Category Archives: Antarctica

Antarctica Pt 2 DEC 29 2024

As we continued around the islands and fjords of Antarctica, we were blessed with great weather other than occasional fog and low visibility. Unlike anything we had ever seen, we continued to be in awe of the majestic beauty.

Gentoo Penguin Colony

For two days we had snow and we were visited by a snow penguin.

One day we stopped near Palmer Research Station operated by the United States Antarctic Program. They do marine and biology research focused on seabirds and plankton. We watched as two zodiacs brought research scientists over for presentations on their work. Can you see all the ice in the water?

They had lunch and dinner on the ship and they mentioned how they especially enjoyed the fresh fruits and vegetables. I believe they were gifted with several boxes of fruits and vegetables to take back to their station.

We had heard so much about Drake Passage and Cape Horn. They have a notorious history for rough water, fierce winds and dangerous waves. We had already crossed Drake Passage once on the cruise with no problem. Now we were about to be tested again as we cruise Drake Passage for a second time as we cruise to Cape Horn, located on the small Hornos Island.

We cruised completely around Hornos Island. The reputation of Cape Horn is notorious as it is known as “the graveyard of ships”. There have been many shipwrecks here with more than 10,000 lives lost, making it the largest underwater cemetery in the world. After the opening of the Panama Canal, the number of ships navigating around the Horn was significantly reduced.

The day dawned with beautiful clear skies, no wind and calm seas. Unbelievable! The Captain said it is very rare to see this kind of weather here. Normally this area has 278 days of rainfall a year. We saw a sailboat close to shore and the cruise director commented it was crazy for a sailboat to be in these waters.

This area is part of Chile’s Tierra del Fuego archipelago. We could see the lighthouse, also called the “Lighthouse at the End of the World” high on the hill. Operational since 1991, it is manned by Chilean navy personnel. Currently a family of four lives there with their cat. They came outside and waved at us and the captain sounded the ship’s horn in return. Impossible to get a picture of them that far away without a high powered lens. A meteorological station is also kept there. Next to the lighthouse is a small chapel.

On the hill was the Cape Horn Monument also called the Albatross Monument.

The name comes from the two metal halves which when viewed from a certain angle, looks like an albatross in flight. It was built to withstand the 120 mph winds which blow at times. The memorial was built in 1992 and is dedicated to the memory of the men from every nation who died around Cape Horn. One interesting tidbit, during the 1978 Beagle Conflict between Chile and Argentina, Chile covered the island with landmines. In 2006 a project was started to remove the mines but there are still many unaccounted for.

Only members of the Chilean navy can serve as the Cape Horn lighthouse keeper. The keeper must be married in order to have companionship which is considered necessary due to the extreme isolation. The assignment is for twelve months however the family can request an extension. The current family just completed their second rotation and has requested a third. Supplies are restocked every 60 days but this can be delayed due to weather. Attempts to grow food in a greenhouse failed due to harsh conditions.

Sadly, we have completed our exploration of the Antarctic Peninsula.

Next up: on to one last port in Argentina then Chile

 

Antarctica Pt 1 DEC 24 2024

Antarctica…..I don’t even know where to begin. Remote, majestic, mysterious, silent, cold. Unlike any place on earth. According to Brittanica it is “the world’s southernmost, highest, driest, windiest, coldest and iciest continent.”  It also has the world’s largest desert, a polar desert.  It is the fifth largest and least inhabited continent.  It is almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle, surrounded by the Southern Ocean and contains the South Pole.  Most of Antarctica is covered by a sheet of ice which averages a thickness of 1.2 miles.  The seasonal population is between 1,300 to 5,100 depending on the season.
Antarctica is governed by about thirty countries as part of the 1959 Antarctic Treaty System.  As part of the Treaty, military activity, nuclear explosions, and nuclear waste disposal are all prohibited in Antarctica. We spent four days cruising the coast of Antarctica named Antarctic Peninsula including Elephant Island and Deception Island.

For the most part we had great weather except for occasional low visibility due to fog.  Since this is summer in this part of the world, we had 22 hours of daylight each day. Great for continuous scenic viewing.
Elephant Island is named for the elephant head like appearance and the sighting of elephant seals in 1821.

The next bay after Elephant Island is Hope Bay. The Captain informed us that Hope Bay was full of icebergs so the ship would add cruising of Deception Island to our itinerary instead.

Deception Island is the flooded caldera of an active volcano.  It was named for its deceptive appearance as a normal Island until you get close enough to see the caldera. Our captain was able to get the ship close enough to “Neptune’s Bellows so we could see the caldera.  The narrow entrance of the channel into the caldera was too narrow for a ship our size.

Very Large/Wide Iceberg

Colony of Chinstrap Penguins

On the shore we could see part of the 200,000 chinstrap penguins.
On Christmas Eve the ship’s officers and crew put on a special holiday show. Choirs from the Phillipines and Indonesian as well as an International Choir put on a fantastic show.

On Christmas Day we attended a church service led by passenger volunteers and later that morning Santa Claus visited the small number of children on the ship.

Next up: Antarctica part 2