight body stocking and huge breasts, it was because I was thinking of Star Trek! They were pretty useless though, dropping bread rolls and spilling drinks on people but I didn’t care.
A mad dash at Madrid airport to our waiting 747. The usual chaos at the transit X-ray machine, but I just walked straight through. I had a sneaky fag on the way then and then more chaos on the 747 trying to find the right seats and luggage space, one of the old planes with small overhead compartments and air stewards who were not at all helpful in assisting people to their seats who had obviously never been on a plane before. The food was nice on both flights, I can’t remember what either meal was but they were fine. No English films though, so I just had a few beers and then I was ready for a long load snore.
2.Wednesday 12th November 2003 Buenos Aires
Woke with a start in the middle of the night shouting ‘Oh what the fuck…’ and then woke up! I first thought I was in a cinema, but everyone was looking at me, so I just went back to sleep again, smiling! I have never done that on a plane (or in a cinema) before.
Had a great sunrise and then they threw some breakfast at us. Unfortunately, we had blokes on this leg of the journey. According to the map, we flew down the African Bulge, across the Atlantic to Rio and then down the coast to Buenos Aires. Foggy on landing so really did not see much, the flight took around 12 hours but did not really feel like it I must have slept well!
Got a taxi to the Grand Boulevard hotel, very nice place, not at all bad for $31. Took a walk around the city, even though it was cloudy and drizzly. Went to the obelisk, which seemed to be commemorating independence (from whom?) and then down to the old docks, which is now a large marina with cafes and offices in the old dock buildings. Walked past the Pink Palace remember Madonna being Eva Peron on the balcony, with a huge Argentinean Flag outside. Back to the centre and had a Super-Mac (also Mini and Big available), but then was very wet so went back to the hotel.
Did not see anything special, totty was quite nice, even though it is raining. Hotel TV has 80 channels! Had a couple of beers in the bar and steak and chips. Nothing exceptional.
3.Thursday 13th November 2003 - Ushuaia
Got up at some ridiculous hour in the morning to catch the plane to Ushuaia. Hung round in the domestic lounge waiting for the flight to depart. The MD-85 was full and flew down the coast over the Valdez Peninsula and then went inland to El Calafate, but was very pretty when we came into land with large white mountains surrounding a lake.
Almost everyone got off except for 20 others, and then another 100 got on. A short flight to Ushuaia, which was extremely pretty flying in. Great mountains. The town is quite large at the base of the mountains next to the sea. A lovely setting.
Got a taxi to my hostel. Taxi had a broken window. The hostel is basic and a bit out of town in a run-down / half-built area on a small hill. Walked downtown which took around 30 minutes, a few small shops along the way, but quite dusty. Town itself reminds me of Banff, just touristy shops along the main street. Many cheap restaurants though. Walked back to the hostel up the hill, which was a bit of a struggle and quite a few barking dogs so I will get a taxi tomorrow!
60 channels on the cable TV and a lot of them are in English.
4.Friday 14th November 2003 Ushuaia
Had a light breakfast and walked into town. Lots of roads named historically, like ‘Belgrano’, ‘Malvinas’ and ‘25th May’. Also ‘12th October’ but do not know what happened then. Stopped by the ‘Malvinas’ memorial from the people of Ushuaia, also a memorial to the Belgrano as there is a Naval Port here.
A couple of large ships in the port, with containers being unloaded. There was a smallish ship anchored in the bay, which is hopefully the Akademik Ioffe, as it looks nice!
Went round the Maritime Museum, which is based in the old prison. Interesting building but some of the exhibits could do with more thought. Many of the descriptions were in English and so that helped a lot.
After an excellent burger, I bought a new watch as my current one’s battery is running low. Cheap watches must be the only expensive things in Argentina; they were selling cheap plastic Casio’s for $200! Found a horrible chunky one for $66. Also bought another fleece as mine is not very windproof. Hope I made the right choice. Also went to the tourist information office and booked a couple of tours for my return from Antarctica. The totty is very young; they all have black hair and smile a lot. All the shops shut between 2pm and 4pm obviously the Spanish Siesta influence. Bought 200 Marlboro for $20. Bargain.
Last night on terra firma for a while.
