I would normally wait until completing a journey within a country or region, but this Antarctic trip is so unique I thought I’d share an interim report.  Besides, by now, you’ve probably tired of your Christmas presents and assembled and broken all of your kid’s toys.  I hope you didn’t have a hoverboard fire!

Scott and Debra in Ushuaia

As with almost all Antarctic expeditions, we started out from Ushuaia, Argentina – a lively town catering to lovers of the outdoors similar to Queenstown, NZ or a ski village in Europe or North America.  Debra’s stepson, Scott, joined us for the 10 day trip.  We had spectacular weather and a great sunrise (at 5AM) which gave Ushuaia an eerie look as we departed.

Ushuaia, Argentina at sunrise

The crossing of the Drake Passage can be “exciting,” but for our maiden voyage, it was a calm two-day sail.

We cruised through the South Shetland Islands and made our first stop at Deception Island.  This active volcanic island has a horseshoe-shaped caldera into which ships can sail for protection from wind and seas.  During the very early 1900’s, it was an active base for the whaling industry, but later it became solely an outpost for scientific research.  

On September 11, 1967 a violent volcano occurred that forced the evacuation of the few researchers encamped there.  The eruption came in surges and, with each, the hot air caused a “thunder shower” that turned to hail.  Following each such cycle, a thick layer of ash settled.   Our on-board guide (who was working there at the time) said the earth looked like a black and white layer cake if you dug a hole. Luckily, a Chilean expedition was in the area and he was evacuated via helicopter.

The day we arrived at Deception Island, the snow and howling wind in this “protected” harbor made it seem less than inviting, but we went ashore anyhow for our first taste of the Antarctic summer.  I can’t imagine spending the winter there like our guide did, much less being trapped by a volcano in the spring!

Former British research site

Survival supplies in case we get stranded by storm (yikes)!

A summer day on Deception Island (thus the name?)

The next day we moved to and went ashore in Neko Harbor, our first contact with the Continent.  We spent time observing a penguin colony.  Only 3 of the 18 species of penguins in existence are prevalent in this area and we’ll see many, many more in January when we go to South Georgia Island, so I’ll save the penguin lecture for later. 

But, for your bar bet today:

1. About how many penguins are in the Arctic region (estimate to the nearest million)?
2. About how many polar bears are in the Antarctic region (estimate to the nearest 10,000)?

Bird attack. It got loud.

Neighborhood friend

Penguin trail up the mountain

These bet’s answers are easy to remember – none and none.  For some reason, penguins never made it north, nor polar bears south.  Go figger.

The highlight of our first week was the spectacular sunset on the night of December 24^th, and the cruise through the Lemaire Channel the next morning.  Because we were so far south, and because it’s late December, the sun barely sets at all, and it stays light 24 hours a day!  After dinner on Christmas Eve, the view of the horizon just kept getting better and better.  I almost ran out of film!  At around 12:30 in the morning, the clouds blocked the direct sun, but an opening in the clouds in front of the distant mountains allowed it to bathe the sea in gold, and then reflect up on the undersides of the clouds.  A photo doesn’t do it justice, but here’s an attempt:

We stayed up until 2:00AM because we just could not stop taking pictures of the amazing scenery, but then had to arise by 8:00AM to enjoy the vistas through the narrow Lemaire Channel – probably the most beautiful and visited spot in Antarctica.  The weather was spectacular and the calm seas offered glorious reflections!

Santa and helpers

At the end of the channel was an ice floe with “Santa and his helpers” on it.  Every year, the ship’s crew play “can you top this?” with the arrival of Santa for the children on board.  Hard to believe they can ever top this one.  Your cell phone screen may not do this justice, but I hope you can get a sense of our wonder!

While going through the channel, I also made a time-lapsed video.  It’s our Christmas card to you and really worth watching (1 minute).