30th December – Deception and Cuverville Island
Time: 05:20, 62 degrees 58.04’ South, 61 degrees 09.28’ West, wind East force 5, overcast, dry at first fog, rain, sleet and snow later. Water Temperature 0.8oC, Air Temperature 3oC, Sunrise 2.59am, Sunset 11.55pm.


Inside the caldera on Deception Island, discovered by a Cork man!

We sailed into the caldera (flooded volcano) of Deception Island at about 7am this morning. There were large numbers of Chinstrap Penguins in the water near the entrance. Once inside the number of penguins and other birds to be seen dropped off dramatically. The volcano we were sailing over is considered still active with hot springs pushing up small clouds of steam from the south side.


Part of the flock of Cape Petrels that flew around the ship for some time.


As we left Deception we saw two Humback whales in the distance and then headed for Cuverville Island. We were escorted part of the way by a flock of over 30 Cape Petrel who flew laps of the ship. The weather gradually deteriorated and the distribution of ice had changed a lot since our last visit. On the way we had fantastic views of three humpback whales very close to the ship, their long white pectoral fins clearly visible in the crystal clear water. Many passengers managed to see them, which was great, the sounds of amazement rising and falling every time the whales surfaced. When we got to Cuverville it was raining heavily and the wind was gusting. Myself and other expedition team members spent over five hours in Zodiacs showing passengers the very large Gentoo colony and the indescribable blue icebergs. By the end of the day I was soaked to the skin with thermal underwear, pants, one pair of gortex leggings and a second pair or leggings over them failing to stop water reaching my skin. It was rather unpleasant for the passengers at times but it was good to see that most them were very excited about being out in some real Antarctic weather.


David Harrowfield, Expedition Historian.


Our Expedition Historian is David Harrowfield hails from New Zealand and I have asked him to give the reader of my blog some historical information of the places we will be visiting on this expedition. This is what he had to tell me about Deception and Cuverville. “Deception Island is a ring-shaped island in the South Shetlands first sighted and explored by the Irish born Edward Bransfield in January-March 1820 and again by the American sealer Nathaniel Palmer in November of that year. Large tanks for whale oil at Whalers’ Bay are associated with the Norwegian Hekla 1910-31 station of the Hektor Whaling Company. In November 1928, the first flights in Antarctica were made from here by Australian Hubert (later Sir Hubert) Wilkins and in February 1944, the British ‘Station B’ of ‘Operation Tabarin’ was established in some of the Norwegian buildings. Cuverville Island lies in the Errera Channel between Arctowski Peninsula and Bryde Islands. It was discovered by the Belgian expedition led by de Gerlache and named by him for J.M.A. Cavalier de Cuverville a vice admiral in the French Navy.”

Time: 22:31, 64 degrees 42.25’ South, 63 degrees 02.31’ West, Water Temperature 0.5oC, Air Temperature 0oC, snowing, wind Northeast force 6.



Sorry for delay in posting yesterdays blog, not internet connection on the ship last night.

29th December - At Sea en route to Deception Island.
Time 06.30, 54 degrees 41.55' South, 65 degrees 25.44' West, cloudy at first clearing to bright sunshine and some fog later, water temperature 6.4oC, air temperature 9oC, wind South force 3, Sunrise 4.32 am, Sunset 10.41pm.

Had a good days seawatching with plenty of birds and four species of whales. A lot of the activity was near the Antarctic convergence line.

Sarah Clarke, Marco Polo Expedition Marine Biologist.

I asked our expedition Marine Biologist, Sarah Clarke, who come from Galway in Ireland to explain what exactly was the Antarctic Convergence Line. This is what she told me. -

"The Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC) encircles the Antarctic continent and is the largest current found in the worlds oceans. The Antarctic Convergence or Polar Front is the most important feature of the ACC. It usually lies between the latitudes 40 S and 60 S. The front is formed when the colder more saline water of the Antarctic sinks below the warmer waters to the north.


