We can’t believe we went to Antarctica!!

“I can’t believe we’re going to Antarctica!!” This was our common phrase after booking our tickets on December 14th for a ship that would leave on December 18th. While in Buenos Aires we landed a hell of a deal for a last-minute booking to the 7th continent. We flew to Ushuaia, the southern most city in the world, on the 15th and prepared for our Antarctic adventure! We booked with Quark Expeditions, and we cannot recommend them highly enough!

The words below cannot possibly express what we experienced. There aren’t enough adjectives and no way to express exactly how we felt in Antarctica. We both agree that Antarctica is the most exceptional place we have and will probably ever visit. This is largely due to its remoteness, but also that Antarctica isn’t owned by any nation (the United Nations sighed a treaty in 1961). The landscape is like nothing we have ever seen and who knew ice was so grand and alluring? When we thought about the white continent we imagined a white tundra. We had no idea about the sheer volume of mountains, glaciers, and icebergs that would surround us. We were also blown away by the shades of blue in the ice and the way the sun would light up the scenery around us! Add in some penguins and Antarctica is the most magical, serene, stunning continent.

We kept a pretty good balance of capturing photos while taking the time to be still and present in the moment. We were also lucky to have received photos from co-travelers with insanely better cameras than us.

Day 1, December 18th: Embarkment

We set out on our voyage around 5:00 pm. As we pulled out the dock we still could not believe we were on our way to Antarctica! Our little backpacker hearts were overwhelmed with the entire experience. How in the world did we manage to score a great deal at the perfect time? In just a couple days we would actually set foot on Antarctica! This would be Tobias’s 7th continent and Tiffany’s 6th (she still needs Australia).

The World Explorer ship is brand new this year and this was its third voyage. Not only was the ship extremely fast, but it was also fuel-efficient and generated its own power from an onboard incinerator. The speed of the ship got us across Drake’s Passage early on both the way there and the way back. This meant we were able to fit in an unplanned landing in the South Shetland Islands and miss a pretty bad storm on the way back.

Day 2, December 19th: At Sea

Lectures and getting to know the ship

We had a relatively easy crossing across the Drake’s Passage. We sailed through 2 meter swells and the ship’s stabilizers kept most the guests seasick free. We preemptively took the seasick medication, Tobias did well and Tiffany experienced headaches and drowsiness from the meds.

The lectures, given by experts on the expedition team, gave us information about the wildlife, land, and history. They were offered a few times a day and we could attend in the auditorium or watch from our room.

We also spent part of the day learning about the regulations set up to protect Antarctica. They were very strict about not brining any food or plastic ashore that could get dropped or blown away. We also had to check all our outerwear for any organic material that could drop off and potentially be invasive. Our goal as visitors was to leave the least amount of impact and have the least possible disturbance to the wildlife. We were told to stay 5 meters from penguins and 15 from seals. However, if you were standing or sitting still and a penguin broke the 5 meters, you got to consider yourself lucky!

Our incredible expedition leader, Ali, briefed us on our trip. She had a great plan for us, but asked us to all be flexible. The weather and conditions in Antarctica can be fast changing, harsh, and dangerous and itineraries don’t last long in Antarctica. However, she always had a backup plan and even when we missed a planned excursion, we still ended up seeing and doing incredible things. The basic plan each day was to do two excursions. As only 100 people are allowed to be on land at time, half the guests would do a zodiac cruise while the other half went to land. After about an hour and a half we would switch. We typically did one after breakfast and one after lunch.

Day 3, December 20th: South Shetland Islands (Almost Antarctica!)

Half Moon Island Landing & zodiac cruise

The 2 km (1.2 mi) long island is crescent-shaped and home to approximately 1,200 breeding pairs of chinstrap penguins. There were numerous types of birds; antarctic terns, skuas, kelp gulls, Wilson’s storm petrels and blue-eyed shags also breed at this site.

