Visual journal - Antarctic region
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2 March - 21 March 2020<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15<br />
Albatros Magazine<br />
A <strong>Visual</strong> Journey<br />
The <strong>Antarctic</strong> Peninsula<br />
& South Georgia<br />
THE OFFICIAL VOYAGE LOG OF
Albatros Magazine: A <strong>Visual</strong> Journey<br />
Editor-in-Chief:<br />
Layout & Design:<br />
Amanda Dalsgaard<br />
Gaby Pilson & Shelli Ogilvy<br />
Front Cover Image:<br />
Back Cover Image:<br />
Photography Contributors:<br />
King Penguins Shayne McGuire<br />
Gentoo penguins Shayne McGuire<br />
Shayne McGuire<br />
Sandra Petrowitz<br />
Yuri Choufour<br />
Werner Kruse<br />
Renato Granieri<br />
Gaby Pilson<br />
Shannon Jensen<br />
Phillip Hunter<br />
Amanda Dalsgaard<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
TABLE OF CONTENTS<br />
The Voyage<br />
Meet the Team<br />
Day 1: Southward Bound<br />
The Seven Sisters of Szczecin<br />
An Unlikely <strong>Antarctic</strong> Explorer<br />
Day 2: Rolling Our Way South<br />
Penguins! Fun Facts for the <strong>Antarctic</strong> Adventurer<br />
Day 3: Our First Steps in <strong>Antarctic</strong>a!<br />
Ice is Nice – Glacier Fun Facts<br />
Whales: Friendly Giants of the Sea<br />
Day 4: Touchdown on the <strong>Antarctic</strong> Continent<br />
The Geological Structure of the <strong>Antarctic</strong> Peninsula<br />
Day 5: A True Expedition Day<br />
When and How the Earth Got Cold<br />
Day 6: Getting Tabular!<br />
Fire in the <strong>Antarctic</strong><br />
Day 7: The Final Stop Among in <strong>Antarctic</strong>a<br />
Day 8: South Georgia Bound!<br />
<strong>Antarctic</strong>a: A Continent for Science<br />
A Brief History of the Zodiac<br />
Day 9: Somewhere Along the Scotia Ridge<br />
King of the Southern Winds<br />
Day 10: The Main Course<br />
Day 11: Walking Alongside the Kings<br />
Day 12: Surprise Excursions<br />
Day 13: Unbelievable Wildlife<br />
A Brief History of South Georgia<br />
Final Days: A Change of Plans<br />
By the Numbers<br />
A Final Note<br />
3<br />
4<br />
5<br />
6<br />
7<br />
8<br />
9<br />
10<br />
11<br />
13<br />
14<br />
15<br />
16<br />
18<br />
19<br />
21<br />
22<br />
24<br />
25<br />
27<br />
28<br />
29<br />
31<br />
33<br />
35<br />
37<br />
39<br />
40<br />
42<br />
43
The Voyage<br />
3<br />
The following map traces the approximate route that the M/V Ocean Atlantic took during<br />
our voyage to <strong>Antarctic</strong>a & South Georgia. You can find more information about our day to<br />
day activities, landings, and excursions on the following pages. We hope that this magazine<br />
serves as a reminder of all of the wonderful memories you made while experiencing the<br />
<strong>Antarctic</strong> and South Georgia with us.<br />
o<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
4<br />
Shelli Ogilvy<br />
Assistant Expedition<br />
Leader<br />
Samuel Gagnon<br />
Expedition Leader<br />
Christophe Gouraud<br />
Assistant Expedition<br />
Leader<br />
Ted Creek<br />
Zodiac Master<br />
David Reid<br />
Kayak Master<br />
Wan Meng Chieh<br />
Kayak Guide<br />
Kaylen<br />
Lecturer & Guide<br />
Nadine Smith<br />
Shop Manager<br />
Rose Li<br />
Guide<br />
Barbara Post<br />
Lecturer & Guide<br />
Shayne McGuire<br />
Photographer<br />
Amanda Dalsgaard<br />
Lecturer & Guide<br />
Kevin Burke<br />
Lecturer & Guide<br />
Ab Steenvoorden<br />
Lecturer & Guide<br />
Lisa Pettenuzzo<br />
Equipment Manager<br />
Federico Campanelli<br />
Guide<br />
Christina Langer<br />
First Aid Responder<br />
Marta<br />
Lecturer & Guide<br />
Sanna Kallio<br />
Lecturer & Guide<br />
Rosalie Steffen<br />
Lecturer & Guide<br />
Chloe Shang<br />
Shop Assistent<br />
Steve Egan<br />
Guest Services<br />
Rashidah Lim<br />
Guide<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
5<br />
Day 1 - Southward Bound<br />
2 March 2020 - Embarkation Day<br />
As the wheels of the plane touched down on the<br />
runway in Ushuaia, we were treated to<br />
magnificent views of Tierra del Fuego and the<br />
southernmost city in Argentina that marks the<br />
start of our Southern Ocean adventure. After a<br />
night in Ushuaia we were better rested from the<br />
long travel and mid-day we arrived at the pier<br />
eager to board the lovely ship Ocean Atlantic.<br />
Our adventure to <strong>Antarctic</strong>a started as the first<br />
busses drove along the pier in beautiful summer<br />
weather. Members of the Albatros Expeditions<br />
Team welcomed us onboard and the excitement<br />
was palatable as we climbed the gangway steps.<br />
Everyone checked in with the hotel department<br />
and settled in our rooms before starting to<br />
explore the vessel which will be our home for the<br />
next ten days. Having time for tea as well as a<br />
small snack, it was soon time for the mandatory<br />
safety briefing followed by an important safety<br />
drill. The recognizable alarm went off throughout<br />
the ship and people gathered at their muster<br />
stations and later at the emergency life boats.<br />
Shortly after the drill was finished, the Ocean<br />
Atlantic slowly started to move away from the pier<br />
and began its journey through the Beagle channel,<br />
before heading straight South towards <strong>Antarctic</strong>a.<br />
Meanwhile, Expedition Leader Sam hosted the<br />
welcome briefing in the Viking Theatre and Hotel<br />
Director Oliver introduced the ship and the many<br />
staff working to provide an excellent experience,<br />
including the food and beverage manager, the<br />
head of housekeeping and the purser. Sam then<br />
introduced the different members of the<br />
expedition team and their roles onboard. He<br />
proceeded then to outline the plans and details<br />
for the voyage, including an update regarding the<br />
weather, which was for a very pleasant forecast<br />
for the infamous Drake Passage.<br />
The evening ended with a big welcome dinner,<br />
where people got to know their new travel<br />
companions. Many went to bed early after several<br />
days of travel. However, a few went outside on<br />
the decks, where we were able to spot many<br />
seabirds flying around the ship, several of the<br />
larger albatrosses were sighted marking the start<br />
of a great wildlife journey in the southern<br />
hemisphere.<br />
But, as explorers know all too well, we can only<br />
ever experience true beauty in nature when we<br />
are brave enough to seek it out amongst the<br />
mountains and the seas in the world’s most<br />
remote places. It is with that sentiment in mind<br />
that we venture away from Ushuaia and south, to<br />
the future and all the wonders it holds.<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
The Seven Sisters of Szczecin<br />
David MacDonald, Lecturer (Geology) & Expedition Guide<br />
6<br />
M/V Ocean Atlantic was launched in 1986 as the last-built of the ‘Shoshtakovich’ class of ice-strengthened<br />
passenger vessels, alongside six sister ships, together known as the “Seven Sisters of Szczecin.<br />
Her original name was Konstantin Chernenko<br />
(Константин Черненко), after the President of<br />
the USSR (1984-1985). She was renamed Russ<br />
(Русс) in 1989, and spent much of her life working<br />
in the Russian Far East.<br />
She was purchased by Albatros Expeditions and<br />
completely refitted in 2017. She is now a 200-<br />
passenger expedition vessel and is one of the strongest<br />
polar cruise ships afloat. Here are some fun facts about<br />
the “Seven Sisters”:<br />
• All seven ships were built by Stocnia Szczecinska<br />
shipyard in Szczecin, Poland between 1979-1986<br />
• Main engines: 4 x Skoda Sulzer 6LZ40 total power<br />
12800 kW, giving a maximum speed of 18 knots<br />
• Most of the class have one bow thruster (736 kW)<br />
and one stern thruster (426 kW); however, two<br />
ships, including ours, built in 1986, have two stern<br />
thrusters, each of 426 kW<br />
• Feature Siemens stabilisers for seaworthiness<br />
• Although built as ferries, they have a strengthened<br />
car deck for transport of tanks<br />
• Two of them had diving chambers<br />
• MV Mikhail Sholokov had hull demagnetising<br />
equipment so it could operate in minefields<br />
• All of these ships have been scrapped except ours<br />
and Konstantin Simonov – now Ocean Endeavour<br />
Our ship has had a complex history:<br />
1986-1987 In Baltic traffic, then Vladivostok to<br />
Japan & S Korea<br />
1989 renamed to Russ<br />
1997-1999 In traffic Stockholm-Riga; 2000<br />
Odessa-Haifa; 2002 back to<br />
Vladivostok transporting cars from<br />
Japan<br />
2007 Sold to Sea Ferry Shipping in Majuro<br />
and renamed 2010 to Atlantic;<br />
renovations in Italy and in traffic<br />
Stockholm-Helsinki-St. Petersburg<br />
during summer and laid up (October<br />
2010) in St Petersburg<br />
2012 Sold to ISP in Miami and renamed to<br />
Ocean Atlantic under Marshall<br />
Islands flag<br />
2013 Used as a hotel ship in the German<br />
bight wind farm project<br />
2015-2017 Laid up in Helsingborg and taken to<br />
Gdansk in Poland, where totally<br />
refitted<br />
2017 Chartered to Quark Expeditions<br />
2017-present Chartered to Albatros Expeditions.<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
An Unlikely <strong>Antarctic</strong> Explorer<br />
Gregers Gjersøe – Snowshoe Master & Expedition Guide<br />
In a suburb of Wellington, New Zealand, the local<br />
cemetery is home to a rather unassuming grave.<br />
The final resting place of Henry “Chippy” McNish,<br />
one of the survivors of Sir Ernest Shackleton’s<br />
1914 Endurance Expedition, the grave is also a<br />
memorial to one of the most improbable of<br />
<strong>Antarctic</strong> explorers.<br />
McNish himself was a carpenter onboard the<br />
Endurance, though he didn’t travel alone. During<br />
the expedition, McNish brought along a cat that<br />
followed him around like an overpossessive<br />
wife. Soon enough, the<br />
crew named the cat Mrs. Chippy,<br />
although the expedition quickly<br />
realised that Mrs. Chippy was a<br />