There is generally a 2-3 oC temperature difference across the convergence (in red in the graph above). The convergence forms a thermal barrier to marine fauna found in the water column, resulting in certain species being unique to Antarctic waters (i.e. zooplankton and some coastal and shallow water fish species).


In calm weather conditions the frontal zone is usually visible by a low-lying cloud bank on the surface of the ocean. We crossed the Antarctic convergence, heading south, between 2pm and 4pm today." Thanks Sarah!

During the rest of the season I will be asking other members of the expedition team to be guest bloggers and share their knowledge of all things antarctic. The pupils of St. Mary's National School in Cobh will be glad to know Kenny is having a great time and is becoming a bit of an expert on albatrosses.

Kenny getting to grips with the identification challenges of Albatross identification before going to sleep in his cabin.

Tomorrow we cruise in the caldera (flooded volcano) called Deception Island and then show passengers around Cuverville ISland in Zodiacs in the afternoon. We will be passing through the best whale watching waters in the area so fingers crossed for a fine day. Bye for now.

Time 22:15, 61 degrees 10.31 South, 62 degrees 52.07' West, overcast, Water temperature 1.2oC, Air Temperature 60C, wind East force 5


Cruise Species List - Saturday 29th December 2007

Wildlife Seen on the Drake Passage en route south to Deception Island

Mammals
Sei Whale 3+
Fin Whale 3+
Southern Bottlenose Whale 1
Orca (Killer Whale) 1 male
Sperm Whale 1
Unidentified whale 3

Birds
Wandering Albatross 2+
Royal Albatross 4+
Southern Giant Petrel 10+
Unidentified Giant Petrel 5+
Grey-headed Albatross 2
Black-browed Albatross 15+
Cape Petrel 30+
Prions 1,000+ (99% Antarctic, 1% Thin-billed Prion)
Blue Petrel 400+ (mainly around the convergence line)
White-chinned Petrel 5+
Wilson’s Storm Petrel 20+
Black-bellied Storm Petrel 1
Unidentified Penguin Species 25+ (near the convergence line)
Brown Skua 2

Note: A + sign after the counts indicates that we saw at least that number but more may have been present.

28th December - Ushuaia, Argentina. Time 22:27, 54 degrees 54.65 South, 67 degrees 20.33' West, Sunny spells, clouding over later, showers and drizzle later, Wind Southwest force 5, Water Temperature 8.7oC, Air Temperature 19oC.


San Martin, main street in Ushuaia


Even Santa Claus is a penguin!


More penguins


And more penguins - a wall mural.


Penguins everywhere.


Get the idea.


Even the local flying club has a giant penguin painted on its hanger.



The Nordnorge with the Marco Polo in the background.


Me standing next to the Malvinas war memorial (thanks Sarah!)
The pale areas are a map of the Malvinas/Falklands cut through the stone.

Spent today catching up on a few small jobs and then wandered around Ushuaia. There were seven passenger vessels docked at the pier this morning, all heading for the Antarctic. The largest was the Celebrity Infinity, a huge liner with over 2,500 passengers. This line will not be landing any passengers on the Antarctic. Also present was the Nordnorge, which rescued the passengers from the MS Explorer which sank in Antarctic waters before Christmas. Ushuaia is a real tourist town with the main street, San Martin, packed with tourists moving from souvenir shop to the next. There is a lot of construction going on and new roads are being built. The unsurfaced roads are very dusty and large clouds of dust are regularly whipped up by strong gusts of wind. I also noticed clearings appearing in the large forest which provided a spectacular backdrop to the town. The houses being built look like wooden chalets with no obvious sign of planning. If this continues to spread unchecked it will spoil Ushuaia's magnificent setting. I also came across a stark reminder of the Falkland's/Malvinas war. There is a large monument at the west end of the town with all the names of those Argentinians that were killed, most of whom were young and conscripted.
We are now heading out of Ushuaia with a new compliment of passangers and will spend tomorrow at sea heading for Deception Island. I have added some images to my previous blog entries. Bye for now.


