Dispatches from Antarctica

Come along with me and experience an expedition to Antarctica through this interactive diary of my experiences at the bottom of the world aboard Orient Lines' Marco Polo.             (click to view cruise itinerary)


ANTARCTICA PHOTOS POSTED - click here to view!

Sunday, February 05, 2006

Day 8: Back in Ushuaia

When I woke up this morning, we were docked in Ushuaia. I was supposed to go on the Catamaran excursion through the Beagle Channel, but it was really overcast and raining a little, so I decided not to go. When I was here a few years ago I did it on a beautiful day, so I´d rather keep that memory.

Since I didn´t do the excursion, I just walked around town on my own and picked up a few last souveniers. But there isn´t much here in this little town at the "fin del mundo."

So today is a day of readjustment. A transition day between the unbelievable experiences we had in Antarctica and our journey home.

Instead of eating on the ship tonight, I´m going into town for one last authentic Argentine meal at a restaurant called Estancia. Like the restaurant in Buenos Aires, it has huge sides of beef cooking over a fire pit in the window. For $25 Pesos, its all you can eat.($25 Pesos = about $8 US dollars!!)

Tomorrow is the start of the long trip back to Florida. In total, I will be traveling for 30 hours from the time I leave the ship Monday morning at 8:30am until the time I get back to my house at about 3pm on Tuesday afternoon. First there is the charter flight from Ushuaia to Buenos Aires (about 3.5 hours). Then an 8 hour layover in the Buenos Aires airport before the long 10 hour flight to Houston. Thankfully, there is only a short layover in Houston before my flight to Ft.Lauderdale. Then, getting myself home to Boynton somehow.

OK,time to get out of this Internet shop I found in town. One HOUR online here costs as much as only 2 MINUTES in the ship´s Internet Cafe!! Things in Argentina are so cheap! Treating myself to a massage in the spa this afternoon. There´s no better way to end a cruise!

So many amazing photos... I can´t wait to share them with you once I´m back.

See you soon...


ANTARCTICA PHOTOS POSTED - click here to view!

Day 7: The Drake Passage...

Well, we've not encountered 25 foot seas, but it has been rough. Last night about 2am as we reached the halfway point, I was really feeling it. It's the sensation you get on a rollercoaster when your stomach drops each time you go down a big hill. And so... I got sick. But at least afterward I felt better and was able to get to sleep. And that was WITH the sea sickness meds - I can't even image how bad I would have felt without it!

We're almost through now - only about 2 hours more to reach Cape Horn and then shortly after that we'll arrive back in Ushuaia. Tomorrow I'm taking an excursion in Ushuaia that is a catamaran ride through the Beagle Channel. I did that when I was here before and it was fantastic. Tomorrow night is an overnight on the ship and then Monday we head to the airport for the long journey home.


ANTARCTICA PHOTOS POSTED - click here to view!

Day 6: Half Moon Island

I wasn't able to post the past couple of days because after we left Half Moon Island, we quickly entered the Drake Passage and were without satellite connection for quite awhile.

Sadly, Half Moon Island was our last day (and last landing) in Antarctica. But oh what a spectacular day it was!

Half Moon Island is the home of some 6,000+ Chinstrap Penguins. Just like at our other stops, the 'babies' are teenages with teir soft gray feathers. There were also several Antarctic Fur Seals sunning themselves on the beach and playing together. Wait until you see the video I took!

Half Moon Island is located in the South Shetland Islands. It was only a few hours after we left that we moved into the Drake Passage for our return home and the waves immediately kicked up. So far, it's a lot bumpier than on the way down. I'm just hoping that this is the worst of it - especially seeing as we have another 30 hours or so before we pull back into port in Ushuaia.

Someone commented about wanting to see more penguin pictures - I have hundreds! It's a bit hard to get them uploaded from the ship though. But I will upload a few more pics tomorrow from the landing yesterday at Paradise Harbour and some from today of the Chinstrap Penguins and Antarctic Fur Seals.


ANTARCTICA PHOTOS POSTED - click here to view!

Thursday, February 02, 2006

Day 5 (con't): Ice Bergs & Hot Tubs


ANTARCTICA PHOTOS POSTED - click here to view!