5.Saturday 15th November 2003 En Route to Falkland Islands
Bit of a rush to pack my bags before the 10am checkout time. Walked into town again and could see the Akademik Ioffe at the quay, it was not the ship in the harbour as I expected, but it looked better than the photos with a nice new coat of paint. About the size I expected. A lazy day by the shore watching the birds.
Caught a taxi to the Ushuaia Hotel to meet my pickup. Met a couple of Kiwis in the bar who were commiserating their defeat in the rugby by the Ozzies. They were engineers on one of the ships in the harbour. A crowd of people in the bar were going on the same ship, as expected, a bunch of rich, old, posh America-types. I guess I would be about the youngest on the boat. One of the Argentinean guides was very nice and tasty but I guess she would not be coming with us! We waited a while at the next hotel pickup for a few stragglers but gave up and went to the ship.
Welcomed aboard by Australian and American accents. Cabin is quite large with lots of luggage space. My cabin-mate, Paul, looks a real earthy-type, last spotted with his binoculars looking for feathered friends, so I guess that he will be in his element on this trip.
Introduced to the guides in the dining room. There were about 15 of them, which excludes the 40-odd Russian crew. Explored the ship and had the obligatory lifeboat drill just after we set sail. The ship is impressive as she left the dock sideways seems to have forward and sterns propellers.
A large dinner, with 3 courses. Excellent really. Had a few beers in the bar ($3 each) and the ship started to roll a bit, but apparently it has active stabilisers so should remain level even in rough seas. Watched the pilot leave as we left the Beagle Channel for the open ocean, and then went up to the Bridge, which is impressive even in the dark with lots of modern equipment and radars.
Rocked to sleep.
6.Sunday 16th November 2003 En Route to Falkland Islands
Up at 6am and had a shower well serviced with very hot water. After breakfast, had a talk on B+W photography and filtration. Then a talk on land minds followed by birds of the Falklands. There are more than 350 million birds in the Southern Ocean, half of them are penguins and that account for 90% of the total weight so penguins are fat then! A lovely day with albatrosses and small birds flying off the stern. Calm water, clear skies and sunshine. I am glad I bought the fleece though.
After lunch, we had an uninspiring talk on the sovereignty of the Falklands and then a safety briefing on the do’s and don’ts for Antarctica pretty much all common sense really except for a few stupid questions from the American contingent as usual.
After dinner, in the bar there was a brief talk on the SS Great Britain, which was wrecked at Port Stanley for many years before being towed back to Bristol. Another calm night.
7.Monday 17th November 2003 West Falkland
Up just after dawn as we had slowed down to navigate the islands around West Falkland. Very picturesque, reminded me of Scotland really, we dropped a zodiac and picked up the Customs clerk before heading for West Point Island lots of birds albatross, petrels and cormorants.
After breakfast, we went ashore in the zodiacs dressed up like Michelin Men. The zodiacs go quite fast and took around 10 minutes to go shore as the Akademik Ioffe was anchored a way offshore. Saw some fur seals on the shore just as we rounded a headland into a bay. In a cove was a little settlement (house) with the union flag flying outside. Walked to Devils Point passing a Striated Caracara on the way, which came quite close to us.
Came to an albatross and Rockhopper Penguin rookery. Not very noisy, but the albatross flew very low over our heads coming into land we were obviously on their runway. Lots of little Rockhopper Penguins in the tussock grass, quite hard to spot, but they went round in little groups which was fun. They hid between the tufts of grass, which were about 1m high. All the little paths in the grass were made by the penguins. There were a couple of albatrosses displaying on their nest and a penguin splashing in a freshwater pool.
Caught a Landrover back to the bay, and went inside the house. I thought it would be basic, but they had a Hotpoint washer and a Dyson vacuum cleaner! They laid on a huge spread of cakes for us I think I am going to get fat on this trip! Zodiacs back to the ship for lunch.
After lunch, we sailed to Carcass Island and went ashore. A bit duller than this morning with rougher seas but it soon brightened up. There was a nice white sandy beach with a few geese with chicks and a couple of Magellanic Penguins jumped into the sea when we were quite close. We went inland and saw some more Magellanic Penguins in their burrows nodding their heads inside. There were a lot of Skua’s on the grass. At another crescent white sand beach there were oystercatchers.
Went inland again and amongst the tussock grass found three Magellanic Snipes that had brown dappled plumage and a very long beak. Very, very pretty birds. They froze when they saw us before running and flying away.
