Godthul

Godthul Bay is a beautiful and very protected bay. It has a narrow inlet that opens into a deep, circular cove.



Godthul was unlike any other spot we visited. As you can see, it was very green with large bunches of tussock grass. As we began traveling a short distance inland we discovered the grass is full of fur seal pups.



The little guys were everywhere and some acted tough and would snort and challenge us. Adult seal furs are aggressive and dangerous, scary animals, but the young pups quickly back down when you stand your ground and clap. For some unknown reason fur seals do not like the sound of clapping.

The protected cove of Godthul was the ideal location for a whaling station. The gravel beach is thick with whale and fur seal bones. Remnants of the old station and these boats are rotting above the beach.



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Location:South Georgia Island, Scotia Sea

King Penguins Galore

St. Andrews forms a natural amphitheater surrounded by six thousand foot, glacier covered mountains. Three glaciers let out into a broad grassy plain and beach. We made another wet landing among elephant seals and fur seals.



The fur seals are very territorial and aggressive. Luckily the breeding season is over and the beach masters are few. The fur seals along the shore are predominantly young pups and mothers. The young pups act tough and challenge us but quickly back down when we clap our hands and stare them down. The beach masters are another matter. They are huge animals, four times the size of the females and can easily out run us. The four ton elephant seals appear oblivious to our presence. Other than the occasional grunt, fart, or burp, they are fairly inanimate.

We worked our way along them gravel shoreline through tens of thousands of King penguins. Beautifully colored and about three feet tall.




The short walk along the shore with this mass of penguins did little to prepare us for what we were about to see. We forded a knee deep torrent of a stream and climbed a slight rise behind the beach. As we climbed the noise became a constant cacophony of shrills and grunts.



It is estimated that there are 750,000 to 1 million penguins in this colony.

The blogs are intentionally brief. We are still struggling with posting blogs so, hopefully, the condensed versions will go through.

Location:St. Andrews Bay, South Georgia Island February 27th, 2012

Gold Harbour

We arrived off South Georgia just before five Sunday morning. The weather fairies are still gracing us with spectacular weather. Bright sunshine, blue skies, and a gentle breeze. The temperature climbed above freezing!

South Georgia Island has incredible displays of wildlife. We anchored in Gold Harbour and were treated to an immense colony of King penguins along with Chinstraps, elephant seals and fur seals.






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Location:South Georgia, Scotia Sea

Lemaire Channel and Points South

With almost two days at sea I hope to catch up on the blogs I was unable to post while along the peninsula and in the Weddell Sea. One of the blogs that I lost was our adventure thought the Lemaire Channel into the Grandidier Channel and through the Crystal Sound in our attempt to reach the Antarctic Circle at Latitude 66 degrees, 30 minutes South. I recounted some of the trip in emails but want to capture at least the highlights in the blog.

We sailed through the narrow Lemaire Channel during sunset at about half past nine o'clock in the evening. The still waters made for fantastic reflections in the crisp light.



The channel is a narrow cut with glacier covered mountains soaring up from the sea.




We encountered some ice through the channel and by midnight we were in thick, almost continuos ice floes. The sound of ice splitting and splintering under the sharp bow was almost continuous. We would break into open water only to experience a shudder throughout the length of the ship as we rammed the next flow. We continued working our way well into Crystal Sound through ever heavier and thicker ice. The Explorer easily handled the three and four foot floes we experienced. Shortly after entering Crystal Sound broke free of the ice and had clear sailing only needing to navigate around massive ice bergs. We encountered the pack ice again on the southern end of Crystal Bay, about 25 miles north of the Antarctic Circle. We continued through the pack ice to within eight miles of the Antarctic Circle when we had to yield to the ice. The Explorer could handle the pack ice but we were in the midst of large ice bergs frozen in the pack ice. The ice bergs were more than a match for us.



We carefully turned around and returned north along the peninsula on our way to the Weddell Sea.



