Tag: travel

Whales and First Zodiac Cruise

February 6, 2025

(Continuation of our adventures on January 20, 2025)

There were some fun things going on while we were in the Drake.  We had various classes we could attend.  The expedition staff were very knowledgeable and even though we had done some research before embarking on our adventure we learned lots.  There were specialists in penguins, whales, and other sea birds as well as a historian on all things Antarctic. When things began calming down from our passage, the crew were able to open the decks and we could visit the bridge and watch our Captain and crew at work.  Our Captain and crew were all from Croatia and he sometimes for fun he called his crew the Croatian Mafia.  They were all very nice and thankfully very competent and most concerned about our safety and enjoyment of our cruise.

With the decks open, we could be outside watching for whales, birds, dolphins etc.  We were so excited when we saw our first whale blow.  Then, we saw fin whales, humpback whales and a blue whale that came up right beside the ship.

Blue Whales are massive.  They are the largest animals to have ever lived on earth.  The Antarctic blue whales are generally larger than other blue whales, weighing up to 330,000 pounds and 110 feet long.  The females are larger than the males.  They are named for their gray coloring which appears light blue underwater. We did not realize what a very special event it was that we got to see this amazing creature. After all the excitement, we learned most of our guides had never seen a blue whale and one had seen 3 previously in his 14 years of guiding.  Blue whales are now on the endangered list.  They generally swim at about 5 miles an hour but can accelerate to more than 20 miles an hour for short bursts.  They are also among the loudest animals on the planet emitting a series of pulses, groans and moans, that in the right conditions can be heard by other whales up to 1,000 miles away. Click here for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration web site for blue whale sounds.

God created such an amazing world for us to take care of.   We constantly thanked God for allowing us to have this experience.

After dinner on January 20, we were able to board our zodiacs for the first time. It doesn’t get dark until about midnight – so why not.  There would be no shore landing this time, but we learned how to board our zodiacs and go see neat things.  Again – so exciting – and a little scary.  We went out to Penguin Island at Turret Point in the South Shetland Islands and were able to see elephant nose seals (so ugly they are cute?), Antarctic fur seals, and chinstrap penguins – so very cute.  It was a very busy and exciting day.  On returning to the ship we collapsed into bed.

The Drake Passage

February 4, 2025

As you remember from the last post, we left Ushuaia at 6:15 pm on January 18th headed out into the Beagle Channel traveling east for about 60 miles toward the Drake passage.  We had another briefing and were prepared for the weather to deteriorate as we neared the Drake.  The Drake was forecast to be swells below 5 meters and winds below 30 knots.  We had another wonderful dinner, made sure we all continued to take our meclizine to prevent sea sickness and went to sleep.

So, what’s the big deal about the Drake.  The Drake Passage, usually a two day journey, is considered one of the roughest and some would say, THE ROUGHEST waterway on Earth.  This reputation comes primarily because of the powerful currents created by the collision of cold Antarctic waters with warmer northern waters, combined with strong, unimpeded winds from the Southern Ocean that encounter no landmass to disrupt their flow, resulting in large waves and turbulent seas. More than 800 ships are believed to have sunk in the Drake Passage.  This has resulted in the deaths of over 20,000 sailors. The crossing of the Drake is a whole adventure of its own.

All expedition cruise ships must cross the Drake to reach the 7th Continent and modern expedition cruise ships are well equipped to tackle the crossing . Almost all have underwater stabilizers to reduce the rocking and rolling on heavy seas and have the latest technology to follow the weather.  Depending on the weather, you might encounter the “Drake Lake” (very smooth) or the “Drake Shake” (what we encountered.)  Our ship was equipped with stabilizers, but we still felt the waves – a lot. We did go to sleep as usual after making sure everything in our state room was secured.  This was not much different from securing things for a travel day in the RV.  We were both awakened shortly before midnight feeling the ship being tossed around but we didn’t fall out of bed and went back to sleep.  By morning there really was no improvement.  We were having 20 foot waves at times.  We were holding to railings as we went to breakfast.  At breakfast we were holding onto our plates so our food wouldn’t end up on the floor.  At afternoon tea and treats there was a big crash when a stack of dishes hit the floor.  Over the next 24 hours there were those who fell out of bed and out of chairs when we would have a larger wave.  We finally completed our crossing on the 20th and thankfully the meclizine worked and we were not sick.  At 7:10pm we first spotted land.  Not yet Antarctica, but the South Shetland Islands and they were a beautiful site!  We survived the Drake and it’s fury, no worse for the experience.