Saw a Gentoo Penguin breeding colony, with lots of nests. Very pretty birds with orange beaks and white around their eyes. Walked to the settlement (house) and saw more oystercatchers geese and snipes along the way. There were also three dolphins playing in the kelp close to the shore. Had more cakes in the island-owners house. A nice large house with a conservatory and range in their front room.
Got sunburnt today!
8.Tuesday 18th November 2003 En Route to South Georgia
Sausages and beans for breakfast. Entered Port Stanley harbour just ahead of a large passenger ship (480 passengers, 350 crew, 48,000 tons). We are 77 passengers, 45 crew, 15 guides and 6,500 tons.
Cold, windy, overcast and some drizzle. Rough in the zodiacs to the harbour pier then got on buses around the island to see Government House, the War Memorials, Stanley Airport and the museum, which was small but good, then walked into town. Got mini-buses to Gypsy Cove there were only a couple of penguins on the large beach that had been mined. There were also guns and emplacements from WW2. Saw some bright red-breasted birds. Hoards of people from the large ship there, all load-mouthed and shouting. They were all from North America.
The local girls look very attractive very surprising. Bought a pottery seal in the local shop.
Weighed anchor and carefully navigated the narrows out of harbour; it seemed tense and cautious on the bridge. Played tunes to the Sea Mariner on our horn before heading out to sea where it was fairly rough with white caps on the waves.
9.Wednesday 19th November 2003 En Route to South Georgia
A rough night. Was bumped around in my bunk all night. In the morning, it was difficult to walk due to the sea swells, and all the lower deck watertight doors were closed. Went to the bridge, we were making slow progress and taking a zigzag course. A clatter of crockery shifting was heard throughout the ship all morning.
Had lectures on South Georgia Penguins and some photography techniques. In the afternoon I watched the BBC drama on Shackleton, which was inspirational. During the evening, the seas died down and we made better speed. Some Pilot Whales were spotted off the bow.
10.Thursday 20th November 2003 En Route to South Georgia
Difficult to get up this morning, as I am feeling pretty tired. Made good progress during the night and had caught up time. Sea is not as rough and we can walk on the lower deck again.
Had talks on the Harems of Sea lions, fur seals and the elephant seals we would see in South Georgia. And also the birds of the island. There are 100 million birds; 44 million of them being Prions which look like fat seagulls to me. Also told of the overall objectives of the trip, hopefully lots of landings in South Georgia then maybe onto the South Orkney Islands before going to the South Shetland Islands and the Antarctica Peninsula. Last year there were two huge icebergs south of South Georgia, their combined size being 100 miles long and 30 miles wide the size of the island itself.
We passed over the Antarctica Convergence. The sea temperature went down around 5ºC, so it is now around 2ºC, and the air temperature is just below freezing so it’s starting to feel very cold outside. The shipping forecast is for gales; but is still relatively calm. Could see our first iceberg on the radar but too dark to see anything outside. No stars.
11.Friday 21st November 2003 South Georgia
Up quite early as we were off the coast of South Georgia. Very rugged with snow-capped mountains rising straight out of the ocean. Lots of icebergs, a bit cloudy but there were some breaks with blue sky. Very(ish) cold but still walked out on deck in just a fleece as we approached the Bay of Islands.
Passed two big icebergs just before breakfast we had to change course as they were directly in our path. The sun was on them just as we passed, which made them look brilliant white and had large waves crashing around their bases. The plan is to go ashore at Albatross Island at 9:30, but as it is the only place in the world to see Wandering Albatross nesting, we have to be very conservation conscious. We are split into 2 groups and may only have a total of 4 hours on the island in total, which means only 45 minutes for each group as we need time to embark and disembark.
At Albatross Island, it was blowing a 30-knot gale so we went ashore at Salisbury Plain instead. The weather as perfect. There were King Penguins in the sea and around the beach intermingled with fur seals which were big and nasty. There were also a couple of huge elephant seals that looked like beached whales as they we so big and made the fur seals look tiny. Walked through the penguin colony there were woolly youngsters, but no babies, or eggs. Walked up the tussock grass to a viewpoint where we could see the whole colony. There seemed to be more woollies than mature penguins.
