What a glorious day.

The sun was gleaming, the wind stayed away and the scenery was fantastic.

Overnight MV Fram sailed south from the South Shetland Islands across Bransfield Strait and into the Gerlache Strait. Lots of us could not contain our excitement and spent the early part of the morning taking in the fantastic scenery. As we were eating breakfast we entered Andvord Bay.

We landed at Neko Harbour and were treated to views of the surrounding mountains, bays and icebergs. Closer to the landing we watched the Gentoo Penguins as they went back and for, in and out of the sea and the fascinating nest building and courtship rituals. The views from up the hill into the crevasses and ice falls of the nearby glacier were just breathtaking. Going down was a lot easier and quicker than going up with gravity and sliding down the steeper sections of the slope was great fun. How could we beat this?

During lunch the Captain repositioned the Ship to the Base Brown, the weather held and we climbed the hill above the base. Giving incredible views of Paradise Bay – very aptly named (even if it was because of the easy picking made by the early whalers) it is still very beautiful.

The evening got even better with the incredible light almost at sunset in the Lemaire channel – WOW! We dropped our campers at Peterman Island. What will tomorrow bring?

Calm seas and The Great Wall

Following good progress overnight we made it to the South Shetland Islands. In the morning we did our preparations for landing – Boot fitting, vacuum cleaning clothing to ensure biosecurity and the IAATO briefing.

We were ready for landing but not before the Captain held the delayed welcome cocktail. Plenty of photographs were taken.

The weather was just perfect for our first landing at the Chinese station – Great Wall. The wintering team of 12 were very welcoming and showed around the impressive base. Earlier in the morning they had cleared a pathway for us, luckily they had a big excavator on hand as there was a lot of snow!

We also had a good introduction to Antarctic wildlife with Weddel seals, Chinstrap and Gentoo penguins as well as logistics with a Hercules C130, DH7 Twin Otter taking off from the nearby Chilean airfield at Presidente Eduardo Frei station as well as the Chilean SAR vessel.Tomorrow is another day and we hope it is like this one.

MV Ghost ship Fram

The previous days travel, lack of sleep all took its toll. The motion of the ocean caused a lot of stomach motions. When only less than 30% of us turned up for breakfast the expedition team delivered Ginger tea and crackers to our rooms. This continued through the day.

Those of us who did make it out on deck were treated to at least 7 Light-mantled Sooty Albatross swooping around the ship in close formation making the most of the winds and the waves.

At times we did wonder where everybody had gone. We are making good progress having crossed the Antarctic Convergence and hope to be in the South Shetlands tomorrow lunch time when the real journey will begin.

Off we go

After the enforced stay due to the transport strike in Argentina we are on our way to Antarctica! Our 'home' port of Ushuaia looked magnificent in its coating of fresh snow on higher ground, which fell last night. This trip is a first for Fram- all our passengers are Chinese speakers.

Passenger flights arrived early and as soon as we landed we were on board MS Fram. Although tired after days of travel we soon got used to our new home for the next 9 days. We handed in our medical forms and were issued our blue expedition jackets. These were soon put to good use as we had our Muster practice in what seemed a gale force wind coming off the glaciers around Ushuaia.

We pulled away from the pier and headed east down the Beagle Channel. The wind was cold on our faces but the light was very impressive on the snow-clad mountains. The views kept getting better with the clay banks contrasting with the beech forest and snowcapped peaks above. We were followed by Cape Petrel, Black-browed Albatross and Shags to name a few. Some distance past Ushuaia we passed the most southerly town in the world- Puerto Williams on Isla Navarrino, Chile.

As we headed out into the Drake Passage the seas started to build rocking us all asleep, looking forward to the adventure ahead.

What now?

After our incredible voyage of the past 3 weeks, we have incredible memories – seeing is believing! But now reality looms – back to civilization. Compared with the seas we endured to and from South Georgia the Drake was comfortable, but the odd storm still reminded us the power of Southern Ocean.

The winds and the waves meant that we still had abundant bird life with us, including the Black browed Albatross and the Southern Fulmar that we have seen from very early on in the voyage – are these the same birds seeing us safely back to land?

Final lectures were given by the Expedition team and the Captain, Chief Engineer and Hotel Manager held a Question and Answer session covering any of those final queries including what goes on behind the scenes in the Galley, Engine room and the real story of ‘the storm’.

Due to the potential chaos caused by the travel strike in Argentina on the 20th we went as fast as possible out of the Drake into the protected waters of the Beagle channel and made our way northwards to Ushuaia for arrival on early evening on the 19th. Cancelled flights will mean taking in the highlights in the most southern city in the world for an extra day.

Our thoughts our now towards home, seeing family and friends and telling them about our unforgettable experiences and memories that will be with us forever.

Were we dreaming?

During the night we felt bumps and shakes in Bransfield straight, but before we knew it we were full steam heading south in the Gerlache straight surrounded by cloud capped mountain peaks with glaciers pouring into the sea. As we headed further south the scenery became even more magical. We entered the narrow twisting Neumeyer channel wondering where the Captain was taking us in this Magical Land.

A few buildings appeared with the British Union Flag flying strongly in the wind. The magnificent backdrop of the Feif range with a heavy winter dusting of snow reminding us that we are early season visitors. Port Lockroy an old British base built during war is now run as a very informative and evocative museum of how the scientists used to live in the 1950s. The base is run by the Antarctic Heritage Trust and charity based in the UK. Only half of this season’s team had made it to the base a few days before us and had been busy digging out the base and setting up the fantastic museum ready for our arrival.