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Location:Scotia Sea

The Scotia Sea

The ocean area from 40 degrees south latitude to near the Antarctic circle has the strongest sustained westerly winds found anywhere on earth. The highest reported frequency of gales is reported between Longitude 20 degrees and 60 degrees East, north of the Ross and Weddell Seas and the approaches to the Drake Passage. Interaction between the frigid air coming off Antarctica and the relatively warm and moist air from the lower latitude ocean areas creates the cyclonic "Furious Fifties" storms. They make the region from 40 degrees to 60 degrees South one of the stormiest areas in the world. These are the waters we are sailing through and have had the great good fortune of fair weather. Hopefully, our luck and the weather will hold.

Just I saved this, the skies became overcast and little snow flurries began swirling around the ship. The waves are growing and I can hear new creaks throughout the ship. Just in the length of time required to compose this paragraph the snow has grown thick, visibility almost nil and the swells increasing. We may have an interesting night.



Fur seal on Elephant Island


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Location:Scotia Sea

Point Wilde, Elephant Island

We sailed from Point Lookout to Point Wilde on Elephant Island where Shackleton's men survived for one hundred days awaiting Shackleton's return to rescue them. During the trip the skies cleared. The catabatic winds diving down over the glaciers were bitter but sunshine makes everything more pleasant.


A British naval ship was anchored off the point and the Brits were performing some type of study. They had pitched several tents at the old Shackleton site.



The monument on the right honors the captain of the Chilean ship Shackleton used in his successful fourth attempt to rescue his men. The entire area is thick with chinstrap penguins and fur seals.






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Location:Scotia Sea

Elephant Island

We are about 490 nautical miles southwest of the South Georgia Islands. We set sail yesterday afternoon from Elephant Island at the northern tip of the Antarctic peninsula surrounded by whales. One of the marine biologist aboard described it as sailing through a whale soup. Southern right whales swam right up to the ship. The fin whales entertained us with their geyser like blows and the faithful humpbacks continued to show off their impressive flukes.

Yesterday morning (Thursday, February 23rd) started off with grey skies and small, spitting snow flurries with strong winds as we approached Cape Lookout on the eastern shore of Elephant Island.



We were hopeful that we would be able to attempt a landing. There is less than a two percent success rate at landing. It has been years since National Geographic had made a successful landing. We had an added incentive in that we have a young women traveling with us that is documenting the oldest living organisms on earth. In order to be included in her study, the creature has to be more than 2,000 years old. In the 1980's a moss bed on Elephant Island had been cored and aged at 5,500 years. The moss bed had not been observed since that first discovery. Her guess at the location was based on photographs taken at the time with a few unnamed peaks and glaciers in the background. As it turns out, the photograph was printed backwards so the landscape was reversed. For the rest of us and the crew, Elephant Island is special because this is where Ernest Shackleton with five men set sail for South Georgia.

We attempted to board the zodiacs several times before we were successful. We put ashore in a small cove protected from the weather by a low arête.



Elephant Island is the harshest place I have experienced. The wind is relentless. It is beautiful in its severity with glaciers appearing from the mists and grinding there way relentlessly to the sea.


The landing area was full of fur and elephant seals, a large colony of chinstrap penguins, and cape petrels. There were also a large number of nesting snowy sheathbills. We also encountered our first macaroni penguins.



We sailed from Cape Lookout to the northern point of the island to Point Wild, the site where Shackleton left his men. The point is named after Shackleton's number two. More on that in the next posting,

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Location:Scotia Sea

Peterman Island

We retraced our voyage from the heavy pack ice and bergs north anchoring just south of the Lemaire Channel off of Peterman Island. We were able to make a semi-dry landing from the zodiacs by clambering over a few boulders and rocks.



The small red wooden shack on the left is an Argentine emergency supply cache.

Like all the rocky islands, Peterman has several roosting penguin colonies along with the nesting area for blue eyed shags. The largest population are the gentoo penguins.



There were still a number of Adele penguins, too. They hatch earlier then the gentoo and most have returned to the sea. We saw many Adele on the pack ice the day before.



After landing, Paula and I followed Peter Hillary up a glacier for a great view. The trails you see in the snow are penguin trails. In several places the snow has been waddled down several feet.



This picture of Paula with Peter Hillary is for Alan.


We hiked back along the glacier following the penguin trails to the north end of the island to see the blue eyed shag. The views in all directions was breathtaking. We have been extremely important. The crew told they hadn't seen the sun since January 7th.

