It started to dawn on us when we woke up (pun definitely intended) that this was our final day of sightings on the good ship Plancius. After a busy day of balancing our regular surveys and creating the evening…
Our second last day on the Plancius. We woke up to a slightly rough sea on the Drake Passage, however, it was much calmer than expected. The morning was quiet as we went about our routine marine mammal and seabird…
This morning we woke up at the Melchior Islands. The towering mountains that surrounded us rose steeply from the Antarctic waters, to glisten brightly against the clear blue sky creating breath-taking views of the…
Today began with us cruising through the Lemaire Channel, a beautiful channel, only a mile wide, which would take us even further South, right down to 65oS. Unfortunately, the weather wasn’t as great as yesterday, so…
Today we set foot on the continent of Antarctica proper! Neko Harbour has claimed a special place in our hearts as our first continental landing. We stepped onto the shore of a rocky beach surrounded by a wall of…
When I woke early this morning and looked out the little porthole, I was greeted with my first taste of Antarctica, ice! In an earlier lecture, we were told that no matter where we look, we will never find more ice…
Our second full day on board the Plancius was eventful to say the least. During the night we crossed both the Antarctic Convergence and 60 degree South latitude, meaning we are now both biologically and geographically…
Our voyage on board has certainly thrown us in at the deep end. Our windows down on the 2nd floor resemble washing machines and I’m completely in awe at how gracefully the staff can handle themselves while the ship is…
Today was our last day in Ushuaia before we set off for Antarctica. We started the day by checking out of the hotel and tagging our luggage for loading onto the Plancius, at 10:00 am. After that, we were given until…
We spent our second full day in Ushuaia exploring the Tiera del Fuego National Park, just east of Ushuaia. Our tour guide Isabel walked us through the park and taught us all about the wildlife in the forest and the…