Wildlife Seen around Ushuaia town centre

Cruise Species List Thursday 28th December 2007

Mammals
none

Birds
Giant Petrel 1
Magellanic Penguin 3
Rock Shag 5
Imperial Shag 30+
Kelp Goose 2
Upland Goose 4
Flying Steamer Duck 5
Crested Duck 100+
Turkey Vulture 1
Chimango Caracara 8+
Southern Lapwing 7
Chilean Skua 1
Brown“Sub Antarctic“Skua 5+
Kelp Gull 40+
Dolphin Gull 20+
South American Tern 50+
Austral Negrito
Blue and White Swallow 2
Austral Thrush 6+
Correndera Pipit 1
Long-tailed Meadowlark 2+
Rufous-collared Sparrow 5+
House Sparrow 15+



Note: A + sign after the counts indicates that we saw at least that number but more may have been present.

27th December 2007 - Ushuaia, Argentina. 54 degrees 48.61' South/68 degrees 17.82' West, overcast with occasional showers, Air Temperature 14oc, Water Temperature 8.4oc, Wind NE 2, Sunrise 4.55 am, Sunset 10.13pm.


Ushuaia, Argentina.


Mountains near Lago Roca in the national park.


Me at Lago Roca in the national park (thanks Rich!)


Southern Beech Forest.


Indian Bread, a saprophyte (?) that attacks the Southern Beech trees.


Another photo of the Southern Beech trees.

The amazing Magellanic Woodpecker, photo coutresy of Jeff Minear.

An example of the amazing shapes of the dead trees in the park

An Indian Bread close up, the floor of the forest was littered with them.


White Clover?

Spent today around Ushuaia and walking in the Tierra del Fuego National Park. Ushuaia is a busy place and it is obvious from walking around that it is heavily dependent on Antarctic Tourism. I have never seen penguin images used in so many ways to make tourist souvenirs.
Some of the other expedition team members and myself went for a walk in the national park, a 25 minute bus ride from town. The park has a huge Southern Beech forest with seashore and freshwater lakes and there are well signposted walks through the park. The trees were amazing. Maybe it was spending some time in a landscape almost devoid of green but I thought the colours of the trees and shrubs were very vivid.
I have also never seen so much dead wood in a forest before, a lot of which have woodpecker holes in it. One bird we hoped to see was a Magellanic Woodpecker and we were fortunate to find one busily looking for grubs in a dead tree stump. I completely ignored us and we managed to get within 20 feet of it, truly mad looking crow-sized bird with a bright scarlet head and black and white body. I also saw Fire Bush, a beautiful shrub/tree with bright red flowers. We had one in our garden in Cobh and there are a few to be seen in gardens near my home. It was great to see it in its natural environment. Bye for now.

Cruise Species List Thursday 27th December 2007

Mammals
Rabbit

Birds
Great Grebe 2
Giant Petrel 1
Rock Shag 1
Imperial Shag 15+
Black-faced Ibis 4
Upland Goose 5
Flightless Steamer Duck 2
Crested Duck 1
Southern (Crested) Caracara 1
Chimango Caracara 10+
Southern Lapwing 2
Magellanic Oystercatcher 2
Brown Skua 5+
Kelp Gull 10+
Dolphin Gull 2
South American Tern 50+
Austral Parakeet 5+
Magellanic Woodpecker 4+
Dark-bellied Cinclodes 6+
Thorn-tailed Rayadito 15+
White-crested Elaenia 4
Chilean Swallow 5+
Austral Thrush 10+
Grey-hooded Sierra-finch 6+
Rufous-collared Sparrow 2
House Sparrow 25+

Note: A + sign after the counts indicates that we saw at least that number but more may have been present.

26th December 2007 - Drake Passage to Cape Horn and Ushuaia.
08:00 (am) 57 degrees 36.54' South/65 degrees 00.86' West, sunny at first, overcast and prolonged showers later. Wind force 5 West, Air Temperature 5oc, Water Temperature 4.10c.