Great view, penguins in the foreground, the ship in the bay with an iceberg behind it. On the way back, spotted a baby elephant seal snoozing with a big smile on his face. Troops of King Penguins were marching in lines to and from the beach a well as playing in the surf.
Started to snow at lunchtime, but we still went to Albatross Island, lots of kelp and the zodiac before mine was still waiting to get ashore. The bull fur seal beach masters were chasing our guides and preventing landing on the beach so we went ashore near some rocks.
Walked over the hills in the island and saw some giant petrels nesting as well as wandering albatross. Several young ones were flapping their wings or sitting on nets. One adult walked up a hill, stretched his wings and then threw himself off to fly.
Back at the beach, the beach masters were still preventing our guides from retrieving their gear. Went onto the ship as the other group went ashore. Fortunately it stopped raining and snowing but it was still dull and quite cold.
The guides got their gear back by a flanking manoeuvre and rushed the beachmasters en masse. Cold at night surprised?
12.Saturday 22nd November 2003 South Georgia
Sailed into Stromness, a tight anchorage but got close to the shore. Cannot actually go ashore due to the asbestos in the whaling station, but nice scenery. During breakfast, sailed to Grytviken, was foggy as we arrived and I was on the bridge as we dropped anchor.
Went ashore to the cemetery first. A large snotty-nosed elephant seal was near the beach, very ugly looking critter. Saw Shackleton’s grave, and we all toasted ‘the Boss’ with Guinness and then threw the rest onto his grave.
Walked around what we could of the whaling station. Very rusty with construction workers removing the asbestos. Went to the church and museum. Walked to Hope Point to see the Shackleton memorial and there were loads of baby elephant seals as well as some big ones along the route.
Back at the whaling station, took a zodiac past the flensing deck where 175,250 whales were killed from 1910 1965. The sky was clear blue and could see some of the huge mountains inland. Some fresh snow around. Very warm in the sun, but cold in the shadows.
Sent some postcards home, but the next pickup is not until 7th December! There are 4 residents in South Georgia, and no pub! We had a barbeque on the aft deck; invitees were the residents who were happy with the company. Very cold though, but a great setting with the sun going down behind the mountains.
Sailed that night for St. Andrews.
13.Sunday 23rd November 2003 South Georgia
Up at 4am to go shore at St Andrews Bay to see the King Penguin colony, which is twice the size of that on Salisbury Plain, the largest in South Georgia. Ship had anchored far away from the beach, as it is uncharted waters. Choppy and cold and rough on the zodiacs but a nice black beach full of king penguins and elephant seals. Saw a couple of fur seals but not many. Also, a lone Gentoo penguin, which looked lost amongst the Kings.
Great scene of lots of young woolly penguins surrounded by adults. Nice sunshine. But the elephant seals were best, the bulls were growling and lolloping down the beach scattering the penguins and pushing baby seals out of their path to mate with the females, which was fast and noisy and smelly. The zodiac back to the ship took 30 minutes in a choppy cold sea. Glad to be back on the ship for Hobbit’s Breakfast (first and second breakfast).
Sailed to Gold Harbour. Had a quick snack and talk before we went ashore. Moored a lot closer to land and could see a hanging glacier, similar to Angel Glacier at Mt Edith Cavell in Jasper, Canada. A lot easier in the zodiacs, but big swells. Lots of big elephant seals on the beach throwing sand onto their backs. Also, lots of King Penguins and just a couple of Gentoo Penguins. There were giant petrels eating an elephant seal carcass.
Walked through a tussock bog up to the glacier terminal moraine to get a view of the glacier lagoon and the glacier itself. Excellent view of woolly King Penguins and adults on the beach. Another sunny day. The elephant seals are my favourite. Back to the ship it was fun trying to get on the gangway due to the swell of the ocean.
Time for lunch, but seems like we have had a full day already! After lunch, boarded a zodiac to Cooper Bay. Very choppy with waves crashing over the front. The guides in the first zodiac swapped to another mid-ocean due to their first one being too soft looked a bit scary to me! We headed further towards the shore but had to abort due to the sea being too rough and we got soaked.
Immediately left, hoping to find icebergs. We did. Lovely blue sky showing silhouetted icebergs along the coast, as well as some blue ones. We were trying to find the remains of the large icebergs before dark, but did not succeed. Also a flock of ½ million Prions.