We did wake up when we landed as we had to negotiate the snow cliff from the landing up to the base, luckily the Port Lockroy team had dug some steps and the expedition team were on hand to give us a helping hand! We realised we were definitely not dreaming when the wind started to pick up, the clouds lowered  and snow blew, but looking on the bright side we all got free facials.

A taste of the real Antarctic.

Leaving Port Lockroy late afternoon we headed south to the Lemaire channel to make the most of the days remaining light. We were treated with rays of light pouring down onto massive icebergs to the west, looking south we could see the entrance to Lemaire and headed straight in. Strong winds poured snow off the surrounding glaciers into the sea, the towering peaks (including Una’s peaks to name but a few!) with their dusting of snow made us feel very small in this massive landscape. Ice blocked our path two thirds of the way through and the Captain spun the ship around on the spot (the channel was so narrow he did not have much choice and we headed north towards our landing for the following day.

The magic continued as were awoken by the noise of small ice blocks tapping at the side of the ship as we sailed into Paradise Bay towards Base Brown. An early morning landing did not wake us from our dreamy haze whilst the heavy snow fall restricted our visibility. The short walk up the hill certainly did wake and warm us up. Those of us that made it were rewarded with views down to the ship and when heavy snow occasionally eased we could see across to the ice falls surrounding peaks. The power of nature! The Antarctic!

A day to remember

Today was special for many of us. After several days on rough seas we arrived in Antarctica- the ultimate goal of our trip. Seas were calm overnight which allowed us to make up some time that we had lost going into the wind and waves from South Georgia. Overnight it had snowed and a nice pile had built up on decks. Some of our crew had never seen snow before!

As with the earliest explorers, the first land we saw was the South Shetland Islands. Through the day, skies cleared and we were followed by hundreds of Cape and Antarctic Petrels and Souther Fulmars. Our destination today was the Polish base Arktowski on King George Island, South Shetland Islands. Winds were strong when we set anchor near the landing site but the direction was more or less off the land so the sea conditions, though difficult, did not hamper our landing.

At the station we had options to walk along the cobble beach towards the Adélie Penguin colony and visit the station itself. The air was fresh and the stiff breeze at 0° C made it seem a lot colder. We of course saw the resident Adélie Penguins but were lucky also to see some Gentoos and a few Chinstraps. Halfway down the beach a few Elephant Seals were enjoying the sun, and two others (males) were play-fighting behind the beach.

Overnight we will sail across the Bransfield Strait and down the west side of the peninsula to the Lemaire Channel, which we hear is free of ice, and to Port Lockroy. More Antarctic adventures are to come, that's for sure!

Dancing with a faithful Lady

We were dancing “rock’n roll”,”twist” and “cha cha cha” with our wonderful and faithful lady FRAM since we left South Georgia two days before. The wind was blowing very strong again and FRAM was rolling and pitching, and we with her. But we have to say, we love our wonderful lady and most of us have now the right seamen legs to dance with her.

During we were dancing on board different kind of birds were dancing next to our ship over the waves. It was a magnificent spectacle to watch the birds and our photographer and our ornithologists started their competition in bird photography.

We used these two days also to prepare our self for our next destination, the Antarctic Peninsula. Our lecture team offered so many different kinds of lectures and we were soaking their knowledge like a sponge. In a last briefing we learned all about the IAATO rules and we believe that we will behave now correct and carefully on our landings in Antarctica after all this information.

The evening today was more relaxed. After a nice dinner we met in the observation lounge for a fashion show. Extraordinary models – Captain, officers and expedition team – did a very good job. This event was followed directly by the fruit and ice carving show; presented by three wonderful gentlemen out of the galley. It seems that we have real good artists with us on board.

Also now in the very late evening Fram is still rolling and pitching; nobody likes to dance anymore. FRAM cradles us now in hopefully nice and deep dreams.

Grytviken

Overnight the Captain took us from Stromness to Cumberland Bay. Blue skies and the reflections of the surrounding peaks and buildings gave us a taste of what was on offer for the landing ahead. Sarah Lurkock from the South Georgia Heritage Trust came on board to give us all a talk about the work of the Trust and the rat eradication programme, whilst the ship was cleared by the South Georgia Governement officer who ensured we had undertaken the neccesary biosecurity measures. We were given the go ahead and we were off.

The calmness of the early morning ceased with a cool wind reminding us where we were. We paid our respects to those buried in the cemetry including its most distinguished inhabitants - Shackleton and Wild. The resident fur seals on the most part behaved and did not even blink an eye as we walked past.

A few of us took advantage of a guided tour of the whaling station whilst the others enjoyed walking up the hill to the lake taking in the panoramic views.

The museum gave an excellent insight into life at Grytviken which at its height had in the region of 1000 inhabitants and during its 60 years of operation the efficient killing and processing of the 1.25 million whales that were taken in Southern Hemisphere. 

  

Some interesting bird life was seen including an out of place duck - for the birders amongst you will spot the difference! At lunch time we said our farewells to Grytviken as we sailed from Cumberland bay and set our course for the South Orkney Islands. We were treated with views of impressive icebergs of all shapes and sizes sparkling in the afternoon light. The peaks of South Georgia looked even more jagged an inhospitable - what a magical few days we have just had.