While working on this posting I just looked out our balcony window and saw a flock of penguins porpoising beside us.


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Location:Penola Strait, Antarctica

Neko Bay

We made our second zodiac landing on a small beach at the end of Neko Bay. Several massive glaciers flow into the bay. The sound of the glaciers calving echo across the water and bounce from the surrounding mountains. At first I mistook the boom for a thunder or a sonic boom. It is an impressive sound.


Upon landing, we hurried up a short slope before discarding our life preservers. Calving glaciers can send large waves over the beach. On our way to the landing we were entertained by a pod of humpback whales.





Once ashore, we worried our way through a gentoo penguin rookery and climbed one of the massive glaciers. It was a steep, icy climb but the views were worth every step. Plus, the exertion warmed us up.



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Location:Neko Bay, Antarctica

Antarctica

We awoke early this morning to bright sunshine and clear skies with only a hint of a breeze. The temperature is just below freezing or, as the old explorers would have said, six degrees of frost. We are surrounded by mountains, glaciers, and icebergs as we navigate a narrow channel along the peninsula.



The beauty is indescribable. Never have we experienced air so clear. It is impossible to judge distance. We were escorted by a pod of hump back whales.



We anchored off Cuverville Island and made a wet zodiac landing among a large Gentoo penguin rookery.






It is difficult to absorb the absolute beauty and purity of our surroundings.






While cruising the bay we strayed into a female leopard seal's territory. A huge creature, twelve feet in length with the head of a reptile and the teeth of a leopard. She circled the zodiac and it was necessary to gun the motor as she attempted to bite the zodiac. At one point she was able to bite the speed tube on the pontoon. Leopard seals are capable of puncturing the pontoons of a zodiac.

It has been a remarkable day and we have much yet to do. We continued south and are now anchored off another landing. Due to the cliffs and glaciers there are few landing sites.



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Location:Errera Channel, Antarctica

Storms

The weather has continued to deteriorate as we progress south. The blowing snow is continuous with winds building to a sustained 50 knots. The waves are building rapidly with the wind carving off the tops of the waves. The heavy mist blown from the waves mixed with the blowing snow make for a miserable and wet experience on deck. Every time I look out, the seas are larger. Incredible how the storm hit so quickly. The seascape is beautiful in a harsh form with the wind ripped towering waves and blowing snow. We should make the South Shetland Islands this afternoon where we intend to anchor on the lea or protected east side of one of the islands.

Prior to sailing into the gale, we were entertained by pilot whales, penguins, albatross, and storm petrels.

Here are a couple of pictures this morning before the weather flipped.








Oops! Paula just stepped onto the balcony to take pictures of a Northern Giant Petrel that is surfing the wind between waves. A huge wave struck sending a shudder through the ship with our terrace getting dunked in ice water. Paula quickly retreated.

Here's what it looks like now, winds gusting to 60 knots with ice forming on handrails and window sills.




We just encountered our first iceberg about 200 yards off the port.

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Location:62.08.62 S 59.57.84 W

The Southern Sea

We crossed the Antarctic convergence during the night so we are officially in the Southern or Antarctic sea. The air and water temperature are hovering just above freezing. We spotted our first whales this morning off the port bow but did not stop due to the swells. As I type, a snow flurry kicked with large blowing flakes.

This morning at 8:00 we were approximately 150 nautical miles north of the peninsula traveling at fourteen knots. The seas and winds have moderated since entering the Drake Passage but the snow is escalating into a heavy flurry reducing visibly to yards - not good weather whale sightings.

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Location:Drake Passage

Patagonia

The flight from Buenos Aires to Ushuaia took almost four hours with drastic change in weather and scenery. Buenos Aries is on the flat pampas with high temperatures and humidity. We landed amid glacier capped mountains in Ushuaia. Everybody scrambled in their packs for jackets as we de-planed and walked across the Tarmac. We took a short ride through Tierra del Fuego national park. We followed a narrow dirt track through the wilds of Patagonia. The trail ended at a small dock on the Beagle Channel. As it turned out, we were at the southern terminus of the Pan American Highway.


The Pan American Highway extends from Alaska to the tip of Tierra del Fuego.

The area is as beautiful as it is remote.