Day 5: Paradise Harbour


When I woke up this morning, we were already anchored in Paradise Harbour and the zodiacs had begun running people out to the manned Chilean research station (and the penguins). As I walked to breakfast along the outside deck of the ship, I looked out across the water and saw 'flying' penguins EVERYWHERE I looked - it was incredible!

As I was eating breakfast, the entire ship lurched. Guess what? An iceberg had hit us. Seriously. But not to worry, the staff said it was "just a small ice berg" - ha! And they were right, everything was fine. Definitely an interesting way to start the day though!

Today's weather was cloudy but warmer than it's been anywhere we've visited. I only needed 4 layers today (instead of 5) and I didn't even where my gloves most of the time I was on shore. This sure made taking photos and video a lot easier!

At the Chilean base, they stamped our passports and I got a certificate stating that I had visited the Antarctic Continent. Today actually was "the day" since yesterday we landed on an island off the coast. Still Antarctica, but not the main land. Today my feet touched the main land and it was awesome.

Gentoo Penguins were everywhere! And there were lots of babies (or teenagers, rather). So cute!! Off in the distance you could here the sound of ice sheets calving into the water and the site of the Marco Polo sitting off the coast was just beautiful.

Even though yesterday's weather was a little rough, the rest of the trip it's been fantastic. The staff are saing that this has been the best cruise of the season (which only runs about 5 cruises between late December and early February - in fact, this is the last one for this year). Many people on board have commented that they have friends who came on this cruise last year and encountered weather that was so bad they weren't able to get off the ship once!! Can you imagine how disappointing that would be? So we've been very lucky and blessed.

Narrowing down the photos to choose a few to upload is nearly impossible, but I think I've selected a few of the best. I will hopefully be able to upload them later tonight (slightly tricky process...) So check this post and yesterday's posts again later because photos will be added to them as soon as I am able to do so.

Tomorrow we're off to our last stop - Half Moon Island. So one last exercise in layering up, riding in the zodiacs and visiting the Penguinos. {{sadness}}

Did I say this was a once-in-a-lifetime trip? I think I need to revise my position on that. Someday I will be back to Antarctica again...


ANTARCTICA PHOTOS POSTED - click here to view!

Wednesday, February 01, 2006

Day 4 (con't): Landfall!!!

sur*re*al (adj) - Having an oddly dreamlike quality.

Today was one of the most unique, surreal experiences of my life. Words will not do it justice, so tomorrow I will try and post more photos that will help you visualize what I saw today.

First, the clear calm weather gave way to 45km per hour winds, snow showers and very rough seas. They say the weather in Antarctica can change on a dime and today it did. Nonetheless, we made our way to the zodiacs and had quite a wild ride making it to shore from the ship. I heard one woman say, "Is this the stupidest thing I've ever done?!?" Everyone just laughed and shouted "No way!" And then off we went!

I love how everyone on this journey has the heart of an explorer.

The massiveness of the mountains and glaciers surrounding the bay we are in is just astounding. I believe we will be anchoring here in the bay of Wiencke Island where Port Lockroy is located overnight. I don't think the photos or video can begin to capture the enormity of the landscape.


Once safely on shore today, we were greeted by thousands of Gentoo Penguins, mostly young ones - not babies, but teenagers! I got some absolutely fantastic video of some of these guys chasing each other around and also of a mother feeding her baby (regurgitating food into its mouth, just like in March of the Penguins). And don't even get me started about the photos... I took about 150 in the 90 minutes I was there!

We only had an hour each on shore since the Antarctic treaty only allows 100 tourists to go at a time (so as not to disturb the penguins or the landscape). And since we have about 500 passengers on the ship, taking turns it still took 5-6 hours to get everyone out and back. I ended up getting to stay about 90 minutes though. I just couldn't tear myself away. And since many people just took a few photos and left quickly due to the harsh conditions, I was allowed to.

It was brutally cold with winds that pushed you along as you walked and it was snowing. The longer we were there, the rougher the water got (boding an even more difficult journey back to the ship). But I just couldn't go.