We boarded the zodiac to take us to Half Moon Island. Tiffany was pretty emotional and spent the 10 minutes ride trying not to cry. However, as soon as we got on land and saw the penguins, the tears started falling. Of course they were tears of joy and awe of the beauty. We sat down on the beach and watched the chinstrap penguins go about their day. We kept exchanging glances communicating “we just couldn’t believe it”.

Day 4, December 21st: Antarctic Peninsula

Portal Point landing & zodiac cruise

Portal Point is surrounded by mountains, crevassed glaciers, and glacial tongues that extend down to sea level. Our group started with a zodiac cruise where we saw a leopard seal, humpback whales, and penguins.

Our first steps on continental Antarctica! Portal Point lies at the entrance to Charlotte Bay. The British built a refuge hut at this site in 1956, enabling them to use a nearby snow slope as a portal up onto the Peninsula plateau. The hut was dismantled in 1997 and taken to the Falkland Islands where it is now an exhibit in the museum at Stanley.

Before each excursion, the expedition team would land and set up paths marking a safe route. The snow was so deep you could step and sink up to your waist. This creates what they call post holes and are very dangerous for penguins as if they fall in, they won’t be able to get out. Staying on the paths is important and if you make a posthole, you're supposed to stamp it out. We hiked up to the dome where we had sweeping views of the mountains, glaciers, and the ship. It was a beautiful sunny day and we even shed a couple layers.

One of the remarkable experiences was to find a quiet place to sit and take in the scenery and wildlife. As we sat on some rocks we witnessed an elephant seal coming out of the water onto the rocks.

Graham Passage zodiac cruise

We departed the ship for a zodiac cruise as the snow began to fall. It quickly picked up with large snowflakes all around creating a snowy wonderland to explore. There were some large icebergs in the area, which seemed to have a light blue glow coming from deep inside. Further into the passage we cruised past ice walls that looked like they could collapse at any moment. The mountains were hidden by the snow and low clouds.

Day 5, December 22nd Antarctic Peninsula

Cierva Cove zodiac cruise

Cierva Cove lies in Hughes Bay. This site is known for its collection of stunning icebergs. This was a cold and eerie morning with slight wind, fog, and snow. From the zodiac we saw humpback whales and penguins on icebergs.

We also spotted skuas and storm petrels flying in circles around a certain spot. Upon further inspection we realized they were circling a leopard seal eating whale blubber. Our guide said the whale was probably a minke whale what was killed by orcas and the seal was lucky enough to get away with a chunk. This was a surprising and lucky event to witness. Our guide said he had never seen anything like it and was as in as much awe as we were. As we were watching the seal, a humpback whale arrived on the other side of the boat. We were caught in the best Antarctic problem; not knowing which direction to look!

We stayed a bit longer than scheduled and had to speed back to the ship. On the way we slowed to see penguins on a beautiful iceberg and realized there were three different penguin species (chinstrap, gentoo, and Adelie penguins) on the same iceberg. Another rare and stunning experience.

Mikkelsen Harbor landing & zodiac cruise

On the island there is a gentoo penguin colony, a few unoccupied huts, and a radio mast. Upon landing we saw a few weddell seals and penguins. As we made our way to the gentoo penguin colony we were blasted with the putrid scent of penguin droppings. It smelt bad. Really, really bad. Tobias gagged his way though.

Penguins create what are called penguins highways. Theses are paths leading from the nesting site to the water. They build their nests at a high point on land so they are better protected from the sea predators. Mikkelsen Harbor was busy with penguins and people and we experienced our first Antarctic traffic jam as the penguins used both the penguin highways they created and the paths our guides had set up.

On the opposite side of the island we got to see a elephant seal come out of the water. The penguins scattered as the massive seal slowly and comical made his way to the rocks.

Elephant seals do not eat penguins, but the penguins were probably nervous of its large size and worried about protecting their nests.

