Cuverville Island and Port Lockroy via Neumayer Channel
For our first day in Antarctica, we were so excited. Many of us were up before 5 am - the sun was peeking through and illuminating some of the mountain peaks. They were surrounding us and as the morning progressed more and more of them became visible. As we approached Cuverville Island, most of us were up and about. We anchored close to the island, in amongst the grounded icebergs, which were stunning shapes and many shades of white and blue. We were whizzed ashore in the inflatable Zodiacs to our first encounter with penguins (gentoo’s). With the little white patches on each side of their heads, they looked like they were wearing earmuffs. We watched in fascination as they trundled past us, waddled beside us and popped out of the water like popcorn right beside us. On the way back to the ship we had a close look at some of the grounded icebergs and “Mr. Kodak” was very pleased with the number of photos, which we all took.
Our next adventure took us towards Port Lockroy, via the Neumayer Channel. This winding and narrow channel was like something from the cover of a chocolate box - it was picture perfect as the sun came out and all but whispers of clouds moved away. The incredibly blue sky seemed to just sparkle and between the pack-ice the mountains were shimmering in reflection. As we moved further into the Neumayer, the pack-ice got thicker and thicker until we were moving through 10-10th’s - as thick as it can get. Luckily for us, the ice was also soft, and the Captain skillfully maneuvered us south. It was energizing to watch the ship crack open, smash and break the ice floes as we pushed towards Port Lockroy.
We awaited the turning point into Port Lockroy with anticipation - would we, could we, actually get into the tiny alcove of a harbor? Once again, we were treated to the ice-skills of the Captain as he brought the ship right into, and then up against the ‘fast’ ice (ice which is fixed to the land). We were allowed to disembark down the gangway and actually walk on the ice. We headed over to Jougla Point, a gentoo colony, then further over the ice, past some Weddell seals and onto Goudier Island. The whole experience boarded on surreal as we realized we were actually walking on water! However, the final 20 feet towards our destination had to be done by Zodiac, and once on the island we visited the old British base of Port Lockroy, which had been turned into a museum and shop. After our shopping spree we headed back to the ship for a yummy dinner, and then afterwards an afternoon stroll on the ‘promenade’ - which was in reality the fast ice alongside the ship and penguins. The light just got better and better as the sun sunk lower, until all the surrounding mountains glowed like orange ice-cakes. It was hard to imagine that this all happened in just one day - it already felt like we had been here for a week, as we had just had such an amazing and full time.
For our first day in Antarctica, we were so excited. Many of us were up before 5 am - the sun was peeking through and illuminating some of the mountain peaks. They were surrounding us and as the morning progressed more and more of them became visible. As we approached Cuverville Island, most of us were up and about. We anchored close to the island, in amongst the grounded icebergs, which were stunning shapes and many shades of white and blue. We were whizzed ashore in the inflatable Zodiacs to our first encounter with penguins (gentoo’s). With the little white patches on each side of their heads, they looked like they were wearing earmuffs. We watched in fascination as they trundled past us, waddled beside us and popped out of the water like popcorn right beside us. On the way back to the ship we had a close look at some of the grounded icebergs and “Mr. Kodak” was very pleased with the number of photos, which we all took.
Our next adventure took us towards Port Lockroy, via the Neumayer Channel. This winding and narrow channel was like something from the cover of a chocolate box - it was picture perfect as the sun came out and all but whispers of clouds moved away. The incredibly blue sky seemed to just sparkle and between the pack-ice the mountains were shimmering in reflection. As we moved further into the Neumayer, the pack-ice got thicker and thicker until we were moving through 10-10th’s - as thick as it can get. Luckily for us, the ice was also soft, and the Captain skillfully maneuvered us south. It was energizing to watch the ship crack open, smash and break the ice floes as we pushed towards Port Lockroy.
We awaited the turning point into Port Lockroy with anticipation - would we, could we, actually get into the tiny alcove of a harbor? Once again, we were treated to the ice-skills of the Captain as he brought the ship right into, and then up against the ‘fast’ ice (ice which is fixed to the land). We were allowed to disembark down the gangway and actually walk on the ice. We headed over to Jougla Point, a gentoo colony, then further over the ice, past some Weddell seals and onto Goudier Island. The whole experience boarded on surreal as we realized we were actually walking on water! However, the final 20 feet towards our destination had to be done by Zodiac, and once on the island we visited the old British base of Port Lockroy, which had been turned into a museum and shop. After our shopping spree we headed back to the ship for a yummy dinner, and then afterwards an afternoon stroll on the ‘promenade’ - which was in reality the fast ice alongside the ship and penguins. The light just got better and better as the sun sunk lower, until all the surrounding mountains glowed like orange ice-cakes. It was hard to imagine that this all happened in just one day - it already felt like we had been here for a week, as we had just had such an amazing and full time.
