Antarctica

Updated:

July 23, 2008

Insured, Licensed

Antarctica

The Earth's Last Frontier

(click all pictures to enlarge)

My son Josh and I left Miami on January 6 for Buenos Aires with a follow-on charter flight to Ushuaia Patagonia Argentina arriving on January 9th to board Orient Lines' Marco Polo. To give you an idea of how far south Ushuaia is - the southernmost city in the world - Buenos Aires and Cape Town South Africa are at the same latitude and we flew three hours south!!! Marco Polo is the largest cruise ship to land passengers on the continent, and by international agreement, the ship, although having capacity for 800 passengers, limits the cruisers to 500 folks – the most that can be landed in a single day on the continent. To create the expedition experience, Orient brings aboard a team consisting of an Expedition Leader, assistant leader, Ice Master, Beach Master and six lecturers in various naturalist fields from geology to Ornithology. These folks provided excellent lectures throughout the voyage especially during the two sea days crossing the Drake Passage south of Cape Horn. They additionally provide commentary during cruising periods and times when the probability of viewing whales, penguins and birds is maximized. Literally all of these wonderful people had been to Antarctica many times for study and to lead expeditions such as this. After the traditional life boat drill, we departed and sailed down the Beagle Chanel into the Drake Passage south of Cape Horn. We were lucky and dodged two fronts that would have turned the most notorious water in the world into a wild ride. Our first Antarctic experience came as we cruised the volcano caldera of Deception Island at the south end of the South Shetland Islands. This basin was formed as the volcano erupted in the late 1960's and early 1970's. Although calm now, it is still active geologically. The entrance channel is marked by "Neptune's Bellows". You really get a sense of the beautiful and stunning desolation. From this picturesque adventure, the ship continues south for two days of zodiac cruising and two zodiac landings. Zodiac cruising is wonderful in that the twelve cruisers plus a boat captain and one of the naturalists cruise around penguin nesting areas, seals sleeping and absolutely fantastic ice berg formations. Cruising within feet of such spectacular animal life and ice is breathtaking. Our first Zodiac cruise was at Cuverville Island - our first up close and personal visit with ice bergs and penguins. Sailing further south during the night and next day, we transited the Le Maire Channel and stopped for our next Zodiac cruise at the Yalour Islands - 65 degrees 14 minutes south latitude - only about 72 miles north of the Antarctic Circle. Again the ice formations and Adelei penguins were spectacular. We were as far south as we were going. After the last Zodiac was loaded we headed north for our first landing at Paradise Harbor - the site of a Chilean Station, where there was both wonderful scenery and many, many nesting Gentoo penguins, many with one or two chicks! Additionally the Chileans run a small gift shop and will stamp your passport! Without a doubt, one of the most beautiful aspects of the Antarctic summer are the spectacular sunsets - at about 11:30pm (sunrise was at about 3:30am). As we headed north, our second landing was at Half Moon Island in the South Shetland Islands, where you get up close and personal (no closer than 5 meters) with Chinstrap penguins – again several with hungry chicks nestled under the parent. Our landings on Antarctica were complete - almost too much spectacular scenery to believe. We had a transit back to Ushuaia again through the Drake Passage (with 30 foot seas and 45 knot winds across the bow), a cruise past Cape Horn, up the Beagle Channel and a visit to the National Park in Ushuaia! It was truly a trip of a lifetime!