Cape Horn




After a rough night on the Drake Passage with winds reaching force 9 we crossed the Antarctic convergence and this morning it was much calmer and the spectacular show of birds we had yesterday had completely disappeared. The sea this mornng was like a desert apart from the odd Giant Petrel and Cape Petrel and the occasion Wandering Albatross. One came along side the ship and its immense size was very clear. They look like they have been burdened with their huge wings and sometimes look like they are only barely managing to control them. It is as if they are not control. We sighted Cape Horn at about 4pm. It is an island off Tierra del Fuego and I recited the poem to passengers which is on a plaque on the headland dedicated to all sailor who have lost their lives at sea. Their is an old sailors tale which says that albatrosses carry the souls of drowned sailors. 100,000 albatrosses are killed each year by long-line fisheries. 00:31 (27th Dec) 54 degrees 48.01' South/ 68 degrees .17.82 West, cloudy but dry, Wind force 2 Southwest, Air emperature 8 oC, Water Temperature 8.2 C

Wild life seen today.

Mammals
Peale’s Dolphin 7+

Birds
Wandering Albatross 6+
Royal Albatross 1
Giant Petrel 40+
Black-browed Albatross 20+
Grey-headed Albatross 3
Cape Petrel 20+
Unidentified Prion 5+
Blue Petrel 30+
Great Shearwater 100+ (at Cape Horn)
Sooty Shearwater 300+ (approaching Cape Horn)
White-chinned Petrel 5+
Wilson’s Storm Petrel 10+
Brown Skua 1
Imperial “Blue eyed” Shag 1

Note: A + sign after the counts indicates that we saw at least that number but more may have been present.

25th December - Half Moon Island and Drake Passage. 20:46(pm) 60 degrees 18.81' South, 61 degrees 59.09' West, overcast and snowing at Half Moon, clearer later with showers on the Drake Passage, wind South West force 3 increasing to force 8 later, Air Temperature 5oc, Water Temperature 1.30c.


Weddell Seal at Jougla Point, Port Lockroy



Brown Skua trying to steal our perimeter line.




ChinStrap Penguin at Half Moon Island

Chinstrap Penguins at Half Moon Island

The Expedition Team

Kenny, given to me by St. Mary's National School Cobh, with a Snow Penguin

Large iceberg on the Drake Passage

Large skull shaped iceberg with a hole through it in the Drake Passage

Kenny after a snow shower

Drake Passage (actual sea colour)

A very early start this morning, landing on Half Moon Island at about 6.15am in heavy snow showers - a white Christmas! As with the other Islands the team thought there was more snow on the island than ever seen by them before. It was also noted that the Chinstrap rookery continues to decline in size. Half Moon was used by sealers in the 19th century when almost all the seals in the area were eventually killed. The wind picked up and the landing had to be aborted with 170 passengers getting ashore before we had to return to the ship. We then headed for Drake Passage. A squadron of 27 Cape Petrels escorted us out between the islands into the Drake, flying in circuits around the ship. Within sight of land we crossed a line of icebergs stretching out in both directions. Some the size of a small Island - immense. While sea conditions continued to deteriorate we were treated to a spectacular show of seabirds over rough seas with up to 1,000 Cape Petrels spread out in all directions and a supporting cast of Southern Fulmars, Giant Petrels, including one white morph, and other species.

Cruise Species List Sunday 25th December 2007

Mammals
Humpback Whale 3
Antarctic Fur Seal 1

Birds
Giant Petrel 50+ (including one almost white individual)
Black-browed Albatross 10+
Grey-headed Albatross 1
Southern Fulmar 200+
Cape Petrel 1,000 + (on entering Drake Passage)
Antarctic Petrel 6
Antarctic Prion 2
White-chinned Petrel 6+
Wilson’s Storm Petrel 50+
Gentoo Penguin 10+
Adelie Penguin 3
Chinstrap Penguin 400+
Snowy Sheathbill 5+
Antarctic Shag 10+
Brown “Sub Antarctic” Skua 8
South Polar Skua 2
Kelp Gull 10+
Antarctic Tern 20+

Note: A + sign after the counts indicates that we saw at least that number but more may have been present.

