Profile
Blog
Photos
Videos
Position at 08.00: 65°07.7'S, 064°03.3'W
Weather: NE 4; Clear; Smooth sea; +1°C.
Lemaire Channel - Vernadsky Station - Petermann Island - Pleneau Island.
Pablo's music and his 'Good morning' wakeup call rouse us from our slumber for the second time this trip, and it is just in time for us to dress warmly and make our way out on deck. The reason? We are making our way down the Lemaire Channel; a narrow ice strewn channel enclosed by towering cloud draped mountains on both sides. The scenery is truly amazing and most of us are happy to brave the cold for the half hour it takes to navigate our way to the southern end of this impressive channel.
We all adjourn in the dining room for a warming breakfast while we sail to our next destination - Vernadsky Station. Vernadsky, formerly Base Faraday and owned by the British, is now a Ukrainian station. It was sold to the Ukrainians for the bargain price of £1. The scientists at Vernadsky conduct many experiments, most of which relate to atmospherics. We split into two groups for this landing. The first group goes on a quick zodiac cruise before landing at Wordie House - an old British station that has been maintained by the Ukrainian's and the Antarctic Heritage Foundation. At Vernadsky the base personnel are showing us around their facilities and explaining some of the experiments they are conducting. At the end of the tour we make our way up to the bar and souvenir shop. Here we can get our passports stamped or send postcards home. Unfortunately the team ran out of stamps, so we will have to just post those cute little penguin cards in Ushuaia.
It isn't too long before we are making our way back to Plancius and onto our next activity, a landing at Petermann Island. Here we land amongst numerous Gentoo penguins and most of us are lucky enough to see a sleeping Crabeater seal at the landing site. We spent a good time wandering the island being entertained by penguin antics. Several Skuas are flying overhead and even two passing Humpback whales are spotted from shore. We briefly board Plancius before soon hopping off again for the final outing for the day - an impromptu zodiac cruise off Hovegaard Island. This is a magical experience with many of us having some very memorable interactions with sleeping Humpbacks.
It isn't too long before we return to Plancius and prepare for the last event of a very successful day: the infamous Plancius Polar BBQ!! Unfortunately as we make our way back north up the Lemaire Channel the wind increased and the BBQ has to be moved from the back deck into the dining room. This doesn't curb the festive atmosphere though! Music is played throughout the meal and after the plates are cleared several of the crew do a great job at pulling reluctant participants onto the 'dance floor'. Many of us proceed to dance the night away to a variety of music...Southpole dancing aroud the poles of the dining room becomes the act of the evening.
- comments