The Southern Ocean is renowned for tough and hostile conditions—the southern latitudes of the Roaring Forties, the Furious Fifties and deep south of the Screaming Sixties. National Geographic Explorer has ventured south and we were now in the mid 60's latitudes in the Gerlache Straits; however, all we heard all day were the screams of laughter and delight from all of our guests as Antarctica once again has spoiled us with incredible weather and the opportunities to explore and discover more.
Everyone today took full advantage of the locations and variety of activities that Captain Oliver Kruβ and the entire team on board have made possible. Our first stop of the day was at Cierva Cove on the continent. Named after the early 1900s Spanish aviation engineer, Cierva Cove gave everyone the chance to cruise on Zodiacs, and witness up close the carving of tons of ice falling into the cove. Enterprise Island offered the unique chance for virtually everyone on board to take to the water in kayaks and Zodiacs where they discovered the wreck of the Governoren, a semi-sunken whale factory ship, while many passengers braved the icy waters for the classic polar plunge. Enterprise also gave us wildlife variety with Weddell seals, crabeater seals and a juvenile elephant seal pup along with bubble feeding humpback whales seen alongside the ship at anchor. The grand finale, and a rare sight, was that of a juvenile emperor penguin, alone on a large ice floe in the Southern Gerlache, which we spotted shortly after dinner—it was the icing on the cake, even after dessert!
