Last night as they toasted our landing south of the circle and good
weather I wondered if it were premature. When I awoke this morning
and saw the horizontal snowfall, I was sure. Brad (the expedition
leader) knows his stuff though. We waited and the 30 knot winds came
down to 26. We could go to Port Lockroy.
We went ashore. A few Gentoo penguins seemed to take no notice of
us or the weather. We visited the gift shop and returned to the ship.
It was still mighty cold out there. By lunchtime the winds were 36
knots. We endeavored to take a nap secure in the belief that there
would be no Zodiac cruise or landing in this weather. At 2:15 we
were awakened by Brad saying that the wind was down to 4 knots and that
we would go as soon as we could get ready.
Paradise Harbor may have been the most spectacular scenery yet. Jagged
peaks with glaciers, icebergs and water so calm as to make a mirror's
reflection of it all. We saw seals resting on icebergs and scooped up a
little glacial ice from the water. A small glacier calved and it was all
so serene.
Later we landed at Almirante Brown, an Argentinean research station
that they are putting back together after a fire about 10 years ago set
by the leader who did not want to leave. The wind had either picked
up or we were on the wrong side of the cliffs but it was cold and windy
and we had already been out in it for over an hour. We shopped and
headed back.
Tomorrow will be our last landings. Everything is so pretty here.
I wonder if anything will ever compare to the natural beauty and the wildlife
of this place.
This morning we were awakened by the announcement that we were entering
Deception Island. It is the semicircular rim of a volcano which crates
a bay. We zipped up to the bridge to see. It was gorgeous.
The sun was out and the dark volcanic cliffs jutted out of the sea.
As we entered I was quite surprised at how large the bay was. Fifty
ships our size could probably have been at anchor there without any trouble.
What a find for the whaling vessels of the day.
Safe harbor and sandy beaches. Black sand. The remnants of
the station that flourished there between 1911 and 1931 were still there
as were many fur seals. You have to be careful of fur seals.
I can't really blame them for being bad tempered -- we did nearly wipe
them -- out but if you get closer than about 50 feet they might charge
you. We did get to see one man on our ship get growled at and the
seal took a lunge in his direction.
Big whale oil tanks had holes
in the sides that looked almost like doorways. I think the British base used
them for storage. They echoed really well and we had some fun with
that.
This afternoon we landed at Aitcho Island near Greenwich Island for our
last landing before the Drake Passage. There are Gentoo and Chinstrap
penguin rookery there. The sun was out and the weather looked great
but by the time we were headed toward the island the wind was making nearly
horizontal snow. We had been told to climb over the ridge and down onto the other side. The wind on the ridge was brutal and I wanted to get down with all possible speed. At the bottom, if you kept your back to the wind, your eyes didn't tear up and that was good.
We had been told that the young curious penguins would come right up to you
and might sit on you if you were patient. We tried various poses.
Wade got something to work and he got one to sit on him but I was paying
attention to Chelsea and missed the photo op. He now had the secret
though. So he told Chelsea what to do and she got a few to nibble
at her.
I laid down with my head on a rock and waited. Three
young penguins came over and started pecking and trying to claim me and
chase the others off. Then one got up on my chest. So close
to my face that my nose was buried in his downy chest. I giggled
and he panicked and got off. Even after I sat up they continued to
try to figure out if I was edible. It was really fun.
They are so cute and sweet. I loved to watch them chase each other around and play and sleep and swim. I could not get a picture of it but they leap out of the water when they swim. It is fun to see.
As far as I am concerned you can keep your Chinstrap and Adelie penguins.
I like Gentoos and I know my family agrees. We have started our return.
The seas are rougher and both Wade and Chelsea are in bed a little queasy.
They will do better soon.
While Chelsea was doing her homework, we heard loud voices and discovered that they had filled the "pool". This is about a 10 foot cubic place upon deck 5. Several crazies had jumped in and Simon and one of the passengers were adding a song about Mad Dogs and Englishmen who go out in the noonday sun. Fairly appropriate, seeing that they are British.
We rounded Cape Horn on the way into the Beagle Channel. It is
amazing how much the temperatures have warmed up. The cape is just
this jagged gray rock with green moss on it but it was fun to see.
This was put together by Wade Guthrie