14.Monday 24th November 2003 En Route to South Orkney
Did not wake until 7am. Rough sea. Cold. Passed by an enormous iceberg after breakfast. It did not show up on the radar, but just went on and on. Probably 25 miles long, very impressive and totally flat. These icebergs (A-38A and A-38B, originally A-38 was 90 miles long and 30 miles wide) are the remains of the collapse of part of the Ronne ice-shelf in October 1998.
Had talks on why Antarctica is cold, Antarctica Research Stations, the Bruce Expedition and the Plan for the next 10 days. Still seems that we have an entire holiday in front of us!
Sea starting to get a bit rough with large swells and snow, but we are still making 14 knots. Passed by the 60ºS latitude at 23:00 we were now officially in Antarctica.
15.Tuesday 25th November 2003 En Route to Elephant Island
A few bumps in the night. Have arrived at the South Orkneys, but rough icy seas and foggy snow. Large waves are crashing over the bow.
We tried to get in the south side of the Laurie Island but it is too iced up, so travelling around to the north side of the island to try there. Had presentations on Digital vs. Film and Birds of the Antarctic Peninsula. Our landing on the South Orkneys has been aborted due to the amount of ice in the bays we could not contact the Argentinean base so we have set sail due west to Elephant Island. The sea is calmer than this morning and is not so cold outside and has stopped snowing with fewer icebergs. Still miserable outside, and the barometer reading is almost falling off the chart!
Continued west in the afternoon, passing a few icebergs, with some big waves. Still making 14 knots. Some snow squalls. Heading due west with a tail wind, apparently quite unusual, as the wind is normally westerly.
16.Wednesday 26th November 2003 Bransfield Strait
Another cold morning surrounded by icebergs. We went through brash ice that scrapped against our hull. Went around a large field of icebergs to get to Elephant Island from the north, which delayed us a little. Some icebergs had penguins on them.
The ship hovered 2 miles off Point Wild but could not see the island. One zodiac went in and reported that the waves were too big for a landing, so we would just cruise around in the zodiacs instead.
The waves were big, I was at the front of the zodiac (again) so got cold and soaked and could not see anything as I had to close my eyes due to the snow sand-blasting me in the face. Went to the west of Cape Wild and katabatic winds were blowing off the glaciers with horizontal snow straight into our faces. Exceptionally cold. Could see the island quite clearly, lots of penguins on the deep snow shore. Could see the plinth commemorating where Shackleton’s men spent 4½ months it was a very small and narrow isthmus. Went around the other side of the point, to where the James Caird was launched. More penguins and more snow, and the sun trying to come out. After around an hour we went back to the ship, which was hovering between icebergs. Picked up a small lump of ice on the way full of ‘dinosaur farts’.
Changed out of my soaking clothes and soon warmed up. Excellent trip!
We powered southwest between the South Shetland Islands and the Antarctic Peninsula (Graham Land) as there is a front coming in. The barometer reached 959 mb. Large waves were crashing over the bow, which made the ship creak, but it was very stable without any rolling. Excellent talk on ice in the afternoon, covering glacial ice, sea ice and ice shelves that form different types of icebergs.
Bitterly cold in the evening, did not get dark until 11pm. It was 6ºC and a 45-knot wind.
17.Thursday 27th November 2003 Gerlache Strait
Woke up and the ship was still. Looked outside and realised that we were really in Antarctica surrounded by icebergs of different shapes and sizes with a blue sky and calm ocean. We were still powering southwest at 15 knots.
Quite beautiful. Passed an old grotty green iceberg. Can see the Peninsula to our left. Very cold outside with a biting wind. Icicles were dangling from the superstructure of the ship and ice has formed on the deck, which the crew were trying to clear.
Moored in Cierva Bay. Took zodiacs to explore the Sikorsky Glacier and saw a couple of Crabeater seals and a leopard seal darting around the brash ice. A few birds and an unoccupied Argentinean research station. Also, saw some red jellyfish-type creatures with long tentacles bobbing in the sea.
In the evening we headed into the setting sun, through the Gerlache Strait on our way to the Lemaire Channel. Was still light at midnight.
18.Friday 28th November 2003 French Passage
Up early at the entrance to the Lemaire Channel. Quite high snow-covered mountains on both sides, not a cloud in the sky but lots and lots of icebergs.
