Antarctica – 01

Dear Reader (2015-02-02),
For those familiar with my posts, you should know that some of my posts come with a beverage-suggested option. This is one of those posts, or you can just jump to the images.

Housekeeping
Today is the first of the Antarctica series of posts.  The other two series in my recent South American wander were Buenos Aires and Patagonia.  The first of the 5 Buenos Aires posts was on 2024-12-27 (https://seandrysdale.com/2024/12/29/the-south-america-tour-begins/).  The first of the 8 + 1 Patagonia posts was on 2025-01-13 (https://seandrysdale.com/2025/01/13/patagonia-w-trek-day-1/).

Introduction
To my mind, there are 3 broad categories of cruises, with varying degrees of comfort or luxury, available to those who want to sail to Antarctica. There are the large cruise ships which travel a fixed path, and you never get off the ship.  There are smaller cruises ships which travel a fixed path where you do have the opportunity to land. As the route is fixed, if conditions are unfavourable for a landing, so sad too bad and it is onto to the next pre-planned port of call.  The third category of cruises is called an expedition style.  The cruise director and the captain work closely together to adapt the cruise to changing conditions and possibilities.  The cruise I took with Ocean Endeavour (ship), Intrepid (tour company), and Offbeat (photography) was of this latter category –  I loved it.

It takes 2 full days to cross the Drake Passage and reach the first islands off the Antarctic Peninsula.  The seas can be rough as the ship ploughs through waves over 3m high.  This is known as the Drake Shake.  People go green, and it’s difficult to hold a glass of good red wine.  The other possibility is known as the Drake Lake, when the ship bobs on swells under a meter high.  Sleep is easy, and wine doesn’t get spilt.  In both the out and back crossings of the Drake Passage, we were lucky to experience the Drake Lake.

Once we arrived in Antarctica, days began with a calm and pleasant announcement at 06:30 of our location, and that breakfast was now being served.  After breakfast we donned our rubber boots, blue jackets, life vest, and boarded a zodiac.  The 20 members of the photography group were always in the first group to board the zodiacs. We would then typically land at a spot where we could wander in a defined area for up to 75 minutes (depending on location). Then it was into the zodiacs for another 60-90 minutes or so, and back to the ship.  Once all groups were back on the ship, the ship would change locations over lunch.  After lunch once we had arrived at a new cove, it was back to the mud room to don our rubber boots, blue coats, life vests and board the zodiacs for the afternoon’s adventure.  By the afternoon of the second day, we all knew the pattern even though we never knew where we would be one day to the next.

Aside
Based on recent experiences, here is a quick heads up on how most tour companies regardless of location and mode of travel count the number of days in their offerings.  The meet-up on day 1 in late afternoon counts as day 1.  On the last day, the tour ends after breakfast and that also counts as a day.  So, a tour that is advertised as 14 days is actually 12 full days.

Approach to Antarctica Posts
The Antarctica series of posts will continue with my current guideline of having a maximum number of 12 images.  The topic of 12 is a long one and I am happy to chat with you over a coffee about the significance of a dozen items.  I am slowly editing the thousands of photos I captured in roughly chronological order.  Once I have assembled a dozen shareable images I will create a post.  My penguin photos will be one of the last posts, as I am going to edit them as a single batch.  If you need to see penguin photos immediately then I invite you to see the work of my fellow travellers.  So, if there won’t be any penguins for a while, what is there? Well as someone who loves texture, a bit of mood, a good line, and a bad dad joke, I will offer you views of a magical land, and maybe even signs of people.

Notes on Photos
~ 1, 2 – Context
~ 3 to 7 – Livingston Island
~ 8 – Pendulum Cover, Deception Island – This is all that remains of the Chilean meteorological and volcanological research station opened in February 1955 and destroyed by volcanic eruptions in 1967 and 1969. Since 2001 the ruins of the station have been designated a Historic Site or Monument. (adapted from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pendulum_Cove).
~ 9 to 12 – Telefon Bay, Deception Island
~ 12 – Spray from a waterfall

You are welcome to share a link to this page with others.
As always, all comments are welcome and sought.
Cheers, Sean

My note on privacy can be found under the “About” menu item, and if you would like to subscribe to this blog please enter your email.

.

All rights for all material on any media reserved – © Sean P Drysdale 2017-2025