Nov’ 2-13 2018
Terra Australis Incognita no more! (yes, this is what Antartica https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antarctica (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antarctica) was called before being discovered-“Unknown Land of the South”) At least part of it.
Crossing the Drake passage ? Crossing the Drake passage with winds of a level 3 Hurricane? Setting not only a foot, but actually Sking and touring in the white continent along with …Lori?!?
Yes.
Check all the boxes.
We started the trip on a tragic note: one of the guest died on the very day that we landed in Ushuaia .He was skinning on the glacier close to town , lost his balance and slipped on slope – hitting a big rock.
But -lets start with a few numbers :
Our ship traveled 1,584 nautical miles (1.823 miles)-From Ushuaia to Antartica and back.The ship used 87.5 tons of diesel fuel.(27,000 gallons). 350 tons of fresh water were consumed on the ship.
We had winds of up to 100 knots per hour(115.1miles ) and waves of 20 ft high on the way back crossing the Drake passage. It’s one of the roughest body of water in the world – the confluence of the Pacific, atlantic and Southern Ocean.
We traveled From Ushuaia to the South Shetland Island and to the Antarctic peninsula.
Stopped in Deception Island,(part of the South Shetland Islands Archipelago ) Chiriguano Bay in the Brabant Island,(Palmer or Antartica Archipelago), Ronge and Cuverville Islands , Paradise Harbor from where we actually stepped on the continent proper, Nansen island in Wilehlmina Bay, Livingston and Half Moon Island.
Actually we got to climb and ski on Brabant Island, summited Mt.Tennnant(690 m’) on Ronge Island ,off Paradise Harbor , Nansen Island -one of best ski ever, because I did it with Lori -(Nov’ 9) and Livingston Island.
More numbers: The most Southern point was[64°44′S 62°40′W](https://tools.wmflabs.org/geohack/geohack.php?pagename=Rong%C3%A9_Island¶ms=64_44_S_62_40_W_source:GNIS), the ship highest speed was 16 knots, Drake passage is 500 miles https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drake_Passage(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drake_Passage)
The ship -Ocean Adventurer – is 102m’ long, breadth 16,20m’-built in 1975 and refurbished in 2017.
8 different species of Penguins live in Antartica -we have seen 3: theGentoo , Adelie and the Chinstraps.
Saw 3 types of seals:Leoprad/Weddell/Crabeater .
Saw lots of different types of Petrel birds and Albatrosses.
There were 100 guests on the ship, 25 ski guides, Quark expedition staff of 17,and a crew of 113 .
Ice axe expedition chartered the ship from Quark expeditions.
Our captain was Ukrainian, his deputy -Russian.
More names : We crossed the Gerlache strait that separates the Palmer Archipelago from the Antarctic Peninsula, and the Bransfield strait that separates the Antartica Peninsula from the SouthShetland Islands.
Names : We met quite a lot of very interesting mountain guides , mostly form the US, but also Spain, Argentina, France , Chile, New Zeeland and Australia.
Sort of super star guides. Starting from the guy who organized the trip, Doug Stoup who started IceAxe https://www.iceaxe.tv/doug-stoup/(https://www.iceaxe.tv/doug-stoup/). He trekked numerous times both Poles, for months at time , leading the blind, the young and the paraplegic..Really.
Todd who guided a person with cerebral palsy in a wheel chair on El Capitan, Marc who crossed the South Pole for 56 days with a kite, and guided a few times Everest, Bill who’s ski guiding in Kashmir, Jorge who guides through the Chilean volcanoes, the Quirk expedition girl who kayaked for 2 months around Svalbad ( the most northern Island close to the North Pole ), and the list goes on….
Oh, and there was the Gold Olympian from Australia(Torah Bright ), along with whole filming crew- shooting an IMAX movie .