Could see the entrance to the channel in the distance but it looked impossible to get there there was just too much ice. The views were excellent though so I did not mind too much as it was so pretty.
The Captain used the ship as a battering ram to push icebergs out of our path, I presumed that this was to clear a way so that we could turn around. We were completely surrounded by ice, which was several feet thick. It made horrible scraping noise against the hull. We slowed to a walking pace and used the thrusters to manoeuvre. There were Crabeater Seals lying on some of the icebergs. After 2 hours we had made little progress, so had breakfast and I thought we would abort and turn.
After breakfast, I looked out of a porthole and saw clear water, I thought that we had turned around but no the channel was clearing. The icebergs had dispersed and we were entering the channel, which was clear. The sun was shimmering against the pack ice and the snow on the mountains. Vertical cliffs rose from the channel on both sides. The water was blue and clear; the icebergs were a brilliant white. There was not a cloud in the sky. Beautiful. And no exaggeration.
We made good progress through the Lemaire Channel, the view behind was not so spectacular as it was into the rising sun. It was warm and not windy. The sea was flat and reflected the snow-covered mountains like a frosted mirror. Kodak Canyon (or Iceberg Alley) had lived up to its nickname!
At the south end of the channel, we stopped and went ashore in zodiacs on Peterman Island. There were Gentoo Penguins porpoising in the sea and swimming directly under the zodiac. We could see them clearly as the water was so clear. A tremendous sight.
Ashore there was an old Argentinean refuge and a scientist’s camp for counting penguins. Their tents had solar panels for electricity. The snow was deep. There were Gentoo Penguins nesting along the shore, and after a short walk we found Adelie Penguins tobogganing in the snow. The Gentoo Penguins walked around the ice holding out their hands/wings/flippers looking very funny. Walked up to the edge of a glacier and then back to the campsite. Very hot and very sunny. Still no clouds. A joy to lie in the deep white snow. Marvellous. Pristine and unspoilt and I cant say that about too many places that I have been. The weather is astonishing and unheardof.
A lone Weddell Seal was also on the ice. After a Chinese buffet, when I had seconds (and thirds), we went to a Ukrainian Research Station, the Vernadsky Station which is the furthest south we reached at 65º13.804’ S, 64º14.567’ W. Very clean inside, nice people, 15 in total. We were the first visitors of the season so they think of it as the end of their winter. They measure the ozone layer here, it used to be the British Faraday Station.
Went for an iceberg cruise. Very pretty with grottos in the icebergs and clear water so we could see how deep they went very deep! We headed north, not through the Lemaire Channel, but through French Passage. Excellent sun in the evening and night.
19.Saturday 29th November 2003 Paradise Bay
Awoke in Neko Harbour. Very beautiful and stunning scenery. Surrounded by snow-capped peaks, with small icebergs and sea ice surrounding us. A Gentoo Penguin site is directly ahead on the Antarctica Continent Mainland. A better setting could not be imagined.
Went ashore at Neko Harbour. Lots of Gentoo Penguins porpoising and playing on the beach. Small pockets ashore, going through mating rituals and lots of penguin sex. Hiked up to the top of a hill for nice view of the harbour as well as seeing a glacier. There was a report of a Fin Whale, but I did not see it.
During lunch, sailed to Paradise Cove. Lots of cloud and quite cold. Two Minke Whales were spotted, but I missed them again! Got our camping gear, which consists of a sleeping bag, bivvy bag, sleep liner and sleep mat. No tents then, so its more like sleeping in the snow than camping!
Went for a zodiac cruise around Paradise Bay, saw a few birds, Crabeater seals and nice blue bergy bits. Went ashore at an old Argentinean Research Station and climbed up a hill. Not great views as the clouds were quite low, but we tobogganed down using our life-jackets as nappies. Had 3 goes but ended up like a rag doll and spinning around head first. The snow was very deep and difficult to walk on, but great fun.
After dinner, went ashore for camping near the research station. The crew had carved steps up from the beach, which looked like a marble staircase. Dug a ‘grave’ to sleep in, some of the crew dug theirs to be 4’ deep with steps, air mattresses, hot-water bottles and pillows. There was also one big hole for the toilet barrel.
