March 3 – 8, 2015 (Day 22 -27): Amundsen Sea, Peter I Island & Fish Islands
 Peter I Island, March 5,2015 (Photo by Babis) |
 Thrilled to arrive at Peter I Island |
Day 22 (March 3, Tuesday): Amundsen Sea – pack-ice – Noon position: 70º 36’S 102º 32’W; Wind WSW Force 7; Sea state 2; Air -1ºC; Fourth Cruise (GMT-6)
We have excellent weather again with blue sky and less than 10 knots of wind. Don wakes us up before 6am urging us to step outside as the ship is surrounded by pack-ice. The sunrise is beautiful especially against the backdrop of huge tabular bergs, smaller rounded bergs, ice floes, pancakes and brash.
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At 9am, we are happily out in zodiac cruising among ice floes and bergs, watching snow petrels and searching for Crabeater and Leopard seals. Alan is our zodiac driver and we have lots of fun watching a snow petrel feeding in a small pool of water, observing seals on floes or jumping out from water and navigating through two wonderful bergs!
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The scenery is simply captivating and irresistible! The bergs are in all shapes: I find many pyramids, several ice whales, a croc and a tanker. Those in Dmitri’s Zodiac unexpectedly enjoy close encounter with a group of 50 or more Crabeater seals. How exciting!
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 Snow Petrel (top); Crabeater Seal (left) |
As the icy wind drops, we cruise for two hours without feeling cold at all. It is a totally different experience from those at the Ross Ice Shelf.
In the afternoon, the ship cruises around pack-ice. I see lots of seals, but the Ross Sea seal remains elusive. After dinner, I watch sunset at the back of the ship while a full moon rises in a deep purple sky at the bow. I stay on deck watching the moon and occasional icebergs. I have a perfect day ending with a 6-hour sleep. (L-stirred fried noodles; D-curry lamb and rice)
Day 23 (March 4, Wednesday): Amundsen Sea – open sea; Noon position: 69º 30’S 95º 32’W; Wind SE Force 5; Sea state 3; Air +2ºC; 2 lectures
I wake up before 6am to watch sunrise. The ship is now in open sea without ice. I see at regular intervals Antarctic Fulmars, Wilson’s Storm Petrels and Antarctic Terns.
James’s lecture on iceberg helps me better understand what I have been watching. Gary continues with his account of his wintering in Mawson Station and conducting a research on Emperor Penguins. I wish I could have done something like!
Around 5:30pm, Don alerts us about the appearance of four Fin Whales These giants are usually encountered in the open water bordering the icy stretches of the Antarctic. During the 6pm recap, Don tells us about plans for tomorrow at Peter 1 Island, one of the remotest and rarely visited island on the planet. I finish the day by watching ‘Bourne Identity‘ – quite an entertaining film. (L-pork neck & rice; D-crispy duck & fried rice)
Day 24 (March 5, Thursday): Peter I Island- Noon position: 68º 46’S 90º 49’W; Wind W Force 4; Sea state 3; Air +2ºC; Sixth Landing & Fifth Cruise (GMT-5)
Today is the one of the highlights of the journey. The weather is perfect and not freezing (1° C and winds of 10 knots). I get up before 6am and hurry to the deck with my cameras. The sun has just risen above the horizon with clouds and bergs shielded in golden and orange hues.
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Peter I Island first discovered by Fabian Bellinghshausen on 20 January 1821, is a volcanic island measuring 19km north-south and 10km east-west with an area of 157km². Itis a Norwegian Dependency and has only about 1000 visitors since 1821. The scenery is dramatic with expansive sea, plenty of icebergs and a mystical island with a rugged coast with glacier fronts and cliffs made up of red, dark brown and black igneous rocks. Suddenly, I see clouds with rainbow colours!
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I am intrigued by the island on first sight as dark clouds were veiling over the upper part of the island including its peaks, Lars Christensentoppen (1640m). Several Humpback whales (probably residents of the bay) welcome our arrival by swimming close to us.
The helicopter flights begins around 7:30am. Again I wait till 10am for my turn. By then the clouds have lifted enabling us to appreciate its grandeur and unearthly beauty. I have a scenic flight (but without an aerial panoramic view of the island). Fortunately Babis, the most travelled person on earth(!) gives me his photo. As we can only spend half an hour on the island, I hardly move more than 100m away from the landing site. The ice surface is beautifully carved by wind and looks pure and spotless white! On the way back to the ship, I see the Humpback whale and its calf from the helicopter.
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As soon as I get back to the ship, I join the queue for a zodiac cruise. DJ, the assistant hotel manager is our zodiac driver and he takes us to close to the central western coast which is teeming with wildlife. Thousands of Antarctic Fulmars build their nests on the cliffs, countless fur seals lie on the beach and rocks and some seals swim in the water. I also see my first Chinstrip Penguins on this journey. The rock formation is fascinating too with a prominent basaltic dyke, a huge sea cave and a reef extending seaward. By the time I returned to the ship, it is almost 12:45pm.
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Lewis Pugh had a swim before the ship moves on. We have a scenic cruise around the island. For the first time of this voyage, I stand on deck for over two hours watching the awesome scenery and soaking in the atmosphere.
 Amazing lights, shadows, icebergs, glaciers and cliffs- the landscape and coastline are unearthly beautiful and bewitching! |
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Exhausted after a day of excitement and activities, I go to bed early and have an excellent sleep. (Too busy to remember what I had for lunch and dinner!)