And I got a whole new set of bucket list places I must go…
The guests : quite a collection of very interesting people.Of course very adventurous, A lot in their 60s, and very active. My team was comprised of a couple , both 65 yer old retired lawyers for Hawaii-this was their 4 th trip to Antartica, and a 63 year old form California .
All in amazing shape. In Loris’ group -a similar story..women in the 60s from Australia . A lot of very successful people .Everybody was humble .No ego trips.
It’s very hard to describe what I felt being there, without being boring and saying “Awesome “ incredible” “Crazy Views”.
I can say glaciers, icebergs, sea ice, solitude ,ice, snow, penguins, seals -but really those are just words.
*People asked me how was it , and I say “Just go”. That’s it .*
We were the first cruise to go there (November is the spring)-so we were the only humans in that vast area. The only foot marks were of the penguins. This is an indescribable feeling.
Even the 2 research stations that we have encountered (one Argentinian, one Chilean ) -were deserted. The staff arrives only during the summer months.
Speaking of penguins -wow-we saw tens of thousands of them .They are so so cute. I could spend hours watching them .
Interesting fact about penguins .Their secret life…
There are tens of thousands of them , and so there is a lot of penguin poo. The smell is very pungent . The Poo is called Guano. It was harvested and brought to Europe-for explosive production .This stopped during WWI when the Germans invented a way to produce nitrates…
Saw the remnants of the whaling industry, which was thriving in that area.
The Zodiac boats: those are the crafts that transported us from the boat to the land and back. Riding in those boats -it’s and adventure on it’s own .
By the way, we had to be “decontaminated “ before going to shore-to avoid bringing new diseases …
We also had to clean our boots to avoid bringing the Guano on the boat -very acidic.
Sking/ skinning/climbing -we had to be roped to each other, traveling in groups of 4 plus a guide. The danger lurks in the crevasses that are covered by snow, or the “snow holes “. The skiing was very different, because it looked like we are about to ski into the ocean. We actually had good snow, form light powder to corn snow.
And the landings-some required climbing very steep terrain, while being roped , carrying all the gear on our back .
And yes, Lori did this . With me. Unbelievable,
In the bays that we stopped -the water was very calm and still . The silence on the mountains was deafening. The blue -in the sky and the water-didn’t look real .
The weather changed rapidly -from sunny and in the low thirties to stormy conditions .
It was interesting riding in those boats wearing our ski bookstand all the clothes.Yes, we had a little inflatable life vest on , but I was wandering if indeed it would have saved us from drowning if we were to fall off..weighing so much.
One day it was stormy -the Zodiacs were sent to collect all the skiers .The water was rough -and the boat drivers had to wear survival suits.
We had a polar plunge , and I obliged. Yes, it was cold. But doable.
We had a hot tub on the ship-and it was surreal soaking in it while the ship was cruising , looking at the glaciers and icebergs. We even had a more surreal BBQ on one of the decks, with freezing temperatures and amazing spare ribs.
Food -delicious. Service-superb.
I got to take a shower during the Hurricane winds , and for me this was an interetsing experience. Oh yea, and the 2 days during the storm .
But before the storm – we had a crazy “white “ party. People wore crazy costumes , lots of alcohol and dancing.
And than.. departing at 2 am…into the storm, through hurricane winds -for 2 days…The adventure within the adventure.
Had some surreal meals during the storm, and having small talk -while outside seemed ike the end of the world is coming . Interestingly,I recall only one glass braking.
All this makes me forget that we actually started in Ushuaia, in Tierra del Fuego,argentina -which is the most Southern town in the world .
One thing that I learned there was that good intentions can kill. Literally.One of the natives people, the Yamana -used to be butt naked all the time.
The Europeans made them wear clothes, and they almost all died. Because…they kept their clothes on all the time, swam in them, and got infections -and died.
On the way back we went by Cape Horn , and got to enjoy the Beagle channel.(Which connects the Pacific with the Atlantic)
So:Trip of a Lifetime ?
Absolutely. So, so different than anything that I have ever done.
But I would like to do it again….