I kept thinking, this is the first and last time I will EVER have the opportunity to be in this place where so few people have ever been before. So despite the fact that my nose and eyes were watering so badly I couldn't wipe the moisture away quick enough. And the fact that snow flakes kept getting on my lenses (camera and camcorder), I just kept wiping and kept shooting for as long as I could.

Every day here brings a new emotion. Being in this place. Seeing the things I am seeing. Meeting people from all over the world who were drawn here and finding out why they felt the calling to come and see for themselves this desolate, beautiful place. Amazing.

It's nearly 10pm now and bright as day out. The sun is supposed to set tonight at 10:23pm, but that will only bring twighlight. Like Russia during the summer, Antarctica is truly the land of the midnight sun.

Tonight I will dream about the penguins.

Tomorrow promises another adventure as we make our way to Paradise Bay...


ANTARCTICA PHOTOS POSTED - click here to view!

Day 4: LeMaire Channel & Port Lockroy

In the battle between "Ship vs. Ice" today, Ice won.

Due to the LeMaire Channel being blocked by impassable ice, we were not able to sail through it as originally planned. Sad indeed... especially since I jumped out of bed at 6:45am to make sure I was up on deck ready to take pictures as we made our way into the passage. On the upside, we have another clear, calm day - though VERY cold - and the scenery is just spectacular.

We've just arrived at Port Lockroy and the crew are preparing the zodiacs for launch. I'm scheduled to depart in 45 minutes and can't wait to step foot on Antarctica! As I mentioned yesterday, Port Lockroy is indeed British. The station was abandoned in 1962 but recently was refurbished by the UK Antarctic Heritage Trust. (Ok, end of the history lesson... he!)

The zodiacs will be making their landings today at Jouga Point, a rocky shore backed by rugged slopes and glaciers. There is a Gentoo penguin rookery here with more than 3,000 penguins!!! Should make for some most excellent photos.

Ok, time to go 'suit up' in my layers in preparation for my excursion. Just wanted to post an update while I had a few free minutes.

More about Port Lockroy later....


ANTARCTICA PHOTOS POSTED - click here to view!

Tuesday, January 31, 2006

Day 3: Deception Island & Cuverville Island


I can't describe the feeling I had when my alarm clock went off this morning at 5:15am and I pulled open the curtain and saw breathtaking white mountains and ice bergs floating by. I couldn't get dressed fast enough (in my 5 layers) to run outside. It was such an amazing sight!

Overnight we crossed the 'Antarctic Convergence' and it was pretty smooth (i.e. I was not awakened by things flying around the cabin in the middle of the night). From 5-8am this moring I stood out on the deck as we passed one amazing thing after another. Humpback whales (at least 10), dozens of penguins popping out of the water and diving back in, beautiful icebergs in all different shapes. After about 3 hours up on deck, I couldn't feel my fingers or toes anymore, so I went inside to warm up and take a quick nap so I could get back out on deck at 11am when we arrived at Deception Island.


Deception Island - as I mentioned yesterday - is an active volcano. Its crater is submerged in water and there is a narrow channel by which boats can pass inside it. And that's what we did - sailed around the caldera for about an hour.

After Deception Island, we sailed another 3 hours or so to Cuverville Island. It was here that we were able to take our first Antarctic excursion on the zodiacs to get an up-close-and-personal view of the island.

For Cuverville Island, we did not get out of the zodiacs - we just spent an hour or so sailing close to the shoreline to see the penguin colonies and right up to the icebergs floating in the water. We also saw a few seals sunning themselves on one of the floating icebergs. It was an absolutely gorgeous day. All the guides kept talking about how amazing it was - blue skys, little wind, calm seas - just phenomenal. In fact, there are still groups being shuttled out on the zodiacs to get a closer look - I'm watching it happen out the window of the Internet Cafe as I type this. Now this is an office with a view!!!


(Doesn't it look like the Big Penguin in the middle is flanked by 3 of his bodyguards behind him?? Too cute!)

Tomorrow starting at 7:30am we will be passing in and sailing the full length of the LeMaire Channel. Then in the afternoon, we'll be making our way to Port Lockroy where we will visit a research station (I think British) and we will set foot for the first time on the White Continent!

