Day 6 – Living in Antarctica – the penguin and human perspectives
Wednesday 07 January 2026 – written by Rowan
Today was another early start for all of us as we were the first group to go ashore. We weren’t the first in the zodiac though as a surpise penguin hitchhiker got on board one of the zodiacs first! Once the Adelie penguin hopped off, we could board and set out for Bongrain Point on Pourquoi Pas Island, where we visited a colony of Adelie penguins.
Thankfully the weather has stayed clear with minimal wind, making for very pleasant landings. We had a bit more swell today though, which made getting in and out of the Zodiacs a bit more rocky! Once ashore the fantastic conditions made our penguin surveys very enjoyable once again. This colony of feisty Adelie penguins was generally a bit more active than the gentoo penguin colony two days ago – Adelie penguins breed earlier in the season, so their chicks are a bit older (and bigger!) now. Some parents give their chicks a bit more freedom, and aren’t always as aggressive as parents with newborn chicks or eggs.
After the landing, some of our team headed out on our first “Science Boat.” This was a special Zodiac with 8 people collecting oceanographic data for other expedition scientists. We put a plankton net overboard, letting it sink well below the surfaece and pulled it behind the boat for a bit before hauling it back up. It was quite heavy, laden with brown sludge that turned out to be a soup of phytoplankton and zooplankton! The small bottle at the bottom of the net had collected some real treats – among them many different types of diatoms and even tiny comb jellyfish. The smell of the plankton being hauled to the surface attracted a group of Antarctic terns which started circling above us. We didn’t see any krill, but the neighbouring penguin colony has probably eaten quite a few of the surface-residing krill. Finally, we used another probe to monitor temperature, salinity and depth; the water got saltier and colder as depth increased,. Salt makes water denser, and meltwater from the icebergs and glaciers around us makes the water fresher (less salty/ lighter) so this sits on top.
Once everyone was back on board, our survey teams went out for more seabird and marine mammal observations. We are now deep within the Antarctic Peninsula ecosystems, with Antarctic terns and brown skuas dominating the sky, as well as Antarctic shags and the occasional kelp gull. You can keep an eye out for some Arctic terns farther north – they look nearly identical to our Antarctic terns, but the Arctic terns migrate from pole to pole (well almost!). Antarctic shags also have a look-a-like, with our expedition leaders referring to them as “flying penguins”. We also had some more humpback whale sightings, as expected in the shallower waters off the Peninsula. Finally, during our last scan of the seascape, we spotted yet another pod of around 8 orcas! Unfortunately they were heading away from us into a bay and the ship had to stop for the landing, so we only got binocular views. Bur only about every other expedition gets even one sighting, so we have been extremely lucky so far (we’re already up to 3 sightings!).
Before our afternoon landing, we participated in a brief ceremony: a baptism by Southern Ocean water for crossing the Antarctic Circle! Some of our team were brave enough to have this ice cold water poured down their shirts (by none less than an expedition leader dressed as Neptune, complete with trident), and we had a great time watching them!
After changing into dry clothes, we headed out on another landing, this time with no penguin surveys. Instead, we joined the other passengers in exploring an abandoned British research station on Horseshoe Island. During WW2, many countries expanded bases into the Antarctic, mainly as a political power play. They did gather lots of relevant data, though. This research station focused on topographical survey, geology, and meteorology for 14 years before it closed. Each room has been preserved, frozen in time just as it was in 1969, full of photographs by bunks, maps on tables, and jars of marmite on the shelves.
Horseshoe Island had another surprise for us – Weddell seals! One greeted us right where the Zodiacs were docking, and others were napping all across the beach.
Tonight, we’re staying in place, as some of the ship passengers go camping onshore! We will be warm in our cabin beds, and head out to sea again in the morning after we pick them up. Tomorrow will include another landing at a historic site and many more animals!