Day 25 (March 6, Friday): Bellingshausen Sea – Noon position: 67º 57’S 81º 27’W; Wind W Force 4; Sea state 4; Air +1ºC; 2 lectures (GMT-4)
It is a dull day with an overcast sky. We sail in an open sea with few miniscule icebergs and birds flying near the ship. I must be tired and do not get up till 8am. Though it is not cold with the temperature at 2ºC, I do not venture outside the whole day.
We’re making good speed towards the Antarctic Peninsula but our first landfall there is still two days away. Minkes are the occasional entertainment for the watchers on the decks or in the bridge.
I spend most of the day sorting out the photos taken in the last two days. I attend Carol’s talk on the exploration of the Antarctic Peninsula and places where we would be visiting in the next few days. The best known explorers are Sealer William Smith, the first to discover the Peninsula; Bellingshausen, the first to explore the northern parts of the Peninsula in detail, Charles Wilkes, Nathaniel Palmer, James Weddell, James Clark Ross, Adrien Victor Joseph de Gerlache, Jean-Baptiste August Étienne Charcot and Durmont D’Urville. Their names are all over the Peninsula.
In the afternoon, Alan, a world specialist on sheathbills gives a most interesting talk on the only land bird living on the Antarctic Continent (and many Antarctic and sub-Antarctic islands). Masters of kleptoparasitism, sheathbills steal krill and other food which penguin parents are delivering to their chicks. They also eat penguin eggs, chicks and even feces. These unique and adaptable birds are abundant on the Peninsula.
In the evening, I watch Part 6 of the ‘Frozen Planet‘ before going to bed. I am fascinated by the harsh life of nomads in the Siberia who hunt, keep reindeer and gather eggs of guillemots from cliffs. How long will their lifestyle last before being wiped out by modernisation? I wonder. (L- roast drumsticks; D-rib-eye steak)
Day 26 (March 7, Saturday): Bellingshausen Sea – Noon position: 66º 41’S 71º 51’W; Wind NNW Force 3; Sea state 3; Air +3ºC; (GMT-3)
After a sound sleep of four hours, I get up at 3am to find a full and bright moon shining on a calm sea. I spend two hours reading in the bar and in the bridge watching light falling snow. At 5am, I try to go back to sleep without success. Time to go outside to watch sunrise. 
Calm seas continue all day. We are crossing the continental shelf edge and sailing over the undersea portion of the Antarctic continent, an area generally productive for marine life. As a result, we begin to see more wildlife: several groups of Fin Whales, an occasional Humpback Whale, Antarctic Fur Seals, small flocks of Antarctic Prions and solitary Antarctic Fulmars and Wilson’s Storm Petrels.
I attend Dmitri’s lecture on birds which we will see on the Antarctic Peninsula – some are familiar, like Adélie Penguins and skuas, while others will be new, like Gentoo Penguins, Blue-eyed Cormorants, and Sheathbills. The geology lecture by James is as usual entertaining and informative. I understand more about the soil and rock types of the places we have visited and would be visiting shortly.
At our evening recap Don outlines what we might expect in the next few days on the Peninsula. We also watch a wonderful video taken by one of helicopter pilots who put a Go-pro camera on his helicopter during the flight to Peter I Island with music added by Rutker, our doctor. I am delighted to find light falling snow again.
I enjoy watching ‘Now You See Me‘ (2013), an American caper thriller film featuring Michael Cane and Morgan Freedman. I am tired and have a good sleep. (I forget what I had today for lunch and dinner!)
Day 27 (March 8, Sunday): Fish Islands & Prospect Point- Noon position: 66º 00’S 65º 25’W; Wind calm; Sea state 0; Air +3ºC; Sixth Cruise
When I step outside at 6am, I find a deep layer of snow. The sky is gray and it snows the whole day. Fish Islands are a group of small islands teeming with wildlife. Despite the mist and snow, the sea and wind conditions allow zodiac operation.
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Today, I have the best zodiac cruise on this journey. At 9:15am, I get into the second zodiac driven by Dmitri who lives up to his reputation. Our zodiac moves swiftly but steadily through a myriad of icebergs lit up by the soft light which accentuates the blues. It is fascinating to see the forms and shapes of sculptured ice with a thick blanket of soft, fresh snow. In particular, the crevices and holes and deep caves glow with an electric blue as if a light shines from inside. Everything seems so hushed and quiet and that adds so much to the atmosphere of the cruise.
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We bash through the brash and push on to Perch Island where there are several groups of Adélie penguins. Dmitri allows us to step ashore for a moment to take pictures without disturbing the penguins. Then we find more penguin colonies around Trout Island.
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But the highlight is the Blue-eyed Shags (cormorants): many young shags are freshly independent and are flapping their wings and jumping in and out of the water. Before leaving this wonderland, we step onto a floe to watch four Crabeater Seals which aren’t particular concerned about our intrusion.
 Kelp Gull |
 4 Crabeater Seals on a floe |
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 Blue-eyed Shag |
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Owing to low visibility and the amount of ice, the captain decides to make our way to the Grandidier Channel as soon as possible. The afternoon turns to gazing out onto the slaty sea crowded with blue and white castles—and the occasional whale.
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The ships slows to a crawl and despite the snow, there is little wind. So the kitchen crew prepare a delicious barbeque and we have an unforgettable BBQ dinner on the deck with a light falling snow. Surrounded by the gray mist, I have several glasses of warm wine, two drumsticks, a lamb skewer and a pork sausage. It’s Robert’s birthday- the fourth birthday on this trip and we all join in singing the most sung song on earth- ‘Happy Birthday’.
(More photos will be uploaded in end May)