Went to bed about 22:30, very light with a blue tinge to the sky like cyan that must have been reflection or refraction from the snow in the distance. Quite warm in the sleeping bag but woke up about midnight feeling claustrophobic so ditched the sleeping bag liner and then felt OK.
The ship had weighed anchor and moved further away due to a large iceberg lurking in the bay. It hovered all night, without an anchor.
Slept better than I thought I would. Lowest was 4ºC.
20.Sunday 30th November 2003 En Route to South Shetlands
Woken by others moving around, talking and shovelling snow. Last up about 6:45 to another glorious sunny day. Apparently, there are normally only 17 days of sunshine a year here, so we are having far more than our fair share!
Filled in my grave and was a bit harder than last night to dig the snow as it had frozen during the night. A nearby glacier carved with a bang and a number of waves washed against the beach. Went back to the ship for breakfast and we headed towards Orne Harbour. Still fantastic scenery, and there was another announcement about Minke Whales in front of the ship from the Captain, but I missed them again, but ran down to the bow and saw a couple of sprays from their blowholes, but nothing spectacular.
At Cuverville Island there were lots of pretty icebergs with fluting and cracks and some arches. We went ashore to the Gentoo Penguin colony. There was a lone Adelie Penguins there, and also saw a Chinstrap Penguin, which was very pretty. Lots of penguins were porpoising and playing just offshore.
At the colonies, lots were mating and there was a leucustic Gentoo Penguin. Who was not albino, but had a coffee colour instead of black. The sun shining off his back was very pretty. He seemed all alone though, and followed us for a while. I was wearing snowshoes, which helped walking in the deep snow very much easier, but it was still hard work.
Went for a zodiac cruise around the bergy bits and saw several Crabeater seals with nice shiny coats.
After lunch, we sailed to Wilhelmina Bay and saw a spectacular ‘coliseum’ iceberg on the way. Went for a zodiac ride around the bay. Saw a few seals and lots of icebergs. Amazing that we are getting a little blasé about such excellent scenery! As soon as we got aboard we set sail for Deception Island. There was an auction after dinner, and the post lot were bidding ridiculous prices for ‘souvenirs’. Late night in the bar.
21.Saturday 1st December 2003 Drake Passage
Arrived at Deception Island. A black bit of rock due to being an active volcano, last erupting in 1971. Going ashore at Bailey Head saw some Chinstrap Penguins in the surf and an elephant seal on the beach. The chinstraps had a pink highway through the ice to their rookeries that were vast. As we crossed the highway, the penguins ran away the first time that this had happened they were actually scared of us.
Walked around the rookeries, most birds were on nests with single eggs, and a bit of a racket as they were howling like wolves! Their nests consisted of little pebbles, there was the penguin who was stealing rocks from other nests to take back to his partner sitting on the nest naughty chinstrap!
After the first landing, we sailed through Neptune’s Bellows into the Deception Island Caldera and Whalers Bay. Big open water, with a research station and another tour ship at anchor that was the Professor Molchanov. Had a group photo taken with everyone on the bow and lots of stuffed penguins and a cuddly polar bear! Snow in Port Foster was great!
During dinner we sailed to Livingstone Island. The sun was shining but the sea was rough and so we took the long route to the beach at Hannah Point. The beach was black sand, with wallows of elephant seals sitting together malting but no large males.
We saw a few bones and fossils, as well as the two flowering plants in the whole of Antarctica. There were a couple of Gentoos wandering the beach, and further along there were nest sites of Gentoos and Chinstraps. All have eggs and so no Penguin porn. There were also two Macaroni Penguins amongst the Chinstraps very unusual for these to nest so far south.
On a rock overlook we could see the Gentoos coming shore, and a little precarious penguin path along a snowy cliff edge with an apprehensive Chinstrap looking down. Also a great view of Deception Island covered in snow. A great spot.
We set goodbye to Antarctica and sailed north to the Drakes Passage and Cape Horn, past Smith Island.
22.Tuesday 2nd December Drake Passage
Lay-in this morning as lots of beers in the bar last night and so missed breakfast. The sea is calm, and we are making good progress. More like Drake Lake than Drake Passage.
Saw a humpback whale and circled it several times. Saw its tail fluke quite close to the ship. It was also snowing, so was quite magical.
