Hey friends, 

Today, we’re picking back up on days 5 and 6 of our cruise to Antarctica. This is where things got good! I’m still shocked by the beauty every time I look at these photos. 😍

If you have trouble loading the photos in your email, click here to read this newsletter on our website. I recommend viewing on an iPad or computer so you can see the images in all their glory… but at least turn your phone sideways for me, mmkay?

Do you have questions about Antarctica that we haven’t covered? Hit reply and let us know! We’d love to do a Q&A next week in our final Antarctic edition. 

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Perry’s Travel Diary

Orne Island

We started day 5 with a zodiac cruise around Orne Island. Spert Island had given us a taste of what Antarctica had to offer – a smattering of penguins, a bit of ice, and a few glaciers. 

Orne Island delivered more, more, more of everything. 

There were so many penguins – Gentoo penguins… 

…and our first Chinstrap penguins, so named because of their distinctive blank band under their heads. We saw thousands of Gentoo penguins during our journey but only two Chinstraps. 

There were icebergs and glaciers… 

…and so much ice. Our crew took this opportunity to educate us on the various types of ice. White ice had just formed this year; its white color came from the air trapped inside. Clear ice had been compressed, removing that air, over thousands of years.

And finally, there was our first seal. 

These Crabeater seals primarily eat krill. Most seal species are not known for eating penguins, with the exception of Leopard seals.

We returned to the MV Ushuaia excited and hangry. Spending 5+ days in a rocking boat increases your appetite as though you’ve run a marathon (despite not actually moving that much). We needed to eat something – and after two zodiac cruise excursions, we were all anxious about actually touching land. 

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Pete’s Travel Diary

Danco Island

The ultimate goal of an Antarctic expedition is to touch ground in one of the most remote regions of the world. After all, it’s frequently dangerous to do so. 

The crew of the MV Ushuaia had already deemed numerous locations too risky. We were all thrilled that in the afternoon, after a failed excursion due to 30-40 meters of fresh ice hugging the shore at our second location of the day, our ship had finally located a third, viable, and safe location for us to land. 

Danco Island is a popular rookery for Gentoo penguins, and while this was not the egg-laying season, there was a host of penguins observing the padded and clumsy humans walking up the hill to take their photographs.

Perry and I stood on the rocky beach admiring the view when we heard a loud POW!!! The sound was as if someone had fired a rifle in the bay. One of the gargantuan icebergs cracked and calved into the bay. The sound stood out to me as a sign of the power that these typically silent monoliths can pack.  

We admired the icy giant floating in the bay for a few moments before starting up the snowy hillside. 

Reaching the Rookery

We lumbered up the hillside towards the penguin colony. We observed penguins moving up and down the hillsides, some more gracefully than others. Penguins appear clumsy and burdensome, often to our amusement, but it turns out they can haul a$$ in the snow when needed. The former penguin biologist noted that they are muscular and have dense bones, whereas birds capable of flight have hollow bones. Scientists who are tasked with capturing and tagging penguins for research are frequently slapped and bruised by penguins’ wings. The harsh Antarctic environment takes no prisoners, so underestimate the wildlife at your own peril. 

We witnessed numerous penguins chasing one another in the rookery and they moved with greater speed than one would think. These birds enforce their own pecking order. 

Their hidden capacity for violence aside, penguins are pretty darn adorable. Even when they pick a fight with one another it is still pretty cute. 

No One Told the Penguins

One of the big rules in the Antarctic is simple, or so we thought: Don’t walk within 15 feet of a penguin. This is to minimize stress on the penguins. Stress burns calories and fat, and calories and fat are the currency of cold environments. Unnecessary stress could be the difference between life and death for a penguin.

Naturally, Perry and I made a great effort to avoid stressing out any penguins. We saw a crowd taking photos of some penguins in the clockwise direction of the narrow rocky beach, so we decided to go counterclockwise in the opposite direction. No crowds, no penguins – just an open beach. Overhearing our plan to avoid stressing the penguins, another young couple decided to join us on our trek. 

We got to walking, talking, and taking photos of the island. Suddenly, I felt that sensation of being watched. I stopped and turned to find a penguin standing right beside me. It had been following us, completely ignoring the rules we created to minimize its stress. 

No one told him to stay fifteen feet away from the humans. 

Now we were the ones who were stressed. We were involved in a stand-down with a mysterious creature the size of a chunky elementary school-aged kid. 

We walked into the water to get out of the way and allow the penguin to pass. Turns out, we walked right into the penguin’s swimming hole, from which his friend was returning. Our position wouldn’t do. 

The penguin instead turned and decided to follow us in the other direction, seemingly emboldened by his ability to scare humans away. The penguin, drunk on power, followed us all the way back to the zodiacs before deciding he had minimized our threat.

