Today was the day that many of us have been excited about for a very long time. We crossed the Drake Passage and arrived in Antarctica! Our day was filled with seabirds, ice, whales, penguins, and incredible scenery. In a microcosm, today was just a taste of what Antarctica is all about.
We awoke to calmer seas as we finished crossing the Drake Passage. Cape Petrels continued to wheel around the ship and soon we spotted some large blows. Three fin whales were feeding together, harvesting some of the abundant krill in this area. In the distance, we spotted a massive iceberg, and we went to investigate the first of hopefully many incredible ice sculptures. From here, we entered English Strait in the South Shetland Islands with an escort of penguins leading to our first landing.
Aitcho Island is a great destination as it is a small area filled with wildlife. We were able to spend many hours slowly walking amongst the penguins. Both chinstrap and Gentoo penguins nest here, and many nests contained two chicks of varying sizes. Most of us instantly fell in love with the comic antics of the both the parents and the chicks. The island was abuzz with activity, and it was great to relax in the center of it all and soak it in.
On one long beach, many penguins were coming and going. We were able to watch them preen, bathe, socialize, and return from a long trip searching for food. At the far end of the beach, a group of young elephant seals were all piled together. Gathering here to molt and relax, they were a highlight for many of us. Skuas, gulls, and petrels flew around adding to the scene. We slowly made our way back to the ship, happily filled with an incredible start to our voyage.
To finish our day, we entered the caldera of Deception Island. Here, some scenic after dinner cruising yielded a magnificent landscape. The ruins of the old whaling station with ice and ash surrounding it was a scene from a different era. A bedtime story of what happened here in the last eruption was the final act of a great day.