Finally On Board and a Free Penguin Cruise

February 4, 2025

After our embarkation briefing the evening before, we all began the day (Friday, January 17th) excited to finally board our ship later.  All luggage was tagged and in the holding area at 8:00am, except for our day packs.    The luggage would be taken to the ship and placed in our staterooms by the time we arrived.  We spent the remainder of the morning hiking the trails on the mountain – part of a nature preserve owned by the hotel.  Another beautiful area with a few inclines to climb but mostly fairly easy. The winds were getting stronger all morning.  We went back into town to do a little more shopping prior to boarding the ship.

We were picked up by a bus about two blocks from the pier, because we were not allowed to walk through the gates to the ship.   So, we all hopped on the bus and then right back off at the entry gangway of Seaventure.  By this time – about 4:30 pm, the winds were so high that Anne almost lost her footing when leaving the bus. It was a little scary.  The very short distance to the safety of the ship was a challenge.  After being led to our state rooms it was time for mandatory safety drills required to be completed prior to leaving the dock.  Unfortunately, we learned at the briefing that we would not be sailing today.  There was a storm in the Drake Passage with swells over 7 meters (22 feet).  The captain planned for a 6pm departure the next day (January 18th).  We still had a nice evening on board the Seaventure, enjoying our first of many wonderful meals.

On Saturday morning, due to the delay in our departure, Polar Latitudes arranged for a catamaran tour out the Beagle Channel to get our first glimpses of Gentoo and Magellanic Penguins and South American sea lions. We didn’t get to make any shore landings but that will come later.  We all enjoyed the catamaran tour and then as planned on our return, we were able to throw off the lines from the dock and begin our Antarctica Expedition for real.  We departed at 6:15 pm.

Antarctica Adventure:  More Fun in Ushuaia and Tierra del Fuego National Park

Monday, February 3, 2025

This morning, January 15th, we relaxed a little and packed our bags again for a change in location.  Included in our expedition package with Polar Latitudes were two nights at the lovely Arakur Hotel which is perched on the mountain above Ushuaia.  Beautiful setting.  Beautiful views looking down on the city.  Great hotel staff.  We spent some time getting settled in, and touring the facility, then took the shuttle back downtown to do a little tourist shopping, getting some additional pictures and walking along the shore of the bay.  Back at the shuttle stop, Donna struck up a conversation with a gentleman wearing a Polar Latitudes puffy jacket.  We asked him if he was with Polar Latitudes, and he said yes and after a few more minutes Donna asked him what he did at Polar Latitudes.  He was the CEO.  He was going to be on our ship, the MS Seaventure, for our Antarctica Expedition along with his two partners. While we were all on the shuttle to the hotel he told us that the Drake passage wasn’t looking very good (too rough) and we might not be able to depart on time.  They were working on some additional plans for us, not to worry.

The next morning, January 16th, after a wonderful breakfast buffet, we rode a bus to the Tierra del Fuego National Park.  The bus took us to the “End of the Road” where we began our hiking back to the Visitor’s Center.  The “End of the Road” is the end of the Pan American highway.  The other end of the Pan American is at Prudhoe Bay in Alaska which we visited in 2014 with Barry and Donna.  It was a beautiful park with nice hiking.  We saw more birds we had never seen before.  The weather started to get very windy and temperatures began to drop by the time we got back to the visitor’s center.  It was another 22,000 step day and we were thankful for another great dinner at the hotel and our first Polar Latitudes briefing for our embarkation the next day. Going to get on the ship tomorrow!