gentleman, not a lady.<br />
Mrs. Chippy was an unusual cat,<br />
though an avid adventurer,<br />
having climbed the Endurance’s<br />
rigging lines on several<br />
occasions. Mrs. Chippy also did<br />
some very provocative strolls<br />
across the roofs of the dogs’ kennels<br />
and even once fell into the frigid water<br />
below. Thankfully, the crew heard her cries and<br />
quickly turned the ship around so they could<br />
pluck her up from the icy cold waters and get her<br />
to safety.<br />
Also onboard the Endurance was a young man -<br />
Perce Blackborow. Perce had travelled to Buenos<br />
Aires looking for new employment, but wasn’t<br />
hired; at 18, his youth and inexperience counted<br />
against him. Somehow, he managed to sneak<br />
aboard the ship, and he hid in a clothing locker<br />
for three days. Eventually, he was discovered,<br />
and Shackleton was furious with him, but was<br />
sent to work in the galley where he became great<br />
friends with Mrs. Chippy.<br />
In January of 1915, the Endurance got trapped in<br />
the <strong>Antarctic</strong> pack ice. McNish's work prevented<br />
the ship from flooding, but he couldn’t do<br />
anything to stop it from being crushed. The ship<br />
was abandoned and, much to McNish’s despair,<br />
Shackleton ordered Mrs. Chippy to be shot, as<br />
they couldn’t take her on their survival journey.<br />
Now, the group had to make it back to safety. For<br />
months, the expedition drifted through icy<br />
waters until they made it to Elephant Island.<br />
Once at Elephant Island, Shackleton set out<br />
in a 22-foot-long open boat and made<br />
an 800-mile crossing through the<br />
rough waters of the South Atlantic<br />
to South Georgia. McNish was<br />
one of the five men who<br />
accompanied Shackleton,<br />
making improvements to the<br />
boat to make the voyage<br />
possible.<br />
For the next fifteen years, McNish<br />
lived a difficult life in Wellington<br />
before passing away in 1930. He never<br />
forgave Shackleton for shooting Mrs.<br />
Chippy.<br />
Nearly 30 years later, in 1959, the New Zealand<br />
<strong>Antarctic</strong> Society realised that McNish had been<br />
given a very poor burial in an unmarked grave.<br />
The Society raised funds for a headstone and<br />
even reunited McNish and Mrs. Chippy by adding<br />
a life-sized bronze statue of Mrs. Chippy to the<br />
grave.<br />
Now Karori Cemetery near Wellington is a<br />
pilgrimage site for <strong>Antarctic</strong> history buffs, who<br />
visit McNish’s grave and see Mrs. Chippy<br />
watching over him once again.<br />
7<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
Day 2 - Rolling Our Way South<br />
3 March 2020 – Drake Passage South<br />
8<br />
A rocking and rolling sea greeted us for our first<br />
full day together onboard the Ocean Atlantic as<br />
she sailed us southwards toward the promise of a<br />
snowy white continent, lost at the edge of the<br />
known world. A lovely breakfast as the skies<br />
lightened, gave us a nutritious beginning for the<br />
events of the day. It was a relaxed yet<br />
adventurous start as many of us were still finding<br />
our sea legs as our ship lurched challengingly<br />
across the Drake Passage.<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
Our ornithologist Ab rolled out an entertaining<br />
introduction to the Seabirds of the Southern<br />
Ocean, surprisingly, given the conditions, to a full<br />
house, providing us a great taste of the<br />
encounters we could look forward to with these<br />
feathered friends who accompany us on our<br />
passage to <strong>Antarctic</strong>a. Interest was high and the<br />
theatre full of curious questions about our winged<br />
companions. Time ‘flew’ and before we knew it, it<br />
was time for a mandatory IAATO briefing. After<br />
Expedition leader Sam gave us a preview of some<br />
introductory thoughts and perspectives about<br />
<strong>Antarctic</strong>a and how to be a respectful tourist, we<br />
enjoyed a great lunch put on by our consistently<br />
creative galley team, fueling us for an afternoon of<br />
further activities.<br />
After lunch the expedition team hosted the<br />
biosecurity vacume party for all guests on board.<br />
This biosecurity has the team inspecting all outer<br />
gear for any traces of organic material. With this<br />
<strong>region</strong> of the world being as pristine and fragile as<br />
it is, it is vital that all visitors respect these<br />
conditions and take all precautionary measures to<br />
insure that they are not bringing any invasive<br />
specimens along to shore with them.<br />
Throughout the afternoon as the sea state<br />
continued, many of us wandered out on the aft<br />
deck to inspect the view of the wild seas, mingled<br />
with our naturalists and other travelers over tea,<br />
or photographed the many wondrous seabirds<br />
that chaperoned our sea journey.<br />
A sweet snack at tea time flowed into an invitation<br />
to join Shayne for her valuable insights and tips on<br />
photographing in <strong>Antarctic</strong>a. Soon enough, a day<br />
of various briefings, social occasions and<br />
educational presentations brought us to our<br />
official welcome to the journey by the Master of<br />
our vessel and our Captain Georgii as he toasted<br />
to an expected successful expedition ahead. This<br />
toast lead us into a delightful evening meal as we<br />
steamed south towards the horizon. Some<br />
gathered after dining for a screening of Frozen<br />
Planet to fuel dreams of the icy realms ahead.<br />
Late in the night, we would cross the <strong>Antarctic</strong><br />
Convergence-the gateway into <strong>Antarctic</strong>a’s unique<br />
biological zone and would soon consider ourselves<br />
embraced by the great white continent.<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
Penguins! Fun Facts for the <strong>Antarctic</strong> Adventurer<br />
Gaby Pilson, Hiking Master & Expedition Guide<br />
For many of us, the chance to see penguins waddling around in the snowy vastness of <strong>Antarctic</strong>a is the reason<br />
that we came to the White Continent. These charismatic sea birds are a fan-favourite for visitors to <strong>Antarctic</strong>a,<br />
but even cuddly-looking penguins are incredibly well adapted to one of the harshest environments on Earth.<br />
9<br />
1<br />
2<br />
3<br />
4<br />
5<br />
Depending on what book you read, there are 19<br />
species of penguins. If you count all of the<br />
subspecies, there are 25 total varieties of<br />
penguins in the world, however, there are only<br />
four truly <strong>Antarctic</strong> species of penguins: the<br />
Adélie, Gentoo, Chinstrap, and Emperor. All of<br />
the other penguins in the world live south of the<br />
equator yet north of <strong>Antarctic</strong>a, with the<br />
exception of one species in the Galapagos whose<br />
range barely crosses into the northern<br />
hemisphere.<br />
The largest penguin to have ever lived was the<br />
now-extinct mega penguin, which weighed some<br />
115 kg. These days, the largest penguin is the<br />
Emperor Penguin, which tips the scales at 23 kg.<br />
Alternatively, the smaller gentoo penguin weighs<br />
just 15 kg.<br />
Although they nest, breed, and socialize on land,<br />
penguins rely on the sea for survival. As<br />
swimming and diving birds, penguins are adept<br />
at fishing and must head to the ocean for their<br />
sustenance. Indeed, the deepest diving bird in<br />
the world is the Emperor Penguin, with a<br />
record-breaking dive of 535 meters!<br />
Penguins are amazing swimmers. They spend<br />
much of their day searching for food in the<br />
ocean, particularly for their favourite meal of<br />
krill, squid, and small fish. The fastest swimming<br />
penguin is the Gentoo, which is known to reach<br />
speeds of upwards of 50 kilometres an hour<br />
while zooming through the water.<br />
Penguins are highly social birds, choosing to<br />
nest in large colonies, where they will also raise<br />
their young. Many penguin chicks, after<br />
hatching stay with their parents for a few weeks<br />
to a few months before forming large “crechés,”<br />
many hundreds of individual teenage penguins<br />
in size.<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
Day 3 – On First Steps in <strong>Antarctic</strong>a!<br />
4 March 2020 – The South Shetland Islands, Barrientos & Cecilia<br />
10<br />
The early birds onboard woke up to a mesmerizing<br />
sunrise above the waves of the Drake Passage,<br />
while the rest of us were drawn out of our sleep<br />
by Sam’s morning announcement with good news:<br />
we have crossed the <strong>Antarctic</strong> Convergence during<br />
the night and were now officially in <strong>Antarctic</strong><br />
waters, bringing us one step closer to our dream<br />
of landing in <strong>Antarctic</strong>a.<br />
We felt more and more excited and ready to go!<br />
Christophe enhanced our excitement to meet and<br />
greet our first <strong>Antarctic</strong> locals by giving a highly<br />
interesting lecture about <strong>Antarctic</strong> penguins.<br />
Eventually, we geared up and embarked the<br />
zodiacs for the first time. We were able to<br />
participate in a split landing where we would have<br />
the chance to visit both islands, Cecilia and<br />
Barrientos. While onshore, the ship disappeared<br />
behind a thick layer of fog, creating a slightly<br />
mysterious atmosphere.<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
What we didn’t know while we were trying to<br />
open our eyes, was that today was going to be our<br />
first excursion day off the ship. The Drake was<br />
calm and we made excellent progress overnight,<br />
opening the opportunity for a landing that<br />
afternoon. The ‘Drake lake’, even though it felt<br />
more like a ‘Drake shake’ to some, together with<br />
the right wave direction and an excellent captain<br />
allowed us to sail 835km in less than two days,<br />
making it possible to land on Barrientos and Cecilia<br />
Island in the South Shetland Archipelago.<br />
