Could this be? Not two days into our journey and we have already made it down to the South Shetland Island chain, just off the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula! Our expert Bridge team and a bit of luck from the “Drake Lake” accelerated us across the passage in record time for National Geographic Orion this season! Eager and up early on the Bridge, Lilah and Frazer Hillard wondered when they might start to see some icebergs looming in the distance? Not moments later, Frazer spotted the first notable berg through his binoculars at 7:35 AM this morning. We all let out a “woo-hoo!” as our excitement grew with the anticipation of more icy indications of our nearing arrival. Low lying clouds and some large snowflakes welcomed us to our first landings at Cecilia and Barientos Islands. The gentoo and chinstrap penguins seemed to jump for joy at the sight of us, perhaps they were as exhilarated as we are… or it could just be that their neighbor was getting a little too nosy? Regardless, it was a fabulous introduction to the natural beauty and wildlife of the Antarctic with penguins abound, noisy elephant seals molting on the beach, and a rare, white morph southern giant petrel to bestow between the two islands.
The dive team took a plunge into the biting waters that are teeming with productivity after our landings. Penguins swam around us, streaking by in and out of the shallows as we recorded video footage of the underwater world to share. Venturing further south towards the peninsula, our historian on board, Dr. Andrew Atkin familiarized us on the impressive logistical skills of early Antarctic explorers, presenting a detailed account of the luck favoring the prepared as Scott and Amundsen raced to reach the South Pole. Shortly afterwards, naturalist, Adam Cropp detailed the regional sensational cetaceans, their impressive reproductive capabilities, and identification of some species that we have already seen and others we can hope to see throughout our journey.
Continuing southward, we were able to gather out on deck for the immense, haunting beauty of navigating through Neptune’s Bellows, into the sunken caldera that forms Whaler’s Bay for our after dinner landing. Boisterous winds gusted through the jagged, volcanic steeples surrounding the bay at speeds upwards of 30 knots! Experiencing the raw, unbridled power of Antarctica’s weather systems didn’t deter the majority of our fantastic group from the rustic beaches of the old whaling station on Deception Island with many venturing ashore.