24th December - Port Lockroy 64 degrees 49.67' South/ 63 degrees 36.21' West, overcast and dry at first, then snow showers and later sunshine, Air Temperature 5 degrees C, Water Temperature 1.1 degrees C, wind Southwest 1-3, Sunrise 2.23am, Sunset midnight.

Brought passengers to Jougla Point at Port Lockroy, a British base in the the antarctic.
Jougla point has a colony of 1,500 Gentoo penguins. At both here and Cuverville Island we had Leopard Seals come up to investigate a Zodiac, swimming around and under it and biting at the side on one occasion. After that we headed for the Lemaire Channel, a very picturesque narrow channel and our furthest point south on this cruise. Unfortunately the channel was clogged with ice and the captain decided not to try and enter the channel. We turned around and started for Half Moon Island, where we will land tomorrow, Christmas day and afterwards head out across the Drake Passage for Ushuaia. Between the top of the Lemaire channel and the beginning of the Bransfield Strait we passed through incredible scenery with towering snow topped peaks and glaciers on the peninsula to our east and the islands to our west and icebergs of all shapes and sizes passing south around the ship. We notched up 53 Humpback Whales on the Cruise north. They were lung feeding, breaching, tail slapping and spy hopping, some very close to the ship. They were in groups of two or three and many seem to be mother and calf pairs.
Got to go now. Up at 4.45am tomorrow to bring passengers to Half Moon Island to visit a Chinstrap Penguin colony. Thanks to everyone for their great comments and have a great Christmas! Bye for now.

22:12 (pm) Bransfield Strait - 63 degrees 48.66' South/ 61 degrees 28.78' w, overcast but dry, Air temperature: 2 degrees C, Water Temperature: 3.2 degrees C, wind Southwest force 3.

Cruise Species List Sunday 24th December 2007

Mammals
Humpback Whale 53+
Leopard Seal 2+
Weddell Seal 1

Birds
Giant Petrel 4+
Black-browed Albatross 3
Cape Petrel 2
Snow Petrel 2
Wilson’s Storm Petrel 15+
Gentoo Penguin 1,400
Adelie Penguin 2
Chinstrap Penguin 10+
Snowy Sheathbill 10+
Antarctic Shag 50+
Brown “Sub Antarctic” Skua 40+
South Polar Skua 2
Kelp Gull 100+
Antarctic Tern 50+



Note: A + sign after the counts indicates that we saw at least that number but more may have been present.

23rd December - 06.36am Paradise Harbour.
64 degrees 50.19’ South/62 degrees 53.83’ West, air temperature 5 degrees, water temperature 0.8 degrees, wind south force 3, force 0-1 later, foggy with sunny spells and and snow later, Sunrise 2.13am, Sunset 00.07am


Iceberg in the Gerlache Strait, as big as our ship.


Chinstrap Penguin at Paradise Harbour


Marco Polo at Paradise Harbour


Leucistic Gentoo Penguin at Paradise Harbour


Adelie Penguin at Paradise Harbour


General View of Paradise Harbour


Female Elephant Seal at Paradise Harbour


Gento Penguin on nest of stones


Blue Icebergs, as much as 25,000 years old


Passangers on Zodiac Cruise around Cuverville Island


Adelie Penguin on blue iceberg at Cuverville Island.