More tomorrow...


ANTARCTICA PHOTOS POSTED - click here to view!

Monday, January 30, 2006

Day 2: Crossing the Drake Passage

It's 8:30pm and the last time I saw land was 13 hours ago when we sailed out of Ushuaia. We're a little more than half way across - another 11 hours to go before we spot land... um, I mean ice!

The crossing has been fairly calm - by Drake Passage standards. Nonetheless, when I went to bed last night at 2am the ship was really rocking. I took some of the motion sickness medicine (Scopace) and fell asleep, but when I woke up this morning I really didn't feel well. So I took another Scopace and slept for a few more hours and when I got up, I felt ok. Luckily, there wasn't any scenery to miss today while confined to my cabin - nothing but water for as far as the eye can see. Glad the 'sickness' has seemed to pass, because tomorrow is a BIG day!

At about 5am we're going to start seeing icebergs. And yes, I really do plan on getting up to see them!! Then at 7am we will be arriving at Deception Island and actually sailing into its caldera. Deception Island is a horseshoe shaped volcanic island - a live volcanic island. It last erupted in 1970. The center portion (the caldera) is flooded and the Marco Polo is small enough to enter through a narrow channel that is sometimes referred to as the "Dragon's Mouth."

After siteseeing in the caldera we'll be setting sail in the afternoon to our next stop - Cuverville Island. This will be our first 'excursion' off the ship in zodiacs. Cuverville Island has the largest colony of Gentoo Penguins in Antarctica.

A really cool thing about this trip is that there is a whole expedition team on board composed of ecologists, marine biologists, geologists, etc. The experts give multiple lectures everyday and will be going on shore with us to explain what we're seeing.

That's it for now. Need to go get my layers together for tomorrow and get to bed early. I can't say I'll be getting up 'at dawn' because dawn here tomorrow is at 4:30am - ha! So when I get up at 5am it will be broad daylight. Wild!!!

Tomorrow the GOOD stuff begins....


ANTARCTICA PHOTOS POSTED - click here to view!

Sunday, January 29, 2006

Day 1: Ushuaia, Argentina


After two glorious days in Buenos Aires - highlighted by a fantastic Tango performance at a local 'Tangeria' and the BEST steak ever smothered in Chimichurri Sauce at a traditional Argentine Parrilla - I arrived in Ushuaia this afternoon and boarded the Marco Polo. A few hours later we set sail southward towards Antarctica!

It is currently 10:15pm (2 hours ahead of West Palm time) and outside it is only as dark as dusk - like when it first gets to the point whn you think you should turn on your headlights. One of the cruise staff told me that this is as dark as it gets. As we get further south, it will not even get this dark - and it will only be this way for a few hours in the middle of the night!

We have a good 30 hours of sailing ahead of us before we reach Antarctica. The 'rough stuff' will begin mid-afternoon tomorrow as we cross the Drake Passage. Something about where the cold and warm waters crash into one another, east and west winds slam into one another... all part of the adventure!

Got fitted for my red expedition parka tonight. Hillarious. I will never live the photos down... but at least EVERYONE on board will look as funny as I do!

Tomorrow there are going to be several expedition lectures throughout the day to prep us for exploring in the zodiacs and educate us about the wildlife we will be seeing.

Our first landing will be at Deception Island on Tuesday morning.

That's about it for now! Time to get settled in and unpack.

More tomorrow about the treacherous Drake Passage............


ANTARCTICA PHOTOS POSTED - click here to view!

Sunday, January 22, 2006

Welcome to My Travel Blog

Hi everyone! I will begin posting dispatches to this blog beginning on Sunday, January 29th - the day I arrive in Ushuaia, Argentina to board the Marco Polo and begin my Antarctic Adventure. I will try and post daily so check back often!

Feel free to add your comments and/or questions during the trip. Please note that you do NOT have to register to post on this blog. When commenting you have three options: Blogger; Other; or Anonymous. If you choose "Blogger" you will be asked to register a username and password. If you choose "Anonymous" - well, I think you know what that means! If you chose "Other", you'll just be asked to type in your name when you enter your post - no registering required.

Back to packing now.....