After a lovely breakfast, we participated in the<br />
mandatory IAATO and zodiac safety briefing held<br />
by Sam and Ted, followed by the distribution of<br />
our expedition gear (i.e. rubber boots). Ted’s<br />
words ‘the higher, the drier’ will stick with us for<br />
the rest of the voyage. We also understood that<br />
we would make Ted and the rest of the expedition<br />
team rather happy by entering the water<br />
accidentally and decided to take extra precaution<br />
in order to avoid being a source of entertainment<br />
for the expedition team.<br />
.<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
When we stepped off the boat, thousands of<br />
chinstrap and gentoo penguins were waiting for us<br />
along the beach, both in the water and all over the<br />
island. Some of the zodiacs were welcomed by a<br />
curious leopard seal swimming around the<br />
shallow, crystal clear waters around the landing<br />
site.<br />
Barrientos and Cecilia Islands are ice free islands in<br />
the Aitcho island group, situated in the South<br />
Shetland Archipelago. Barrientos accommodates a<br />
large chinstrap penguin colony. These noisy,<br />
flightless birds warmed our hearts immediately,<br />
despite the cold temperatures. It was difficult to<br />
leave these beautiful landing sites but we were<br />
looking forward to and excited for what would<br />
come next in our journey.<br />
After a nice dinner, many of us joined for an<br />
evening talk by Steve addressing the question of<br />
‘why polar bears don’t eat seals’, while others<br />
enjoyed newborn friendships and interesting<br />
conversations at the bar. We went to bed with<br />
freshly made memories and knowing that today<br />
was only a taste of what the white continent had<br />
in store for us. It was a wonderful first day in<br />
<strong>Antarctic</strong>a!<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
Ice is Nice – Glacier Fun Facts<br />
Gaby Pilson, Hiking Master & Expedition Guide<br />
Glaciers have, quite literally, shaped our world. Without glaciers, the rolling hills and wide valleys we know<br />
today would look very different, but it turns out that these icy giants have a much longer and more storied<br />
history than many of us would initially suspect. Here are some of the best fun facts about glaciers:<br />
11<br />
1<br />
Not just anything can be a glacier. In fact, there’s<br />
a size requirement that a piece of ice has to<br />
meet to become a glacier. Anything considered a<br />
glacier must be at least 0.1 km 2 (nearly 25 acres)<br />
in area to be worthy of the name. Although<br />
there’s a minimum size requirement to be<br />
considered a glacier, there’s no upper limit to<br />
glacierhood. The longest glacier on earth is the<br />
Lambert Glacier of <strong>Antarctic</strong>a, which measures<br />
out to some 434 km (270 mi) long. The world’s<br />
largest non-polar glacier is the Fedchenko<br />
Glacier of Tajikistan, which measures a<br />
respectable 77km (48mi) long.<br />
© Renato Granieri<br />
2<br />
© Renato Granieri<br />
Glaciers are formed by snowflakes. Although it’s<br />
crazy to think that a tiny snowflake can create<br />
something as large as a glacier, without snow,<br />
glaciers would never exist in the first place. To<br />
form a glacier, massive amounts of snow must<br />
accumulate and persist in a single location all<br />
year long for hundreds, if not thousands of<br />
years. During this time, the individual snowflakes<br />
found in the snowpack change in a process<br />
known as snowflake metamorphosis, where<br />
individual ice grains fuse together and get bigger<br />
and air bubbles get smaller. Once the icepack<br />
builds up enough mass to start flowing downhill,<br />
then, voila! We have a glacier.<br />
3<br />
Glaciers are found all over the world, not just in<br />
the polar <strong>region</strong>s. While the majority of glaciers<br />
and glacial ice is concentrated in high northern<br />
and southern latitudes, glaciers are found even<br />
near the equator, such as on Mount Kilimanjaro<br />
in Tanzania and in the mountains of Ecuador.<br />
That being said, about half of the world’s<br />
200,000 glaciers are found in one place: Alaska.<br />
There, glaciers cover a whopping 72,500 km 2<br />
(28,000 mi 2 ) of the US state’s total area. That’s a<br />
lot of ice.<br />
© Werner Kruse<br />
4<br />
Glaciers are basically really, really, really slow-moving rivers. To be considered a glacier, a large mass of ice<br />
must be physically moving downhill. This movement downhill is driven by gravity and is the main reason<br />
why glaciers also act as major agents of erosion. Since glaciers move downhill, they often remove and<br />
transport large boulders and chunks of rock, depositing them much further downhill then where they<br />
started.<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
The Beagle Channel<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
Cecilia Island<br />
Barrientos Island<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
Ushuaia<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
Whales: Gentle Giants of the Southern Sea<br />
Amanda Dalsgaard – Lecturer (Marine Biology) and Expedition Guide<br />
13<br />
@ P.M.Hunter<br />
When one talks about whales, we must<br />
acknowledge the vast diversity of whales on earth<br />
and the uniqueness of each species. All whales fall<br />
into an order of marine mammals known as<br />
Cetaceans. The scientists who first discovered and<br />
named this order of marine mammals, used the<br />
word cetacean or ‘ceatacea’ from the Greek<br />
‘ketos,’ meaning monster.<br />
Long ago, when whales were first scientifically<br />
observed and recorded, people believed they<br />
were monsters, due to their size. Today, we know<br />
much more about the gentle giants that roam our<br />
planet’s seas, thanks to a number scientific and<br />
technological advances, our knowledge of these<br />
creatures will only continue to grow.<br />
The order Cetacea is divided into two sub-orders,<br />
Odontocete and Mysticeti. Odontocete, meaning<br />
‘toothed-whale’, includes all of the whales and<br />
dolphins with teeth. Mysticeti comes from the<br />
Latin root meaning “mustache”, and includes all of<br />
the whales that have baleen plates instead of<br />
teeth. It’s important to keep these differences in<br />
mind when trying to observe whales from a ship<br />
as this information can help identify cetaceans<br />
from far away.<br />
Interestingly enough, however, toothed whales<br />
have only one blow hole or spout, while baleen<br />
whales have two. Plus, many whales can be<br />
identified from afar using the size and shape of<br />
their spout blow as well. For example, grey whales<br />
tend to have spouts shaped like hearts, while<br />
orcas have low bushy spouts.<br />
Another distinguishing characteristic that sets<br />
these two sub-orders apart is the way that they<br />
communicate. Odontocetes use a method of<br />
communication called echolocation. This is best<br />
described as a series or clicks and precise sounds<br />
that are then reflected back to the animal and<br />
allows the whale to ‘see’ their environment<br />
through noise. It is the same communication style<br />
used by bats in terrestrial ecosystems. Mysticetes<br />
on the other hand, communicate through a variety<br />
of low-frequency songs. These songs have been<br />
described by scientists as being beautiful,<br />
mysterious and sometimes gloomy, with the males<br />
being the most active singers of the Mysticeti clan.<br />
Regardless of the kind of whale you see however,<br />
any encounter with one of these graceful marine<br />
giants, however brief, is sure to be a memorable<br />
experience for years to come.<br />
Since whales are marine mammals, they must<br />
breath air to survive. They do so by breathing at<br />
the water’s surface through their blow holes.<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
Day 4 – Touchdown on the <strong>Antarctic</strong> Continent!<br />
5 March 2020 – Mikkelsen Harbor & Curtiss Bay<br />
14<br />
The cloud-filled, foggy, wet and drizzling sky was<br />
not an intriguing invitation to go outside.<br />
However, we geared up and bound down the<br />
stairs with anticipation and excitement for our<br />
next landing. The fog lifted to see the tops of the<br />
glaciers as we approached Mikkelsen Harbor, as<br />
the Ocean Atlantic winded its way through the<br />
shallow reefs. The water was calm and littered<br />
with gummy salps and krill as we waded to the<br />
beach for our first landing of the day.<br />
Amongst whale bones, waist high, strewn along<br />
the beach, we were invited for a beach meander<br />
around the tiny island. An old whaler’s Waterboat<br />
stripped down to the ribs, showing its robust<br />
durability despite its battered appearance, was<br />
our main attraction. Looking at all the ginormous<br />
whale bones and the little boat, is was hard to<br />
believe that this was the devise used to harvest<br />
these behemoth creatures.<br />
We walked along the beach to the Argentinian<br />
emergency hut, skirting the washed-up growlers<br />
and bergy bits caught high on the last retreating<br />
tide. A crabeater seal sleeping on the beach<br />
snoring away, occasionally stretching and yawning,<br />
opened one eye, only to close it again, without a<br />
concern in the world. Amazing he could sleep with<br />
so many people watching. After a cruise around<br />
the harbor and a slow meander around the island<br />
it was time to return to the warm ship for lunch.<br />
The afternoon program entailed an interesting<br />
lecture by Sanna while we waited our turn for a<br />
zodiac cruise. Out on the water, we cruised<br />
around the steep glaciated bay until a couple<br />
minke whales came for a visit. They curiously<br />
swam amongst the zodiacs; diving, blowing, and<br />
shallowly skimming the underside of our rubber<br />
pontoons. It was spectacular to see their outlines<br />
so close, their skin tones and colors and even their<br />
eyes. We could practically smell their breath as<br />
