At Sea in the Drake Passage
Albatross wing over the smooth swells of the Drake this morning, riding the light winds in effortless gliding arcs past the stern of our ship. A group of penguins, Rockhoppers perhaps, appear for a second just ahead of the bow and then vanish again. The Drake seems full of life today and we wonder what other animals are nearby, just out of sight, over the horizon or under the surface.
This is a day of preparation and anticipation. We’re checking our binoculars and boots, listening to presentations on sea birds and Shackleton, eagerly thinking ahead to the excitement and adventure of Antarctic landfall tomorrow.
Already it is clear that the Antarctic is a place of great variety, a multi-faceted jewel that each individual holds and turns in their own way, finding the aspects that delight and move and mystify them most. Already we can see hints of faces within faces, glints deep inside gleams waiting for us to discover. Ice (bergs, glaciers, floes), wildlife (penguins, seals, whales), history (exploration, tragedy, discovery) – like choosing from a fabulous polar smorgasbord, we’ll all find our favorites. Every day will find us in a new place, revealing the starkly contrasting scenery of the Weddell Sea, the South Shetland Islands and the Palmer Archipelago, while subtly shifting light and ever-changing weather will cast new moods almost every minute.
We are charged up (camera batteries and excitement both up to peak levels) and poised to go (well fed and well informed, parkas and binoculars at the ready). The albatross glide now through a light pearly fog, clear evidence that we have crossed into the colder seas of the Southern Ocean. The ice is not far ahead. Soon the curtain will rise on Antarctica.