We boarded a catamaran for lunch and a tour of the Channel and bays. The weather altered rapidly between sunshine, misting rain and back to sunshine. As you can imagine, the area is teaming with wildlife.










We are currently being bounced across Drake's Passage. We are learning how to stumble across the rolling deck without knocking anyone down. In the ship's wake are three species of albatross and white chinned petrels. The largest of the albatross, the wandering albatross has a wing span approaching twelve feet. Magnificent animals. They nest on South Georgia Island more than 1,000 miles to the east.

Current estimates have us anchoring off the Antarctic Peninsula late tomorrow afternoon. The temperature continues to drop at a noticeable rate.

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Location:Drake's Passage enroute to Antarctic Pennisula

Final thought on Buenos Aires

We are securely ensconced in our berth aboard the Nation Geographic Explorer. Our departure has been moved back from 6:00 pm to, we hope, around midnight. We had a few problems acquiring sufficient fuel to carry us through the next three weeks so, it looked for a while, that we would need to sail to Punta Arenas in Chile to take on fuel. That would require us sailing west into the Pacific and north into the Straits of Magellan. The Chilean pilot was on board and the international paperwork in progress when the tanker trucks began pulling along side. We will sail east along the narrow Beagle Channel on the very southern extent of Tierra del Fuego before turning due south past Cape Horn and into the Drake Passage. There is a fair amount of concern among the passengers as to the weather and sea conditions through the Passage. This section of the ocean is the most storm tossed and roughest seas in the world. We should cross the Antarctic Convergence mid-way between South America and the Antarctic peninsula where, I hope, the seas should lay.

That is a short preview of where we are at the moment, taking on fuel in Patagonia.


I will talk more about this beautiful spot and provide a few photographs in the next blog. Now, I need to finish our last few days in Buenos Aires.

We continued our walking tours of the city even though the weather turned hot.







Mid nineties with high humidity. Comparable to a mid summer day in Houston. The more we have seen and learned about this beautiful city, the more impressed we become. Monday evening we enjoyed a delicious Argentine meal. We started with empanadas and worked our way through the menu for the next two and one half hours. Wonderful, fun meal. For Valentines we booked a dinner and table at the oldest Tango club in the city. It was in Barrio San Telmo in an old Spanish style building. We had a traditional Argentine meal (heavy on the beef and Malbec wine) and walked across the street to the show. Our small table was pressed against the stage and we both feared getting kicked by the dancers. A great show and a lot of fun.


The music was fascinating and the dancers great athletes with style and pizazz in excess. A wonderful way to spend Valentine's day.



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Location:Ushuaia, Patagonia, Argentina

Beautiful City

Paula and I might have a new favorite city! Buenos Aires is like no other city we have visited in South America. It is very European. The area or barrio we are in is reminiscent of France. Paula remarked earlier in the day that certain areas reminded her of London. Buenos Aires is big, the ninth largest city, but is very friendly and easy to get around by foot. The streets, for the most part, are broad and tree lined with ample sidewalks. The shady streets are welcome as the mid summer sun is very warm and bright.




The city is full of beautiful parks or plazas with large gum trees and flowering jacaranda. The gum trees are some of the largest trees we have seen, low branches stretching for a hundred feet. We ate at an outdoor cafe on Sunday that was contained completely beneath the canopy of a single, magnificent tree.




We followed one of the main boulevards, Avenida 9 de Julio, through the heart of the city. It is a wide avenue (twelve traffic lanes in width) divided by a pedestrian park thoroughfare down its length. Near the intersection with Avenida de Mayo is this large obelisk, El Obelisco. It commemorates the 400th anniversary of the capital.




About six blocks to the right down Avenida de Mayo is the Plaza del Congresso which contains the congress and a number of other federal buildings. Equal distance to the left is the Plaza del Mayo. Plaza del Mayo is the oldest plaza in the city and is the heart of Buenos Aires. The president's quarters and office are here along with the federal bank and the oldest cathedral in the city.












After leaving Plaza del Mayo we stumbled across Plaza San Martin with it's historic clock tower.




Buenos Aires is a vibrant, busy city full of friendly, handsome people.






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Location:Posadas,Buenos Aires,Argentina