their blow holes spouted right next to our zodiacs.<br />
The glacial amphitheatre around us was calving in<br />
the light rain, providing competition for our<br />
attention until a large chunk released and we had<br />
to race for the safety of deeper, ice-free water to<br />
turn in and let the small tsunami wave pass under<br />
our boat. Between the calving and the whales, our<br />
heads and cameras swooned left and right like we<br />
were watching a tennis match.<br />
Next was a continental landing on a rocky outcrop<br />
attached to the mainland abutting a steep<br />
glaciated wall. We climbed out of the zodiacs for<br />
our modest summit on mainland <strong>Antarctic</strong>a. It was<br />
a small outcrop but mainland it was! And, as Sam<br />
advised, better to seize the opportunity in case<br />
rough inclement weather prevents our next<br />
occasion.<br />
And again, we raced back to the warm cozy ship,<br />
content with our day’s excitement and ready for<br />
another recap and delicious meal.<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
Photo @ShayneMcguire<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
The Geological Structure of the <strong>Antarctic</strong> Peninsula<br />
David Macdonald, Lecturer (Geology) & Expedition Guide<br />
This cartoon shows what the <strong>Antarctic</strong> Peninsula looked like 100 million years ago (mya). The main points to<br />
note are:<br />
• The peninsula was a continuation of the Andes. They were connected until 35 mya<br />
• The peninsula was a volcanic arc from about 200 mya3 until about 25 mya<br />
• Volcanism ended 50 mya in the south and 20 mya off Brabant Island<br />
• Only the South Shetlands Islands have any volcanic activity now<br />
15<br />
There are three main geological domains, each formed of multiple rock units:<br />
1. The basement domain (grey and brown colours) contains sediments scraped off the ocean floor which were<br />
changed by heat and pressure (metamorphosed) in the subduction zone and during folding and<br />
deformation. These metamorphic rocks span a wide range of ages from 299-65 mya. They tend to be older<br />
on the east coast of the peninsula. These rocks are best seen in Paradise Harbour, at the shag colony near<br />
Brown Station.<br />
2. The igneous domain contains rocks crystallised from magma. This includes both plutonic rocks (where the<br />
magma crystallised slowly within the earth’s crust) and volcanic rocks (where the magma was erupted as<br />
lava and ash). Again, the rocks span a wide range of ages from about 210-25 mya, and the younger rocks<br />
tend to be in the west. These are the commonest rocks seen in the Peninsula and are well displayed in the<br />
South Shetland Islands (e.g. Half Moon Island, or Yankee Harbour) or on the peninsula (e.g. Cuverville<br />
Island). Plutonic rocks form Goudier Island at Port Lockroy.<br />
3. The sedimentary domain contains rocks eroded from the volcanic arc and deposited in sedimentary basins,<br />
either on the eastern, Weddell Sea side (in a very large structure called the Larsen Basin), or in smaller<br />
basins to the west (the largest of which is the Fossil Bluff Basin on Alexander Island). Sedimentary rocks are<br />
not seen on most peninsula cruises (unless they visit the area of James Ross Island), although there are<br />
sedimentary rocks with abundant fossils interbedded with volcanic rocks west of Hannah Point, in Walker<br />
Bay.<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
Day 5 – A True Expedition Day<br />
6 March 2020 – The <strong>Antarctic</strong> Sound<br />
After hearing Sam’s morning announcement, we<br />
began making our way to prepare for our morning<br />
visit to Esperanza Base in Hope Bay.<br />
Unfortunately, as the sun rose higher so did the<br />
wind speed and we were left looking at the red<br />
buildings constituting more of a village than an<br />
<strong>Antarctic</strong> base as the winds hit 60 knots. The sea<br />
began to boil with foam spray coming off the<br />
surface of the zodiacs. Reluctantly we moved on<br />
looking for more shelter and other potential<br />
excursion sites. Perhaps an afternoon site at<br />
Brown Bluff?<br />
As we approached Brown Bluff, everyone onboard<br />
was feeling hopeful for an afternoon excursion.<br />
However, looking across at the ice-covered<br />
landing site, it became apparent that the wind was<br />
chasing us south and would make any off-ship<br />
exploration, impossible. Instead we would go<br />
explore the <strong>Antarctic</strong> Sound by ship, a true<br />
expedition day! First stop was a huge tabular<br />
iceberg just to the south of Brown Bluff next to<br />
Jonassen island. We then slipped through the gap<br />
between the <strong>Antarctic</strong> Peninsula and the islands<br />
around Cape Green.<br />
Great blocks of ice too big to be measured, floated<br />
around us, occasionally calving off into the waters<br />
that we made our way through to investigate<br />
areas that no one on board has been to before.<br />
The excitement of exploration was palpable as we<br />
all watched the numerous humpback whales<br />
playing in the distance. We come to accept that<br />
although we did not make a landing, we had a<br />
unique opportunity to see a side of <strong>Antarctic</strong>a that<br />
only a handful of people get to. As we sailed past a<br />
piece of land called View Point, we could see the<br />
tiny Argentinian refuge huts sprinkled along the<br />
shore. It was a site that made us grateful for our<br />
warm, cosy ship.<br />
With so much ice to get past, the captain<br />
announced that we need to leave the area before<br />
dark. Although dreaming of our titanic moment on<br />
the bow, we understood that the icebergs are<br />
much better from a far. So, we made our way<br />
north again along the edge of the Weddell Sea,<br />
listening to David’s “We are icebergs” poem as we<br />
squeezed through the tabular ice, wondering what<br />
tomorrow would bring.<br />
16<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
Photo @ShayneMcguire<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
Gentoo Penguins<br />
<strong>Antarctic</strong> Cormorant<br />
Mikkelsen Harbor<br />
Leopard Seals<br />
Curtis Bay<br />
Leopard Seal<br />
Volume 2, Issue 14<br />
2 March -21 March 2020 Volume 2, Issue 15<br />
Photos @ShayneMcguire
When and How the Earth Got Cold<br />
David Macdonald, Lecturer (Geology) & Expedition Guide<br />
The Earth’s climate has two end-member states:<br />
greenhouse and icehouse. In a greenhouse climate,<br />
there are no polar icecaps (although there may be<br />
valley glaciers in high mountain areas) – the climate of<br />
the Cretaceous Period (144-65 million years ago) is a<br />
typical greenhouse. We are currently in an icehouse<br />
climate, since there are icecaps at or near both poles.<br />
Although life on Earth goes back 3.5 billion years, the<br />
main expansion in numbers of species and hence of<br />
easily found fossils occurred 540 million years ago.<br />
During the time from then until now, greenhouse<br />
climates have dominated, with three periods of<br />
icehouse climate, lasting a total of about 100 million<br />
years. Our current icehouse period began abruptly 35<br />
million years ago, with formation of an icecap in<br />
<strong>Antarctic</strong>a. Why did it happen then, and why did it have<br />
such an abrupt beginning?<br />
Water temperature (°C)<br />
<strong>Antarctic</strong> convergence<br />
October 2019<br />
8<br />
6<br />
4<br />
2<br />
0<br />
54 56 58 60 62 64<br />
Latitude (°S)<br />
18<br />
Figure 2: Temperatures in the Drake Passage from Friday 25<br />
October to Sunday 27 October 2019 as Ocean Atlantic sailed south<br />
across the <strong>Antarctic</strong> Convergence, where the sea temperature falls<br />
below 4°C.<br />
It was the severing of the link between the <strong>Antarctic</strong><br />
Peninsula and Tierra del Fuego that allowed deep cold<br />
water to circulate around the planet at 50-60°S and<br />
thermally isolate <strong>Antarctic</strong>a from the rest of the world.<br />
This situation continues today (Figure 1)<br />
The key area for this was the Drake Passage, which is<br />
the western end of the Scotia Sea (Figure 3). Geological<br />
and geophysical studies of the sea floor show that the<br />
<strong>Antarctic</strong>a-South America link was severed by the<br />
growth of ocean crust, beginning 35 million years ago.<br />
Opening of this deep-water gateway cooled the planet<br />
and turned <strong>Antarctic</strong>a into the white continent.<br />
Figure 1: Thermal structure of the Southern Ocean showing the<br />
position of the <strong>Antarctic</strong> Convergence (Polar Front) at the junction<br />
of the dark blue and mid blue shading. This is the line of the 4°C<br />
isotherm, where <strong>Antarctic</strong> surface water plunges below cold<br />
temperate water.<br />
The first, and most important factor was that we had a<br />
polar continent. <strong>Antarctic</strong>a was in roughly its present<br />
position over the South Pole, so would have had<br />
strongly differentiated winters and summers. However,<br />
although the former supercontinent of Gondwana had<br />
largely broken up by then, there was still a land bridge<br />
to South America and <strong>Antarctic</strong>a was still forested,<br />
probably with a migratory fauna. Warm currents bathed<br />
<strong>Antarctic</strong>a’s shores and, 35 million years ago, the<br />
temperature of the Southern Ocean was a relatively<br />
mild 6°C.<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
Figure 3: The Drake Passage and the Scotia Sea formed from 50<br />
million years ago, when there was slow extension between South<br />
America and the <strong>Antarctic</strong> Peninsula which stretched the crust and<br />
allowed surface waters to circulate through this former land<br />
bridge. The temperature of the southern Ocean fell from 12°C to<br />
6°C between 50-35 million years ago, then abruptly fell to 0°C<br />
when the deep water gateway of the scotia Sea opened, sundering<br />
the link between <strong>Antarctic</strong>a and South America and allowing<br />
