Enter, The Twilight Zone

Our morning was spent in a fog.  No. Not the alcohol induced kind of fog.  It was a dense sea fog that often happens when cold water and air, meet warm air.  Hundreds of northern fulmars escorted the ship riding the brisk winds like a massive invisible roller coaster

Despite limited visibility we were still able to spot whales.  In fact there were numerous sightings throughout the morning and into the early afternoon.  While most of the whales were far off of our route, we were able to ascertain that at least some (if not all) were humpback whales.

And then as if by plan, at about 14:30 the fog parted, the sun burst forth and there lay Greenland!  It could not have been more dramatic. It was almost like the curtains opening at the start of a play.  Barren, rounded mountains loomed out of the ocean just a few miles ahead.

Our goal for the afternoon was to cruise through a very narrow, very beautiful passage in the southernmost part of Greenland called Prins Christian Sund (no, that's not a typo).   Prins Christian Sund stretches for 55 nautical miles. It would take us six hours to navigate.

Soon the outside decks were festooned with a couple of hundred camera slinging, blue-jacketed, happy, smiling people.  Dozens of waterfalls that were fed by glaciers high above us tumbled down the bare rock.  The narrowest part of the channel was a meer 350 metres across.

Strange. As we exited the channel we could see the fog bank lying in wait.  I half expected to hear Rod Serling's voice from The Twilight Zone on our public address system. Still, it added a weird sort of symmetry to wrap up our day.

Every Dark Cloud...

Has a silver lining.


Bang! Wonka-wonka, bang!   Wobble   flap        flap                      flap.

Two flat tires.

Another beautiful sunny day. Many of us (47 to be precise) had opted to go on a boat tour of Breidafjördur Bay, a really great place to observe nesting sea birds.  It was a half hour drive by bus from where the ship was anchored in the picturesque village of Grundarfjördur to the even smaller fishing village of Stykkisholmur, where we would rendezvous with our excursion boat.  

Alas, it wasn't to be.  Our local Icelandic guide Barbara was doing a great job describing the history and various geographical features seen along the roadside when both of our left rear tires suddenly exploded. Bummer. 

But, soon help was on the way.  (Yes. There are excellent cell phone communications in Iceland).

As mentioned earlier it was a gorgeous sunny day.  We were waylaid in the middle of a wild volcanic wilderness.  The heavy browns, blacks and greys of lava rock and ash were relieved by generous swaths of green vegetation and bright splashes of vividly coloured flowers.  It really was a serendipitously beautiful moment.

Meanwhile a team from our Icelandic agents changed the two tires. Within an hour we were back on the road.  Too late to meet our excursion boat but the fantastic Icelandic landscape definitely eased our disappointment.

We departed beautiful Grundarfjördur at 14:30 and set our bows in the direction of Greenland.  The remainder of the afternoon was taken up by informative lectures and briefings of what to expect in the coming days.

  

The Essence of Wild Freedom

To sit and watch an albatross is to contemplate the essence of wild freedom. These free spirits induce a peaceful  introspective experience in the observer. They are magnificent, gentle creatures.

Close your eyes and imagine for a moment that it is you sitting quietly with an albatross. On second thought, forget about closing your eyes. You won’t be able to read this. Wild surf pounds on the shore. Wind sighs through the tussoc. There is a cacophony of albatross and penguin calls all around you. Watching, listening and photographing, you feel closer to nature than you ever have before. The contentment of the young bird is contagious. The stress of your busy life at home forgotten. You are at peace for the first time in a long time. In some small way you feel grateful to the young bird. The important things in life seem to come in to sharper focus.

That was our day today.

We had brilliant weather for two absolutely outstanding landings:  New Island in the morning and West Point Island in the afternoon.  None of us will forget this day.  Striated Caracaras were ubiquitous on both landings.  Their bold and inquisitive nature added some amusement.  Rockhopper penguins were mixed in amongst the albatross.  Most of them were moulting.  It was a beautiful walk to the albatross colonies and at West Point there was tea served with lots of scrumptious cakes and cookies.

When we left West Point we saw lots of whales.  Of particular note was a large group of Sei whales.

