Time: 07:11, 64 degrees 49.23' South, 63 degrees 02.81' West, Wind Northwest 1-3, overcast and dry with long sunny spells later, Water Temperature 1.1 oC, Air Temperature 6 oC, Sunrise 04.03 am, Sunset 00.35 am (next day)
Once again the weather was excellent today. We landed passengers at the Chilean base at Paradise Harbour. Lots of Gentoo Penguins here also and the breeding season is a bit later than at Port Lockroy, probably due to more snow delaying breeding, so chicks were noticeably smaller.
Gentoo Penguin with chicks at Paradise Harbour.
After that we sailed up the Gerlache Strait and had amazing views of 37 Humpback Whales, some very close to the ship, tail slapping, breaching, lunge feeding and logging at the surface with dramatic antarctic backdrops. I have to get to bed soon because we are up at 5am tomorrow in the hope of completing our first full successful landing at Half Moon Island.
Icebergs in the Gerlache Strait
Once again I now hand you over to our geologist Tom Sharpe for a review of today's cruise.
Tom - Another GGD today, at Waterboat Point at Paradise Harbour on the Antarctic Peninsula. It’s a headland which is separated from the mainland at high tide. The tide was in when we arrived early this morning, so we couldn’t explore parts of the site until the water level fell later on.
The weather was fantastic, sunshine and lots of blue sky. And sometimes it almost felt warm.
There were lots of interesting rocks again. Mostly volcanic rocks, but also a big block of slate which was probably dropped by a passing glacier. One of the rocks I found had a bright green streak running through it. It was a mineral called epidote and it gives a lot of the volcanic rocks around here a slightly green colour. It tells us that the volcanic rocks have been slightly changed by being buried in the Earth’s crust.
Green epidote in rocks at Waterboat Point (photo Tom Sharpe)
But the highlight of the day was the glaciers and icebergs we saw. There are lots of glaciers in the mountains around here and all over the Antarctic Peninsula. Glaciers are like big rivers of ice that flow down from the mountains to the sea. The form high on the mountains when snow falls year after year and never melts. The layers of snow pile up and eventually the lowest layers turn into hard ice and the whole lot begins to slide very slowly down the mountain.
The glaciers usually have lots of cracks in them. These are called crevasses and they can be very dangerous for people climbing or walking on glaciers.
At Waterboat Point we saw lots of glaciers coming down to the sea. When they reach the sea, huge chunks break off. These chunks then float away as icebergs.
When an iceberg breaks off the front of the glacier, it makes a really loud noise. It’s like a gun going off. Then you hear a splash as it falls into the sea.
But the highlight of the day was the glaciers and icebergs we saw. There are lots of glaciers in the mountains around here and all over the Antarctic Peninsula. Glaciers are like big rivers of ice that flow down from the mountains to the sea. The form high on the mountains when snow falls year after year and never melts. The layers of snow pile up and eventually the lowest layers turn into hard ice and the whole lot begins to slide very slowly down the mountain.
The glaciers usually have lots of cracks in them. These are called crevasses and they can be very dangerous for people climbing or walking on glaciers.
At Waterboat Point we saw lots of glaciers coming down to the sea. When they reach the sea, huge chunks break off. These chunks then float away as icebergs.
When an iceberg breaks off the front of the glacier, it makes a really loud noise. It’s like a gun going off. Then you hear a splash as it falls into the sea.
Small ice blocks left behind by the tide (photo Tom Sharpe)
There were lots of icebergs in the sea around Waterboat Point, and when the tide went out, hundreds of small blocks of ice were left along the shore. The penguins here had to walk between all the blocks of ice to get from the sea to their nests on the rocks.
A huge iceberg passing Marco Polo (photo Tom Sharpe)
While we were at Waterboat Point, an enormous iceberg sailed past our ship. It was like two big pinnacles of ice stuck together and it was at least as big as the ship, and probably bigger. We were surprised by how quickly it moved. It must have been carried along by a strong current in the water.
When you see an iceberg floating in the sea, only about a fifth of it, or maybe even less, shows above the surface of the water. Most of the iceberg is underwater, so they’re usually about 5 times bigger than they appear.
Ships always try to avoid icebergs because the hard ice can make a hole in the steel hull, and that’s not good news.
Only blocks of ice that stick up over 5 metres above the surface of the sea are called icebergs. Smaller pieces have other names. If it’s less than 5 metres but more than a metre high, it’s called a bergy bit. And if it’s less than 1 metre high, it’s called a growler.
While we were at Waterboat Point, an enormous iceberg sailed past our ship. It was like two big pinnacles of ice stuck together and it was at least as big as the ship, and probably bigger. We were surprised by how quickly it moved. It must have been carried along by a strong current in the water.
When you see an iceberg floating in the sea, only about a fifth of it, or maybe even less, shows above the surface of the water. Most of the iceberg is underwater, so they’re usually about 5 times bigger than they appear.
Ships always try to avoid icebergs because the hard ice can make a hole in the steel hull, and that’s not good news.
Only blocks of ice that stick up over 5 metres above the surface of the sea are called icebergs. Smaller pieces have other names. If it’s less than 5 metres but more than a metre high, it’s called a bergy bit. And if it’s less than 1 metre high, it’s called a growler.
Marco Polo sailing through icebergs and bergy bits (photo Tom Sharpe).
We saw hundreds of icebergs, bergy bits and growlers when we sailed from Paradise Harbour this afternoon on our way up the Gerlache Strait.
Tomorrow we should arrive early at Half Moon Island. We couldn’t land there on the cruise last week as it was too windy. And the only time we did land, on Christmas Day, it was snowing and we had to leave the island before everyone had had a chance to land. There was a lot of snow on the ground, and it was hard to see the rocks. Fingers crossed for good weather and another GGD tomorrow.
We saw hundreds of icebergs, bergy bits and growlers when we sailed from Paradise Harbour this afternoon on our way up the Gerlache Strait.
Tomorrow we should arrive early at Half Moon Island. We couldn’t land there on the cruise last week as it was too windy. And the only time we did land, on Christmas Day, it was snowing and we had to leave the island before everyone had had a chance to land. There was a lot of snow on the ground, and it was hard to see the rocks. Fingers crossed for good weather and another GGD tomorrow.
Thanks Tom!
Here are a few whale (blubber) shots for Conor Ryan. Bye for now.
Passengers enjoying the Humpback Whales in the Gerlache Strait
A shaky shot of a fluking Humpback Whale today.
A Humpback Whale surfacing close to the ship (photo Tom Sharpe)
Two Humpback Whales surfacing in the Gerlache Strait (photo Tom Sharpe).
Wildlife seen at Paradise Harbour and cruising the Gerlache Strait
Mammals
Humpback Whale 37
Minke Whale 2
Elephant Seal 5
Crabeater Seal 2
Fur Seal 1
Birds
Giant Petrel 6
Southern Fulmar 1
Wilson’s Storm Petrel 30+
Gentoo Penguin 600+
Chinstrap Penguin 10+ (one at Paradise Harbour)
Snowy Sheathbill 40+
Antarctic Shag 7
Brown Skua 50+
South Polar Skua 2
Antarctic Tern 10+
Kelp Gull 14+
Note: A + sign after the counts indicates that we saw at least that number but more may have been present.