A Great Day in Paradise Bay

The following day started off with the requisite spit of snow but quickly turned into a gorgeous and frozen paradise. We awoke to sun and blue skies outside our porthole. 

The wildlife was soaking up those rare unimpeded UV rays. Icebergs were abundant and diverse. We ditched our parkas because it was sweatshirt weather on deck.

It was going to be a great day.

We loaded into zodiacs to tour the clear blue waters of the bay. It was amazing to see penguins swimming under the water. For all of their clumsy antics and appearance on land, they are torpedoes under the sea. Enough to give predators a run for their money in the hypercompetitive food chain of those freezing waters. 

Our guide pointed out the streaks of color in the mountainous terrain. Some of these rocks contained coal, some gold, and some other minerals. None have ever been mined, nor will they due to the Antarctic Treaty.

We observed the enigmatic sculptures of the many icebergs floating in the bay. As each zodiac navigated a different path, everyone saw a unique side of each iceberg. 

We did a very slow pass of one berg which had an entirely unbothered and uninterested Weddell seal basking in the warm sun. The bulky seal took only the time to scratch its nose with a clawed flipper and cast a lazy and uninterested glance in our direction before resuming its nap. That was the closest it came to acknowledging our presence. 

Arson in Antarctica: Some History about Paradise Bay

While our photos show what appears to be a day in a frozen paradise, a sunny and beautiful day in Antarctica, the weather is purportedly quite rare. No, Paradise Bay’s origin has a different meaning. 

Paradise Bay has two inlets that whaling vessels would blockade once they had chased a pod of whales into the bay. This made for a profitable day’s work for whalers. 

On the shores of the bay, you can see historical buildings from the semi-abandoned* Almirante Brown research station. This one stands out due to the stories that come with it. 

In 1984, the station’s physician was ordered to stay there for another 6 months. Unable to bear the thoughts of another 6-month stint in the Antarctic, the doctor snapped. He burned the research station so he would not have to stay there. The station’s crew was saved by the USS Hero. 

The firebug physician instead did jail time for endangering others, property damage, arson, etc., but I’m sure he was glad for the change in scenery, even if it was one set of walls for another. 

If every day in Paradise Bay was as sunny as ours was, you would never wish to leave in the first place. 

*While Wikipedia notes that the station is abandoned, our ship crew stated that it was still occupied seasonally for research purposes. 

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Perry’s Travel Diary

A Wedding in Paradise 

Our morning excursion in Paradise Bay was beyond perfect. Even the crew was stoked about the weather. 

“Glorioso!” exclaimed Pablo, our zodiac cruise guide, as we returned to the ship. 

We were greeted by the smell of bratwurst and brisket. Barbecue? 

Yes! The crew was so thrilled with the weather that they’d set up a grill on the deck. This was the afternoon snack that I had been missing! 

I didn’t think we could all be in a better mood, but then an announcement came over the intercom: “In twenty minutes, please join us on the bow of the ship for a wedding.” 

That’s right – a wedding in Antarctica. We’d heard that there was a couple set to be married on the ship, but we weren’t sure when it was going to happen or if we’d all be invited. They could not have picked a more perfect moment.

Pete and I went to our room to get ready. I traded my knit cap for my fancy hat, but I kept my parka. Turns out, this is exactly what to wear to a wedding in Antarctica. Thank goodness – it’s always so embarrassing to show up to a wedding in the wrong outfit. 

The ceremony was conducted by the captain and translated into English by the first officer. We threw snow instead of confetti when they were proclaimed husband and wife.

Funny enough, the first officer was on his honeymoon – his new wife had joined him on this voyage. And the day before, a couple became engaged at Danco Island, just around the corner from the penguins, joining another couple who’d gotten engaged in Ushuaia before the boat took off.

There was an awful lot of romance for a ship with exclusively 1950s sitcom-style twin beds.

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On the Blog

Nothing new on the blog this week! Next week, I’m working on an article about how to book your flights to Ushuaia, Argentina, or Punta Arenas, Chile, the two main ports for cruises to Antarctica.

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Itinerary 

Cruise, Hotel, Food, and Transportation

We booked our Antarctic Cruise through Freestyle Adventure Travel and sailed with Antarpply Expeditions on the MV Ushuaia. The cruise obviously included our hotel, food, and transportation at this point in the journey. 🙂

Currency

Our cruise ship used US Dollars as the official currency.

Ushuaia, Argentina uses the Argentine Peso. Here’s how to get cash in Argentina.

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Travel Tip of the Week 

Pete’s Belt Pouch 

Pete received this expandable belt pouch from a friend, and it has become a permanent part of his daily adventure outfit. 

It slides onto your belt and remains folded up when not in use. When you need to hold something that won’t fit in your pocket, it opens up to an 8”x9” canvas pouch. We’ve found it to be useful when shopping, collecting treasures, or carrying things around a ship hands-free. 

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All our love,

Pete and Perry