continuous circulation of deep water, thermally isolating<br />
<strong>Antarctic</strong>a.<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
Day 6 - Getting Tabular!<br />
7 March 2020 – Paulet Island and Danger Island<br />
19<br />
We peered out the gangway in anticipation of our first landing for the day and the fog greeted us at the<br />
door. Off in the distance, we could see a small island we knew to be called Paulet Island. It wasn’t long<br />
before the fog lifted, and we could see the top of the rusty red volcanic rock that made the modest summit<br />
up Paulet Island. We visited the remnants of the Larsen Stone Hut and an egg-shaped lake. The cruise<br />
around the island brought us close to the grave of one of the expedition members, Ole Kristian<br />
Wennersgaard, as well as many juvenile fur seals and penguin vagrants that were still lingering before<br />
heading elsewhere for the long, dark, cold winter ahead.<br />
Our afternoon sojourn was to Danger Island. Again, the fog threatened and then abated to give us<br />
unimpeded views of the island with its rugged coastline receiving relentless bashing from the ocean. As we<br />
cornered into our shallow landing, the penguin colony before us was overwhelming. It was a small landing<br />
caked in pink guano. Penguins were everywhere. A friendly bunch of birds they were, crossing our paths no<br />
matter how hard we tried to respect the 5 meter distance rule. It was penguin heaven for anybody with a<br />
soft heart for the short pudgy little waddlers. There was a leopard seal lurking in the shallow protected<br />
waters at the foreshore and we all hoped the penguins would stop swimming. One penguin didn’t, and some<br />
witnessed the gruesome disrobing as the seal thrashed it around in the water to strip it of its feathers. It was<br />
a true National Geographical moment witnessed live from all on the Zodiacs and the shore.<br />
On top of it all, today was also the day for the Polar Plunge. Thirty-seven, (crazy) people participated. We<br />
had our pictures taken by Shayne and our splashes graded by the guides floating out in the judge’s Zodiac.<br />
They raised their paddles in recognition of superior plunges. The air temperature was minus three degrees<br />
and the water temperature was zero degrees. It was a truly exhilarating way to end the day with an ice bath<br />
in the Southern Ocean. And the post-jump Vodka shot seemed to ramp up the party and excitement in the<br />
mud room as well.<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
Photo @ShayneMcguire<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
Adelie Penguin<br />
<strong>Antarctic</strong> Fur Seal<br />
Paulet Island<br />
<strong>Antarctic</strong> Cormorant<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
Photos @ShayneMcguire<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
Fire in the <strong>Antarctic</strong><br />
Gregers Gjersøe, Snowshoe Master & Expedition Guide<br />
Fire is one of the greatest threats in <strong>Antarctic</strong>a thanks to<br />
the <strong>region</strong>’s very dry climate, frequent strong winds,<br />
and nearly complete lack of liquid freshwater. Due to<br />
the continent’s isolation with and little possibility of<br />
rescue for weeks or months, a fire in the <strong>Antarctic</strong> is a<br />
potentially very disastrous event.<br />
Although it is covered in snow and ice, the cold<br />
temperatures of <strong>Antarctic</strong>a make the White Continent<br />
very dry. As it is one of the windiest places on Earth,<br />
there is almost always a strong wind blowing much of<br />
the time, more than strong enough to fan any flames.<br />
As the temperatures across the whole continent of<br />
<strong>Antarctic</strong>a is averaging below freezing, there is unlikely<br />
to be very much liquid water to fight fires. So, the<br />
response to fire is usually to make sure everyone is out<br />
of danger and safe and then stand back and watch it<br />
burn itself out.<br />
Bases in <strong>Antarctic</strong>a are often designed to survive fires<br />
because they are made up of a number of separate<br />
buildings, each with a significant distance between<br />
them. Many bases have emergency supplies stored in a<br />
hut near the base but well away. In these huts, there<br />
are often enough supplies and ample shelter for the<br />
base’s crew to be able to survive a fire or emergency<br />
until help can arrive.<br />
The Argentine <strong>Antarctic</strong> base and scientific research<br />
station, “Brown Station,” is named after Admiral<br />
William Brown, the father of the Argentine Navy.<br />
21<br />
Located on the Sanaviron Peninsula along Paradise<br />
Harbour’s Danco Coast, from 1951 to 1984 it served as<br />
a permanent research base, though, since then, it is<br />
open only during the summer season.<br />
During its heyday, the station was home to one of the<br />
most complete biology laboratories on the <strong>Antarctic</strong><br />
Peninsula, featuring a main house, as well as an<br />
additional building exclusively for scientific research.<br />
This building was equipped with three labs, a<br />
photography workshop, an emergency radio station, an<br />
office and a library.<br />
Unfortunately, Brown Station’s original facilities were<br />
burned down by the station’s doctor on 12 April 1984<br />
after he was ordered to stay on for yet another winter,<br />
despite the original terms of his contract and his desire<br />
to see his fiancé once again. As you can imagine, the<br />
stress of <strong>Antarctic</strong>a’s harsh winter conditions can take<br />
its toll on residents and explorers of the <strong>region</strong>, driving<br />
them to take extreme measures to get back home.<br />
The doctor simply couldn’t bear to stay on for another<br />
winter and he couldn’t stand the isolation as the days<br />
drew darker. His solution? To force an evacuation of<br />
himself and his colleagues in the only way plausible<br />
manner: by burning the station down.<br />
After the fire, the station’s personnel were rescued by<br />
the USS Hero and taken to United States’ Palmer<br />
Station. Argentina later rebuilt the base, but it is now<br />
only occupied during the summer months. The station’s<br />
doctor was sent to prison for arson and his fiancé<br />
decided to call off the engagement.<br />
© Werner Kruse<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
Day 7 - The Final Stop in <strong>Antarctic</strong>a<br />
8 March 2020 – A68, Elephant Island & Point Wild<br />
22<br />
We got up bright and early at 6:00am to have a look<br />
at one of the biggest tabular icebergs on the planet,<br />
called A68. Breaking off the Larsen ice shelf of the<br />
Weddell sea in 2017, the total length of A68 is 150<br />
kilometers, and we were lucky enough to ship cruise<br />
along it! It is the second largest free-floating object<br />
on the planet and an enormous spectacle for us to<br />
witness. Additionally, this morning we spotted a<br />
variety of wildlife at sea. There were numerous fur<br />
seals swimming along our vessel as well as an array of<br />
fin whales swimming and feeding about the iceberg<br />
front. Melting ice provides a fantastic feeding zone<br />
for sea animals, creating a biologically productive<br />
hotspot as nutrients locked into the frozen ice, are<br />
melted and released into the oceanic ecosystem.<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
After this perfect start into our day, with whales,<br />
seals, and GIANT icebergs, we enjoyed croissants and<br />
coffee in the cafeteria and some of us went back to<br />
bed for a quick pre-breakfast nap. Lisa shared her<br />
knowledge on the <strong>Antarctic</strong> treaty, signed in 1959,<br />
with an interested audience that was asking many<br />
questions and keen to learn more about the political<br />
side of <strong>Antarctic</strong>a. Just before lunch, with<br />
anticipations high, the Ocean Atlantic reached Cape<br />
Valentine. This reach was the first sign that we had<br />
made it to Elephant Island! Elephant Island was made<br />
famous by Sir Ernest Shackleton and his crew when<br />
they stepped on land at what is now known as Point<br />
Wild, after losing their ship the Endurance in the sea<br />
ice.<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
Our afternoon excursion entailed our first challenging<br />
gangway experience among big swell. After a slow<br />
but safe loading into the zodiacs, we were off to Point<br />
Wild where we enjoyed and incredible and scenic<br />
cruise. On a tiny clearing of bare rocks, next to a<br />
glacier front with steep cliffs and rugged seas, was<br />
where 22 members of Shackleton´s expedition lived<br />
for over 4 months before they were finally rescued by<br />
Luis Pardo. We got to see the bust of Luis Pardo,<br />
captain of the Chilean ship Yelcho that came to rescue<br />
Shackleton´s crew. The bust, as we saw it, was<br />
surrounded by an overwhelming number of chinstrap<br />
penguins, leopard seals and fur seals. To wrap up a<br />
day filled with Shackleton´s adventures, we got to<br />
watch the Endurance documentary after dinner,<br />
giving us a story and background to the journey these<br />
men endured.<br />
ice.<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
Point Wild<br />
Elephant Island<br />
Point Wild<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
Photos @ShayneMcguire<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
Day 8 - South Georgia Bound!<br />
9 March 2020 –At Sea<br />
We woke up to slightly bigger waves than expected.<br />
While some of us had problems getting up, others<br />
awakened rather early and decided to greet the<br />
waves on the outside decks. After breakfast we<br />
joined together in the Viking Theater for the<br />
mandatory IAATO briefing where we learned all of<br />
the rules regarding our landings to come. Following<br />
the briefing many of us stayed for Ab’s interesting<br />
lecture about birds of South Georgia. Even the least<br />
curious passengers onboard were hooked and<br />