Snowy Sheathbills at Paradise Harbour

Today we went ashore at the Chilean base at Paradise Harbour. The base is surrounded by a Gentoo Penguin colony, with nests literally all over the place. Over 1,000 pairs of Gentoo Penguins nest here. Most birds were sitting on eggs but unlike the Rockhoppers at West Point none had hatched. This is due partly to being further south and also because spring may have arrived later this year as there was more snow on the ground than in previous years. As seems to be the case with most Gentoo colonies you often get individual penguins of different species visiting the colony or rookery, as it is usually referred to. Today was no exception and we saw both Adelie and Chinstrap Penguins. The Gentoo Penguins are very funny. They build nests of small stones and neighbouring Gentoos regularly steal stones from each others nests. It looks like it’s a game to pass the time while waiting for their partner to come back from a fishing trip because they all seem to end up with the same number of stones in each nest. Again the scenery here is breathtaking. Huge snow covered peaks rising almost vertically from the sea with glaciers dropping or calving icebergs into the sea below. The weather continues to be good and it got so hot today at one point there was steam rising from the strand next to the penguin colony. When we bring passengers ashore we go ahead in the zodiacs and set up the viewing areas using traffic cones and rope. Is a military operation making sure the area is ready for the passangers and set up in such a way as not to cause too much disturbance to the penguins. Finished off the day by cruising down the Gerlache Strait towards our next stop Port Lockroy with amazing scenery on both sides of the ship and icebergs floating by, one at least as big as the ship. It was funny standing on the back deck of the Marco Polo during a spell of snowfall with the sound of Bing Crosby singing “I’m dreaming of a white Christmas” coming from the ships PA system. We will definitely have a white Christmas here and I am still convinced I am dreaming. Bye for now.

22.02(pm) – en route to Port Lockroy, 64 degrees 57.27’ South/ 63 degrees 31.77’ West, Air Temperature 5 o C,Water Temperature 1.5 o C,
Wind North force 2.

Wild life seen today.

Mammals

Humpback Whale 2
Crabeater Seal 3+
Leopard Seal 3+
Southern Elephant Seal 1

Birds

Giant Petrel 1
Black-browed Albatross 2
Cape Petrel 1
Wilson’s Storm Petrel 10+
Gentoo Penguin 500+ (including at least two Leucistic Birds)
Adelie Penguin 2+
Chinstrap Penguin 3+
Snowy Sheathbill
Antarctic Shag 8+
Brown “Sub Antarctic” Skua
Antarctic Tern 20+

Note: A + sign after the counts indicates that we saw at least that number but more may have been present.

Saturday 22nd December - Cruising Deception and Cuverville Islands.
05.02am - 62 degrees 58.17' South/61 degrees 08.58' West. Light clouds and mist at first, snow later clearing gradually, Air Temperature 2 degrees, Water Temperature 0.7 degrees, Wind Southwest force 3. Firstly I was looking at the blog and noticed that some of the dates for the entries are incorrect. I hope you have been able to follow them in the correct sequence. I will try and have a look and see can I clarify them over the next few days. Today was yet another amazing day (sorry!). We sailed into the centre of Deception Island, a caldera (flooded extinct volcano), it was enormous. We had Humpback Whales at the entrance and thousands of Chinstrap Penguins on the sea and at the rookeries near the entrance. The volcano is still active and in the 1990's the Chilean base there was destroyed by an eruption. Steam could be seen coming from hot springs at the waters edge. A strange sight in the freezing cold of Antarctica. It's hard to think that a lot of the antarctic land is volcanic in origin and geologically not that old. It was a great feeling to be at Deception which was discovered by Edward Bransfied, a native of Ballinacurra, a village just 10 miles from my home. He is so famous in Antarctic exploration that the strait we travelled to get there is named after him. We then sailed to Cuverville island passing Icebergs of all sizes and shapes on the way. We saw two Orcas and a feeding group of 5 Humpback Whales close to the boat. I also added a few new species to my Antarctic list (see below). Cuverville was mind blowing. Towering dark peaks all around with glaciers running into the sea from them on all sides. Icebergs everywhere. I spent the afternoon guiding passengers around the island by zodiac. The colours in the icebergs were amazing. Our geologist Tom Sharpe said the blue ice could easily be as much as 25,000 years old. He also said that because of the compressed air bubbles in it if you put a cube of it into water is fizzes loudly as the compressed air is released. The largest Gentoo Penguin colony on Antarctica is found here with over 4,500 breeding pairs. Also one of only two flowing plants in Antarctica, the Antarctic Hair Grass, is found here. The day was topped off with a leopard Seal on an Iceberg just next to the ship and three fantastic Snow Petrels. It is bright also all the time getting like dusk for just a few hours between midnight, when the sun sets and 3am when it rises again. I will try to upload more photos soon.