Day 6, December 23rd: Antarctic Peninsula

Gerlache Strait ship cruise

The original plan for the morning was to have a zodiac cruise and landing. However we awoke to strong winds that made it too dangerous to run the zodiacs. Instead we headed to our next location, Danco Island.

Shortly after breakfast, we were summoned to the outer decks – Orcas in the distance! Tobias rushed to the observation deck and quickly nabbed a pair of binoculars. A pair of humpbacks were also spotted fin slapping and even breaching – perhaps in reaction to the orca in the area? We can’t be 100% sure. The large pod of orca were spread out across the Gerlache Strait, slowly moving all around the ship. The captain shut down the engines and drifted in the Gerlache Strait. We stayed outside until the last few disappeared into the distance. This was another rare sight to see and some of the expedition staff mentioned they had never seen orcas in Antarctica or at least not this many at once. If spotting any, they are usually Type B (brown tinted) orcas, however we were super lucky to see Type A, the picturesque black ones like in Free Willy.

Danco Island landing & zodiac cruise

Danco Island lies in the southern end of the Errera Channel. It is relatively small, 1.6 km (1 mi) long, but quite high (180 m or 590 ft). The view from the top of Danco Island is spectacular due to the heavily crevassed glaciers in the surrounding mountains. Beautiful rolled icebergs also tend to collect in this area of the channel. We started our excursion with a zodiac tour around the island and then went on land.

Danco Island is home to approximately 1,600 breeding pairs of gentoo penguins which breed high up on the slopes. We made it to the top of the hill and ran our way back down to catch our zodiac back to the ship.

We had put our name on the wait list for camping and were lucky our names were called! We’d be spending the night on Danco Island! We were given a sleeping bag, mat, and bivy sack. The bivy sack is a larger, lighter, waterproof sack that goes around the sleeping bag in place of a tent. We were dropped off around 9:30 pm, the sun still shining. The sun didn’t set until about 1:25am. We dug a hole (like a shallow grave) to block the wind and set our sleeping bags inside. It was an interesting night of sleep waking up to being too hot and then too cold. At 6:00 am the guides picked us up and took us back to the ship. We enjoyed a pre-breakfast nap as the ship raised the anchor and set off for our next location.

Day 7, December 24th Antarctic Peninsula

Lemaire Channel ship cruise

The Lemaire Channel is a 7 mile by 1 mile and in sections less than 0.5 mile wide passage separating Booth Island from the Antarctic continent. This was an incredible ship cruise through icy waters. We all stood on the deck taking photos as the ship skillfully broke through the ice-filled waters.

This was another lucky day for us. Because the ship is so new it has a wonderful ice breaking grade and to the shock of our expedition leader our captain was able to navigate the ship through the Channel with ease.

Port Charcot Kayak

Here we had another strike of luck. We signed up for the kayak excursion and got put in the last group to go. Since kayaking wasn’t possible at every location we knew there was a chance we might not get to kayak. Patience paid off and we were rewarded with what we though was the most beautiful place to kayak in. Port Charcot is also knows as an iceberg graveyard, where both large icebergs and older, rolled icebergs get stuck in the shallows waters. The zodiac took us from the ship to a quiet spot with calm waters. Not soon after we saw two minke whales and humpbacks in the distance.

Before we could even load into the inflatable kayaks we saw a new sight, penguin rafts. Penguin rafts are large groups of penguins swimming and hunting together. We were surrounded by them.

The two of us got in a double kayak and had the freedom to paddle at our own pace. This was another most memorable part of the trip. Kayaking gave a whole new experience of quiet and serenity. The weather was mild, the sky was light, and water was calm. We paddled our way around icebergs and came across a weddell seal lounging on an iceberg and minke whales. The colors of the water and sky were soft and stunning and the ice was awe-inspiring. Toward the end of the excursion our zodiac driver brought us all hot chocolate and we enjoyed 10 minutes of silence to experience and appreciate where we were in the world.