Port Stanley

I must say that Port Stanley has my favourite welcoming committee. Energetic Peale's dolphins greeted us as we entered the harbour.   Later in the day they frolicked around our lifeboats as the AB's (Able Bodied Seamen)  ran maintenance checks on safety equipment. They even chaperoned one of our morning nature walks!

Port Stanley in the sunshine is a cheery place.  Sparkling white houses with bright red and green roofs created a rather gay atmosphere. It was warm!  Everyone was in a festive mood and hell, they should be!  The Falkland Island group is a remote, romantic, exotic destination.  It has an interesting history and loads of amazing wildlife. We've come a long way to get here, bashing through heavy seas and thick fog. We're on an adventurous vacation on a beautiful ship. If you can't get excited about a place like this on a day like today then you have no romance left in you.

In town, Southern Giant Petrels glided down the sidewalk.  Upland Geese grazed on lawns.  Fat Flightless Steamer Ducks foraged along the water front.  Rock Shags nested on a broken down old pier.  Turkey Vultures spread their wings on roof tops, luxuriating in the warm sun. Happy blue-jacketed people scampered from shop to shop.
There were lots of things to do while in Port Stanley.  We offered a variety of excursions, most of which were full. If you didn't sign up for an excursion it was easy to explore Stanley and area on your own and an absolutely perfect day for it.

(By the way.  It's going to get even better tomorrow.)

A Short Photo Essay Of Our Day

We decided to try a different approach to the blog today.  We are going to describe our day with images and a paucity of words.  As you will see in the photographs, we had a fantastic day.  Our morning was spent at a former British Base called Port Lockroy.  It is now a beautiful small museum with the one of the southernmost gift shops in the world.  The white birds are Snowy Sheathbills.
As you can see we had some dramatic weather both at port Lockroy and during our afternoon landing at Almirante Brown/Paradise Bay.  Those of us on the ship will have to go online to see all of the images.  For you at home, please click on the images to enlarge them.

Deception Island

Slowly throughout the day the Drake lay down.   It was a relief to get in the more sheltered waters around the South Shetland Islands.  It was exciting to see our first icebergs today.  Within short order we had also seen our first penguins in the sea and our first whales.  Humpbacks! This only helped to build our excitement level for our first landing at Deception Island.
At 5pm we cruised through Neptune's Bellows which is the dramatic entrance to the hidden caldera of Deception Island (the reputed southern base of Captain Nemo and the Nautilus).
The cold overcast day added to the heavy atmosphere of Deception.  There were even a few snowflakes in the air. It was wonderful to stretch our legs again.
On shore to greet us was a rather large gathering of Skuas lounging around a small fresh water pool.  One of the expedition team told us it was the "Skua Spa" and that there is always some Skuas there in the summer. Down the beach was a large sleeping Elephant Seal. At the other end of the beach was a bachelor group of Antarctic Fur Seals, lots more Skuas and a flock of Kelp Gulls.

Our expedition team enthusiastically pointed out the hundreds of Salps in the water - small, clear, gelatinous barrel shapped tunicates.  At one point during the landing, thousands of dead krill washed up along the shore.  the Skuas and Kelp gulls had a short lived feast until the Krill washed back out again.

Everywhere there was left the signs of former human occupation: old whaling artifacts and buildings from a British Base.

Our first landing had a little of everything.  History. Geology. Wildlife. Snow.
What will tomorrow bring?

Drake Dance

We hit a storm in the Drake Passage, and a quite serious one to be true. When Sir Francis Drake discovered this infamous body of water in the 16th century he was thrown into it by a mighty storm and he did not even want to be here!! Now, we have come here out of our own free will, but the weather is not exactly making it enjoyable for us. Everyone on board was trying to hold on to something and a lot of people were using many more steps to get from one place to another than they would usually. It was nice that there were some places where we could just sit back and relax like the fireplace with its soothing atmosphere of natural calm...

because outside, the elements were having their way and large waves and strong winds were our constant enemy today. 

The only ones who seemed to enjoy this day tremenduosly were the albatrosses and the petrels who found ideal flying conditions in these winds. Today we began to understand why the sailors of centuries gone by considered the albatross to be a sign of good luck. There is something curiously reassuring about the quiet and peaceful way in which these majestic birds soar in the trough of the winds of the southern ocean and do not seem to be affected by them at all!