intrigued by his bountiful knowledge and enthusiasm<br />
24<br />
After lunch we relaxed a bit until Amanda gave her<br />
beautiful lecture about <strong>Antarctic</strong> seals, enhanced by<br />
her Californian accent. Until dinner time we lingered<br />
around the ship, many of us visited the bridge to<br />
observe birds and some fin whales. It was exciting to<br />
witness the sea birds cruising between wave crests<br />
and troughs, a process known as dynamic soaring that<br />
allows them to gain momentum. We wondered what<br />
the birds would see while travelling around the<br />
Southern Ocean year after year. How many ships had<br />
they flown behind? How many big waves had they<br />
flown through? Have they witnessed the sea ice edge<br />
as it had extended and receded year after year? To<br />
be a seabird, and spend most of your life in the open<br />
ocean, made these fascinating creatures such a<br />
spectacle to watch.<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
Around brunch time, the coffee area was buzzing and<br />
the bistro became a lounge to chat as memories of<br />
the past days were filling the air as was the<br />
heightened excitement for the days to come. The<br />
anticipation to finally land on South Georgia and have<br />
an audience with the kings rose by the hour. With<br />
lunch interrupting our afternoon we realized that we<br />
would not go hungry on the ship and that the motto<br />
of the cruise was: ‘you fly in and you roll out’, which<br />
was softened by the fact that <strong>Antarctic</strong>a has different<br />
rules: ‘the fatter, the better’.<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
After dinner Kaylan and Steve held a very exciting<br />
<strong>Antarctic</strong> Quiz in the theater which was much<br />
appreciated and a lot of fun. The passion of these two<br />
expedition team members made our evening very<br />
entertaining. After an exciting evening, the waves<br />
rocked us gently to sleep and we dreamt about<br />
<strong>Antarctic</strong>a and what a wonderful day we had at sea!<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
<strong>Antarctic</strong>a: A Continent for Science<br />
David Macdonald, Lecturer (Geology) & Expedition Guide<br />
Until the advent of mass tourism, <strong>Antarctic</strong>a’s tagline was: “A continent for science”.<br />
<strong>Antarctic</strong>a affects the rest of the world in a variety of<br />
ways, so “<strong>Antarctic</strong> Science” should really be “Global<br />
science that happens in <strong>Antarctic</strong>a”. Although many<br />
early expeditions were purely geographical in scope,<br />
there were some important scientific expeditions in the<br />
late 19 th to early 20 th centuries. In this “Golden Age” of<br />
exploration, there were many scientific contributions<br />
from <strong>Antarctic</strong>a which changed our view of the earth’s<br />
evolution and environment.<br />
25<br />
As a result of these organisations and better logistics,<br />
the rate of scientific discovery soared, and new polarspecific<br />
studies proliferated. Some highlights include:<br />
• 1957-58: The International Geophysical Year (IGY)<br />
was an 18-month collaboration between 67<br />
countries. <strong>Antarctic</strong>a was the focus, with 12 nations<br />
participating. Many new scientific stations were<br />
created and the IGY was a resounding success as it<br />
led directly to the <strong>Antarctic</strong> Treaty<br />
Indeed, three expeditions brought back proof that<br />
<strong>Antarctic</strong>a once had a warm climate. Scott’s first<br />
expedition (1901-1904) found coal from 250 million<br />
years ago in the Transantarctic Mountains;<br />
Nordenskjӧld’s Swedish <strong>Antarctic</strong> Expedition found<br />
warm-water fossils on James Ross Island; and the Scotia<br />
Expedition under Bruce (1902-1904) dredged<br />
fossiliferous 500 million-year-old limestone from the<br />
Weddell Sea. Scott’s second expedition (1910-1913)<br />
found fossil leaves(Glossopteris) in the Transantarctic<br />
Mountains. These fossils belong to an extinct order of<br />
seed ferns from 299-252 million years ago, only found<br />
in the southern hemisphere continents and India. They<br />
were used by Wegener in 1924 in his work on<br />
continental drift to reconstruct the former<br />
supercontinent of Gondwana.<br />
In the years after the First World War, the focus<br />
changed from individual expeditions to national<br />
pursuits, such as the British Discovery Investigations –<br />
the first permanent oceanographic body in the world.<br />
During 33 years (1918–51) of pioneering work, the<br />
research ships collected an enormous amount of<br />
oceanographic, biological, and geographical data.<br />
Among the results of the investigations was the<br />
discovery of both the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and the<br />
<strong>Antarctic</strong> Convergence - the natural boundary of<br />
<strong>Antarctic</strong>a.<br />
By the end of the Second World War, the move to<br />
create national organisations was complete, with the<br />
formation of the Falkland Islands Dependencies Survey<br />
(now British <strong>Antarctic</strong> Survey), the Australian National<br />
Research Expeditions) and other civilian operations<br />
(France, New Zealand, South Africa, etc).<br />
• 1959-1996: The discovery and delineation of<br />
subglacial Lake Vostok is a great example of scientific<br />
cooperation. Lab studies showed that ice under very<br />
high pressure reverts to water and in 1964, seismic<br />
soundings from Vostok Station were used to<br />
measure the thickness of the ice sheet. This<br />
suggested the existence of a subglacial lake. British<br />
airborne ice-penetrating radar in the 1970s detected<br />
unusual radar readings, suggesting a freshwater lake<br />
below the ice. In 1991, a radar satellite revealed<br />
that this subglacial water body is one of the world’s<br />
largest lakes. We now know that there are at least<br />
140 subglacial lakes in <strong>Antarctic</strong>a.<br />
• 1980-present: The US-funded collection and curation<br />
of <strong>Antarctic</strong> meteorites has recovered about 22,000<br />
meteorites from <strong>Antarctic</strong>a (about 75% of all known<br />
meteorites worldwide). There are samples from the<br />
Moon, Mars, and asteroids.<br />
• 1985: In hole in the ozone layer over <strong>Antarctic</strong>a was<br />
discovered from ground-based instruments at Halley<br />
Bay and Faraday (British <strong>Antarctic</strong> Survey).<br />
• 1986: Research at McMurdo Station, the main U.S.<br />
scientific station in <strong>Antarctic</strong>a, established that<br />
chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) as the probable cause of<br />
the <strong>Antarctic</strong> ozone hole (US NSF). These two bits of<br />
work lead to signing of the Madrid Protocol on 1987,<br />
banning CFCs.<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
Danger Island<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
A Brief History of the Zodiac<br />
Steve Traynor, Zodiac Master<br />
27<br />
In expedition cruising, the most important tool we use is the Zodiac inflatable boat. These manoeuvrable,<br />
reliable, robust vessels are the workhorse of the expedition cruise industry, from the north of Svalbard to<br />
the southern end of the <strong>Antarctic</strong> Peninsula. They have a long history – as you can see from the stages<br />
below, many different inventions needed to come together to create the craft we use today.<br />
1838 Charles Goodyear (USA) discovered the process for vulcanising rubber (a US patent was granted<br />
in 1844) – this process is used for hardening and strengthening rubber.<br />
1843 Goodyear’s process was stolen by Thomas Hancock (UK) using the process of reverse<br />
engineering; less controversially, Hancock invented the “masticator” – a machine for re-using<br />
rubber scraps – this made the rubber industry much more efficient.<br />
1845 The first successful inflatable boat (Halkett boat) was designed by Lieutenant Peter Halkett<br />
(UK), specifically for Arctic operations. Halkett Boats were used by the Orcadian explorer, John<br />
Rae, in his successful expedition to discover the fate of the Franklin Expedition.<br />
1866 Four men made the first crossing of the Atlantic Ocean from New York to Britain on a threetube<br />
inflatable raft.<br />
1896 The original Zodiac company was founded by Maurice Mallet (France) to produce airships.<br />
1909 The first outboard motor was invented by Ole Evinrude in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.<br />
1912 The loss of the Titanic and subsequent shipping losses during World War 1 proved the need for<br />
inflatable rafts for use as supplementary lifeboats.<br />
1919 RFD firm (UK) and the Zodiac company (France) started building inflatable boats.<br />
1934 The airship company, Zodiac, invented the inflatable kayak and catamaran<br />
1942 The Marine Raiders – an elite unit of the US Marine Corps – used inflatable boats to carry out<br />
raids and landings in the Pacific theatre.<br />
1950 Alain Bombard first combined the outboard engine, a rigid floor and an inflatable boat (built by<br />
the Zodiac company).<br />
1952 Alain Bombard crossed the Atlantic Ocean with his inflatable; after this, his good friend, the<br />
famous diver Jacques-Yves Cousteau, started using them.<br />
1960 Zodiac licensed production to a dozen companies in other countries because of their lack of<br />
manufacturing capacity in France.<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
Day 9 - Somewhere Along the Scotia Ridge<br />
10 March 2020 – At Sea<br />
28<br />
A “sea day” is always a time for reflection. In addition,<br />
a time to catch up on diary writing, reading and<br />
perhaps some laundry and sleep. Conditions continue<br />
to be in our favour and with moderate swells, the<br />
crossing of the Scotia Sea continues to keep everyone<br />
engaged, informed via presentations and enjoying<br />
what can sometime be some of the roughest seas in<br />
the world.<br />