Excellent talk on Conservation in Antarctica, problem being the reduction in the gene pools resulting in inbreeding resulting in no further biodiversity of the species due to hunting down to near-extinction levels for the whales and seals. This gives a boom for the seals, but the whales cannot grow to the original numbers due to their long gestation timescales.
Found several humpback whales. A group of 2, then a group of 3, then a group of 4. The ship got very close enabling us to see them underwater as they were close to the surface, probably feeding, as there were also many seabirds around. Saw lots of big flippers, and the odd fluke. Four of the whales were in a line off the bow of the ship. A majestic and precious moment. The blue colour from their white flippers showing through the water was incredible, the barnacles ion their heads clearly visible. Unforgettable.
Powernap in the afternoon, passed over the Antarctic Convergence as the sea temperature suddenly increased. It got dark again at night.
23.Wednesday 3rd December 2003 Beagle Channel
We are only 40 miles from Cape Horn, still in very calm waters. Had to pay the bar bill which was $232. Could see Cape Horn clearly by midday, and sailed from the Southern to the Pacific to the Atlantic Oceans. Interesting tour of the ship in the afternoon, it was designed for Oceanographic Research using high frequency sound waves between the Akademik Ioffe and its sister ship. The two ships could work 12,000 km apart and could also detect submarines. It is not allowed into US waters as the regard it as a spy ship.
It has an Aqua-master swivel rear propeller and side propellers that allow it to remain stationary in seas, or be very manoeuvrable and basically move sideways.
The Captains Dinner in the evening was excellent. Huge buffets were prepared with many nice desserts. Was in the bar until 03:30, saw the pilot being picked up. The Beagle Channel was dark at 23:00 and it was much warmer than the last few days.
24.Thursday 4th December 2003 Ushuaia
A real struggle to get up this morning. Did not wake until 07:30. Stuffed all my gear into my bags, I have too much stuff as usual so I will need to dump some! Could not eat too much at breakfast and we have already docked. Pier is much emptier than when we left. Still sunny, and mountains look very pretty again, but less snow!
Everyone was milling around and looking lost, coaches came and our luggage was lifted off the bow using the bow crane the first time that I have seen it being used. The coach dropped me off at my hostel, bit of a struggle for it to wind up the gravel roads up the hill. The other guys were wondering where we were going!
Had to wait for my room to be ready, as it is still only 09:30. Apparently, there were several inches of snow in Ushuaia whilst I was away. Had the same room as before, and had a powernap well more of a hibernation really. Did not get up until around 16:00 and then walked into town. The ship was still on the quay, and looked down on the bow probably due to all the extra beer being taken aboard. Confirmed the departure for the trip to the Park the following day, then spent a couple of hours on the internet deleting spam emails.
Went down to the quay again and the ship had departed, but I could just see a white dot in the distance as it was sailing through the Beagle Channel. Had a big fat steak before going to the Dublin Irish bar for a beer. The bar staff are certainly NOT Irish, and there is a model of R2D2 in the corner!
[Continued in Patagonia]
Trip Summary
The most well organised trip that I have ever been on. The food was stupendous, the guides expert and the scenery truly wonderful. The unexpected highlight was the magnitude and wealth of wildlife on the tiny island of South Georgia.
Highlights Falkland Islands
§Rockhopper Penguins in tussock grass §Low-flying Albatross §Settlements §White sand beaches §Magellanic Snipe §Magellanic Penguins in burrows §War memorial and museum
Highlights South Georgia
Highlights - South Orkneys
Highlights - Elephant Island
Highlights Antarctic Peninsula
Highlights South Shetlands
Highlights Drake Passage
Animals Spotted
AnimalFalkland IslandsSouth GeorgiaGraham LandGentoo PenguinYYYMagellanic PenguinYRockhopper PenguinYChinstrap PenguinYMacaroni PenguinYAdelie PenguinYKing PenguinYWandering AlbatrossYYBlack-browed AlbatrossYGiant PetrelYYFulmarYPrionYShagYYUpland GooseYTurkey VultureYStriated CaracaraYOystercatcherYMagellanic SnipeYSkuaYYKelp GullYYAntarctic TernYYMinke WhaleYHumpback WhaleYDolphinYLeopard SealYCrabeater SealYWeddell SealYSouthern Elephant SealYYAntarctic Fur SealYYYReindeerYJellyfishY
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