After returning to the boat we got ready for probably the insane part of the trip; the polar plunge. We changed into our swimsuits and prepared to jump into the icy Antarctic waters. The water temperature that day was -1 degree Celsius/33.8 degrees Fahrenheit. Yup, that’s below freezing people! The density and salt in the water allow the water to reach below freezing temperatures. There was no saying no to the once in a lifetime opportunity to jump in the Antarctic waters, we just had to do it. We got there early and were one of the first to jump in. Luckily the expedition team puts a harness around your waist to help pull you out.

Tiffany jumped in and first noticed how salty the water was, then thought, “I gotta get outta here!” The team helped pull her out and she ran for her towel and robe as the staff tried to undo the harness still attached.

Tobias went next. “It wasn’t as cold as I thought. It felt exhilarating and refreshing.” Next, we were handed a celebratory shot of vodka and we made our way back to the warmth of our room to take hot showers and watch the other fools from our window. The ship had a record number of 90 guests jump, typically expecting around 40.

Day 8, December 25th: Antarctic Peninsula

Whalers Bay landing & zodiac cruise

We made our way inside the ring of Deception Island. This island is the caldera of an active volcano. The beach was steaming and as we approached we could smell the sulfur.

This was a strange place to be because of all the buildings and lack of snow. Some of the other places we landed had buildings, but this was the first place with so many and you could actually imagine life there. We spent the morning exploring the area while walking along the beach and around the ruined buildings. The buildings include the remains of a Norwegian whaling station and a British Survey base, which was evacuated in 1969 during an eruption.

Elephant Point landing & zodiac cruise

Our last excursion saw us landing at a very special place. Elephant Point is not often visited, and more often impossible due to weather. Well, Santa Claus must have brought us a gift as the swell was low, the wind was calm, and we were able to land at this magical location.

Because the island was so crowed with seals, often camouflaging theses as rocks, we walked in guided groups of twelve around the island. We walked cautiously past mosses and grasses rarely seen in Antarctica. The moss takes a long time to grow and we had to be careful not to step on it. We saw a wallow (a group of elephant seals huddled together) their groans, burps, and farts echoing off of the surround rock walls.

Toward the other end of the point we watched a small gentoo penguin colony. A number of small chicks had hatched – some of the first for the season. They snuggled in tightly to their parents to keep warm as a breeze came up from the beach. Sadly as our group was watching, we saw a skua swoop down and snatch one from its nest. It is part of the circle of life in Antarctica and one that isn’t easily avoided. Quark takes extra precautions around colonies with hatched chicks and increases the distance we keep.

Tucked against the cliff wall were the ruins of a small hut. The stools are whale vertebrate and they believe the ribs were used to hold up canvas to create the roof. Coming back to the beach elephant seals were piled on top of each other, with individuals joining the group. The others erupted in annoyance as they wiggled themselves a place in the pile. We got to see a nesting site for Southern Giant Petrels. Reluctantly we returned to the ship.

Day 9-10, December 26th and 27th: At Sea

Battling sickness

We shared stories over dinner of our time at the 7th continent as we began our return to Ushuaia. After a lovely Christmas dinner we were walking to the front of the ship for a quiz night. We got halfway down the hall and Tobias was hit with seasickness. The way back across the Drake Passage was much rougher than the way down, but not nearly as bad as it could have been. Still, it put Tobias in bed for a day. He didn’t mind so much as the fancy ship played all the Boxing Day Premier League games. Tiffany took a chance that the waves wouldn’t be as bad as the medication she experienced on the way down and she was right. She spent the day in the mostly empty observation lounge on the top and front of the ship with a book watching the ship go up and down.

In addition to the fantastic wildlife and landscapes we encountered we also had the opportunity to meet some wonderful people aboard. Between excisions we shared stories, played games, had drinks, and enjoyed meals with friends we won’t soon forget.