The Scotia Sea (and Scotia Ridge) were named after the<br />
ship that took the Scottish National <strong>Antarctic</strong>a<br />
Expedition south in 1902-04. Led by explorer and<br />
scientist William Speirs Bruce, the science-based<br />
expedition successfully built the first ever (and longest<br />
running) meteorological station in <strong>Antarctic</strong>a. The first<br />
post card from <strong>Antarctic</strong>a was posted here and some of<br />
the first film footage of <strong>Antarctic</strong> wildlife was captured<br />
by members of the expedition. The Orcadas Station is<br />
still operated by Argentina on Laurie Island in the South<br />
Orkney Islands.<br />
The visit to Elephant Island left an impression on<br />
almost everyone. Conditions around Point Wild can<br />
often be such that even just launching zodiac<br />
operations can be difficult. The historical significance of<br />
this isolated rocky outcrop cannot be understated. As<br />
we all left Point Wild, we began tracing the route taken<br />
by Shackleton and five of his crew in the small boat, the<br />
James Caird – named after a Scottish businessman who<br />
provided expedition funding to the expedition. Many<br />
guests on board are familiar with the Shackleton story<br />
and for them it was particularly memorable.<br />
After breakfast, Sanna gave an inspiring talk about the<br />
landscape of South Georgia. Specifically, Sanna talked<br />
and described the glaciers and high mountains of this,<br />
one of the most photogenic islands in the world.<br />
Underlining the uniqueness and special status afforded<br />
South Georgia was a further mandatory bio-security<br />
check for everyone. Everyone was getting in the mood<br />
now and excited for South Georgia.<br />
For photographers all over the world, both professional<br />
and otherwise, South Georgia offers some of the best<br />
scenic and wildlife photography opportunities on the<br />
planet. Shayne offered further insight into this with a<br />
presentation after lunch.<br />
Despite leaving <strong>Antarctic</strong>a, ice is never far from being<br />
part of the daily story on board the Ocean Atlantic.<br />
Barbara gave a presentation on sea ice ecosystems.<br />
Not only was mental stimulus being offered, but<br />
Rashidah gave a “stretching class” in the Bistro lounge<br />
to give those that wished it, a great physical work out.<br />
The idea of a challenging workout was the perfect segway<br />
to the evening talk given by Sanna about her ski<br />
trip to the South Pole.<br />
All is well on board as guests and (it must be stated)<br />
expedition staff too, looked ahead and began getting<br />
excited for the next few days to come.<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
King of the Southern Winds<br />
Sandra Ophorst, Lecturer & Expedition Guide<br />
29<br />
The wandering albatross is an impressive bird with the<br />
world’s largest wingspan of up to 3.5 meters in length<br />
and a weight of up to 11 kilograms. Unfortunately, the<br />
number of wandering albatrosses is rapidly declining<br />
with only 20,100 individuals left as of October 2019<br />
(Red List, World Conservation Union)<br />
The wandering albatross is rarely seen on land and<br />
gathers only to breed, at which time it forms large<br />
colonies on remote islands, such as South Georgia. The<br />
female lays a single white egg and both sexes share<br />
incubation, which lasts about 60 to 80 days. Both sexes<br />
feed the youngster by regurgitating food, a process<br />
that can continue for up to nine months.<br />
The nesting cycle of wandering albatrosses is so long,<br />
they can’t complete it in one year. So, they nest every<br />
other year. When young albatrosses become<br />
independent and leave their nest site, they begin a<br />
multi-year foray on the open ocean and will not return<br />
to land until they are old enough to breed. This can<br />
take up to 10 years of their 50 year average lifespan.<br />
The wandering albatross is famous for its dynamic<br />
flight. They turn into the wind to gain height, then glide<br />
back down to the sea to gain speed. Sometimes they<br />
glide for hours without rest or even a single flap of<br />
their wings. Indeed, this principle was used to design<br />
airplanes, especially gliders that have albatross-like<br />
wings.<br />
As a result of these wings, however, an albatross’<br />
landing process often looks a bit comical as their<br />
narrow wings do not allow for a slow approach. So,<br />
they often land on their feet and then tumble forward<br />
and slide on their bellies. The biggest threats to the<br />
wandering albatross are pollution and large-scale<br />
commercial tuna fisheries. These tuna fishing boats are<br />
equipped with up to 20,000 fish baited hooks and<br />
these lines can be up to 100km long.<br />
Unfortunately, these fishing lines often attract<br />
albatrosses get caught up on the hooks and drown as<br />
they are cast out at sea. Organisations such as Hookpod<br />
are trying to save the albatrosses from the dangers of<br />
long line fishing vessels by providing fishing boats with<br />
“Hookpods” that cover the barb and point of the hook<br />
during setting, reducing the likelihood of an albatross<br />
by-catch.<br />
© Sandra Petrowitz<br />
22 FEB- 2 March 2020<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
Gentoo Penguins<br />
• photos<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
Snowy Sheathbill<br />
<strong>Antarctic</strong> Cormorants<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
Danger Island<br />
@ShayneMcguire
Day 10 - The Main Course<br />
11 March 2020 – South Georgia, Drygalski Fjord<br />
31<br />
The day started like any other sea day, the ship rolling<br />
gently back and forth as we ate our breakfast. We<br />
kicked off the day with a 9:00 am viewing of the<br />
Shackleton movie, when only halfway through the<br />
viewing, we heard the call: “land hoy!” -and at such<br />
an appropriate time. We looked out the window and<br />
laid eyes on the grand walls of South Georgia- jutting<br />
straight out of the ocean to one thousand-meter<br />
elevations, mountains dusted lightly in fresh morning<br />
snow, and caked in their gullies with ancient hanging<br />
glaciers. Everybody rushed to get a jacket on and take<br />
in the view from the outer decks. For the first time in<br />
what seemed like forever, we saw green again. The<br />
last week had been a beautiful amalgamation of<br />
greys, blues, slates, charcoals, whites, and blacks, in<br />
every shade imaginable. But now, we were seeing<br />
green! It was interesting to see the vegetation creep<br />
up the mountain sides for the first three to five<br />
hundred fee from the water line. It was also hard to<br />
imagine Shackleton and his men arriving at these<br />
vertical cliffs and having to scour the coast for a safe<br />
landing for the James Caird after such a battle to<br />
cross the Scotia Sea. Such a tremendous feat.<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
We toured Drygalski Fiord from the ship and viewed<br />
the steep mountains from the railings. We sped from<br />
deck to deck to snap photos of every side of the steep<br />
careening glaciers. We saw an HMS warship with a<br />
tiny gun on the bow doing zodiac operations while<br />
patrolling the UK waters. It was hard to go in for<br />
lunch for fear of missing any of the view. But of<br />
course, nobody wants to miss a delicious meal either.<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
The afternoon outing was a Zodiac cruise in Larsen<br />
Harbour. While half the group had the option to<br />
attend a presentation by Barbara on “The Amazing<br />
Life of the <strong>Antarctic</strong> Krill”, the other half waited in the<br />
mudroom for their turn to brave the lively sea. Again,<br />
we loaded up into the tossing zodiacs. The ship’s<br />
captain, maneuvering the Ocean Atlantic to keep us<br />
in the lee, had us move from starboard side to<br />
portside, in order to dodge the jostling sea at our<br />
gangway. A slightly better side it was, but still an<br />
exhilarating jump from the gangway to the zodiac.<br />
We cruised up the fiord and saw endless weddell, fur,<br />
and elephant seals. There were also an abundance of<br />
sea birds: Diving Petrels, Grey Headed Albatros, Black<br />
brow Albatros, Grey headed Albatros, Prions, S.<br />
Georgia Pin Tails, Giant Petrels, S. Georgia<br />
Cormorants, Sheathbills and 4 species of penguins.<br />
The icy snow and strong wind bore down on us, biting<br />
our faces as we sped along the slate black water. In<br />
the end, it was all worth it to have the wind in our<br />
ears for our smiles were on our faces.<br />
frozen<br />
After the last of the zodiacs were lifted, we rounded<br />
Cooper Sound in search of Macaroni Penguins. By<br />
now, it was snowing hard and the grey skies made it<br />
difficult to see more than a few hundred meters<br />
ahead. Sam’s briefing brought us right into dinner and<br />
an early bedtime. Tomorrow is going to be a big day.<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
@ShayneMcguire<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
2 March -21 March 2020 Volume 2, Issue 15
Day 11 - Walking Alongside the Kings<br />
12 March 2020 – St Andrews & Gold Harbour<br />
33<br />
What a day! We woke up bright and early to Sam´s<br />
wakeup-call at 5:45am.. with the scent of a penguin<br />
guano drifting through the halls. It was a hit to senses<br />
and surprised us all but gave us a taste of the day we<br />
were about to enjoy. The reason behind this early<br />
start was a long day of activities ahead of us with our<br />
first landings in South Georgia.<br />
Soon after breakfast we started our morning<br />
excursions at St. Andrew´s Bay, where we got to see<br />
the mind-blowing extent of one of the largest king<br />
penguin colonies on the planet: containing a stunning<br />
estimate of 150,000 pairs breeding. After an<br />
adventurous landing on the beach with our<br />
expedition team fighting to keep the boats onshore as<br />
we disembarked the zodiacs, we got to explore<br />