2211.58pm - 64 degrees 40.41' South/62 degrees 59.77' West, overcast but dry, Air Temperature 4 degrees, Water Temperature 0.7 degrees, Wind South West force 3.

Thanks for all your coments and Christmas wishes, very much appreciated!

Bye for now.

Wildlife seen:

Sea Mammals
Humpback Whale 10
Orca (Killer Whale) 2
Weddell Seal 6+
Leopard Seal 3
Antarctic Fur Seal 5

Birds
Southern Giant Petrel 25+
Black-browed Albatross 2
Southern Fulmar 60+
Cape Petrel 40+
Antarctic Petrel 3 *
Snow Petrel 3 *
White-chinned Petrel 5
Wilson’s Storm Petrel 30+
Black-bellied Storm Petrel 2
Gentoo Penguin – many at Cuverville! (hundreds if not thousands)
Chinstrap Penguin –many at Deception Island (hundreds if not thousands)
Snowy Sheathbill 7 *
Brown “Sub Antarctic Skua 10+
South Polar Skua 1 *
Antarctic Tern 40+

* New Species for the Cruise.

December 21st - Mid-summers day! 06.35am At sea to Deception Island.
57 degrees 40.92’ South/61 degrees 45.29’ West, air temperature 8 degrees, water temperature 4.2 degrees, wind south force 2, foggy, Sunrise 2.45am, Sunset 11.59pm


Black-Browed Albatross and Rockhopper penguin Colony at West Point, Falkland Islands


A White rainbow at the Antarctic Convergence

White-rumped Swallows at Mondevideo


magellanic Penguins at Cape Valdes, Argentina

Marco Polo at West Point

Rockhopper Penguin at West Point

SOuth American Sea Lion at Port Madryn, Argentina

Falklands Flightless Steamer Ducks



Striated Caracara and West Point, Falklands

Female Elephant Seals at Cape Valdes, Argentina

Me at West Point

Me at West Point

Lizard at Cape Valdes, Argentina



The closest thing I got to seeing an Armadillo

Black-browed Albatross

Black-browed Albatross

Black-browed Albatross on its nest

Cape Petrel following the Liner




Today we crossed the Antarctic Convergence, a line where the cold Antarctic water meets the temperate waters to the north. As we crossed this line the water temperature dropped from 7.9 degrees at 10.30 last night to 1.4 degrees this afternoon. It now feels very cold outside, a long cry from 30 degrees in Buenos Aires a week ago. On the convergence we met large fog banks and once over the convergence I started seeing good numbers of seabirds. The most beautiful bird of the trip so far is the Cape Petrel. Today a flock of over twenty spent their time racing around the ship like a squadron of fighter jets, beautiful looking birds. The weather continues to be good, very calm seas and no rain. Tomorrow we will see our first icebergs and see Antarctica for the first time. Got to get a few hours sleep as we have an early morning tomorrow. Found a grasshopper on a deck chair this morning! Bye for now.

Wildlife Seen Today:

Sea Mammals
Unidentified Whale 1

Birds
Wandering /Royal Albatross 3
Southern Giant Petrel 10+
Northern Giant Petrel 2 !
Grey-headed Albatross 4 *
Black-browed Albatross 10+
Southern Fulmar 3
Cape Petrel 100+
Blue Petrel 20+ *
Antarctic Prion 1
Thin-billed Prion 2+
Unidentified Prion 20+
Sooty Shearwater 5
Wilson’s Storm Petrel 5+
Black-bellied Storm Petrel 2
White-chinned Petrel 6
Penguin (unidentified) 15+
Tern (unidentified) 1

* New Species for the Cruise.

In a hurry but here are a few images.