independently the sheer abundance of wildlife all<br />
around us. Luckily, we all managed to defend<br />
ourselves from the sharp teeth of the fur seals and<br />
nobody got bitten (that we know of). To add to the<br />
adventurous landing experience, we were crossing a<br />
river on our way back to the zodiacs, some of us knee<br />
high in water and mud.<br />
During lunch, the ship relocated to our afternoon<br />
landing site, Gold Harbour where we were welcomed<br />
by the largest pinnipeds on earth, the Southern<br />
Elephant seals. They were laying in groups right next<br />
to our landing site and were snoring and snorting as<br />
we passed along side them. Again, we were able to<br />
experience yet another king penguin colony and<br />
many individuals wandering about. Living side-by-side<br />
with the considerably tall king penguins, we spotted<br />
quite a few Gentoo penguins. There were also many<br />
aggressive, fighting juvenile fur seals, with a few of<br />
them trying to pick up fights with us well.<br />
After a solid day of adventure, how does one possibly<br />
celebrate all the incredible wildlife encounters and<br />
great new memories? Karaoke of course! The night<br />
rolled on in an entertaining fashion as an impressive<br />
amount of people sang to the tunes of Bon Jovi and<br />
ABBA.<br />
With excitement in our minds and bad weather<br />
coming in on the horizon, we took ourselves to bed<br />
not knowing where we would be tomorrow but<br />
trusting in Sam’s promised “blue weather bubble of<br />
love” to keep us safe in the morning.<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
St. Andrews Bay<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
@ShayneMcguire
Day 12 - Surprise Excursions!<br />
13 March 2020 – Elsehul Bay & King Haakon<br />
As if we needed reminded, we are on an expedition,<br />
not a cruise. After an incredible South Georgia day<br />
spent at St. Andrews Bay and Gold Harbour, we all<br />
gathered in the Viking lounge – a happy but tired<br />
group of adventurers. Sam outlined the weather<br />
forecast and what the plan would be for the 13 th . We<br />
would not be visiting Grytviken or Stromness as was<br />
planned. A storm was moving into the South Georgia<br />
area and it was important for us to come up with an<br />
alternative plan – plan B was now happening, or was<br />
it plan C? Regardless, we would make the very most<br />
of whatever happened.<br />
‘<br />
The Ocean Atlantic headed North up the North East<br />
coast of the island towards Elsehul Bay. A zodiac<br />
cruise would be offered, a location very few of the<br />
staff had even been to. Despite the obvious swell, the<br />
disembarkation went ahead as planned. The<br />
challenge was not so much the movement of guests<br />
back and forth with the zodiacs but the loading and<br />
unloading of guests from the gangway. The AB’s do<br />
an amazing job for us, in all weather, holding ropes,<br />
securing the boats and assisting passengers and<br />
expedition team alike. The decision was made to<br />
offer kayaking and once shelter from the swell was<br />
found on the east side of the bay, a great paddle was<br />
experienced by the kayak group. This was a chance<br />
for everyone to get their first up-close view of<br />
Macaroni penguins. Resting in and around the rocks<br />
together with Gentoo and King penguins, the<br />
Macaroni’s also made interesting neighbours for the<br />
hundreds, if not thousands, of fur seals that could be<br />
found all along the shoreline of the bay.<br />
.<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
Towards the end of the morning, the wind picked up<br />
and most guests were grateful to get back on board.<br />
Despite the weather, some guests commented on the<br />
way back to the ship that it had been their favourite<br />
zodiac cruise of the entire trip<br />
.<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
Over lunch the Ocean Atlantic re-positioned and<br />
made a turn to port around the North end of South<br />
Georgia. Passing between Bird Island and Trinity<br />
Island, the BAS research station on Bird Island could<br />
be seen clearly off the port side. It is remarkable to<br />
think that this is a year-round station. Arguably one of<br />
the most remote research facilities in the world.<br />
Safety and shelter was found in King Haakon Bay. As<br />
we approached the bay in the afternoon, the wind<br />
was gusting almost 50 knots. Upon reaching the<br />
entrance, the wind dropped considerably as we found<br />
shelter and conditions looked suitable for an<br />
afternoon landing. King Haakon Bay was made<br />
famous by Sir Ernest Shackleton, Tom Crean, Frank<br />
Worsley, Harry McNeish, John Vincent and Timothy<br />
McCarthy. It was at the mouth of the bay, that the<br />
party made landfall after making the hazardous<br />
journey from Elephant Island. The journey was<br />
completed in a small boat named the James Caird.<br />
An amazing afternoon was enjoyed by everyone.<br />
Landing was achieved and enjoyed at Pegotty Bluff,<br />
complimented by a zodiac cruise around the head of<br />
the bay.<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
35<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
Gray Headed Albatros<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
South Georgia Pipit<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
Macaroni Penguins<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
Southern Giant Petrel<br />
Macaroni Penguins<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
2 March -21 March 2020 Volume 2, Issue 15
Day 13 - Unbelievable Wildlife<br />
14 March 2020 – Salisbury Plain<br />
37<br />
Today we woke up for the last time in South<br />
Georgia waters. We opened our eyes, looked<br />
through the window and were once again<br />
reminded of what a magical place we were at. The<br />
last 4 days exploring South Georgia have been<br />
breathtaking and we knew that we had to make<br />
the most of our last day on this little slice of<br />
heaven. The weather was in our favor, blue skies<br />
and sunshine beaming down through the clouds.<br />
At the beginning of the voyage, all the guests were<br />
told that they had to organize the weather, while<br />
the crew, expedition team and captain would<br />
organize the rest. I think it would be agreed that<br />
all parties were doing a very good job at holding<br />
up their end of the deal.<br />
After breakfast we were invited for a zodiac cruise<br />
at Salisbury Plain. We started by cruising along the<br />
beach-front, getting excellent views on the large<br />
king penguin colony. There were also many young<br />
elephant seals sprinkled about, bathing in the sun<br />
while recovering from their long, deep foraging<br />
dives the night before. Once we reached the end<br />
of the beach, we were greeted by several playful<br />
fur seals that were inspecting our zodiacs while<br />
dancing through the kelp in the water below. The<br />
swell conditions allowed for an entrance into a<br />
small bay that we found at the end of the beach.<br />
Once within the bay, it felt as though we were live<br />
on BBC with David Attenborough. Hundreds of<br />
king penguins and fur seals played in the waters<br />
surrounding the zodiacs. It felt like they were<br />
looking at us rather than the other way around.<br />
Some of these joyful creatures dove underneath<br />
our black rubber boats while trying to enter them<br />
from the opposite side.<br />
We came across more elephant seals sleeping on<br />
the shore. As we drove past, a few would open<br />
their big, black, glossy eyes, and shut them again<br />
after deciding we were not interesting enough to<br />
lose precious sleep over. Little did they know,<br />
however, that we would be dreaming of them<br />
during the nights to come. When it was time to<br />
drive back to the Ocean Atlantic, we were sad to<br />
be finished with operations, but happy to have<br />
such a stunning ending to our day. We shall never<br />
forget the lovely sound of the king penguins as<br />
they were singing their goodbyes to us in the<br />
distance. We sailed off in great weather and<br />
enjoyed our first outside BBQ onboard. The swell<br />
made the ocean look like a cover of silk, while the<br />
white mountain peaks of South Georgia faded into<br />
the horizon behind us. Salisbury Plain, and the<br />
entirety of South Georgia Island... truly a place<br />
taken out of a fairytale.<br />
Our next stop was planned to be the Falkland<br />
Islands; however we were notified today Falkland<br />
Island officials that we would not be allowed to<br />
land due to the overall health condition of people<br />
onboard. Regrettably, Sam decided to cut our trip<br />
short and reroute for straight for Puerto Madryn<br />
instead. The news of the global coronavirus crisis<br />
unfolding, made us feel baffled. We knew that we<br />
were heading back to a world that would feel<br />
completely different to the one we just left weeks<br />
ago.<br />
The only constant is change; endings mean new<br />
beginnings. We all decided to stay positive<br />
together as a group and were looking forward to<br />
Sam’s wakeup call the next morning.<br />
Off to new horizons!<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15<br />
@ShayneMcguire
Salisbury Plain<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
2 March -21 March 2020 Volume 2, Issue 15
A Brief History South Georgia<br />
Sanna Kallio, Expedition Guide<br />
39<br />
• The first documented sighting of South Georgia was from a London merchant named Antoine de la Roche in<br />
April 1675. He was a passenger on 350-ton ship which was blown off course while returning to Europe from<br />
Peru. The ship stayed two weeks sheltering in Drygalski fjord from the big storm. The next sighting of South<br />
Georgia was reported in 1756 by French merchants on board the Spanish ship Leon- also blown off course by<br />
the storm while rounding the Cape Horn. Captain James Cook put South Georgia on the map 1775.. Cook and<br />
his crew made their first landing in Possession Bay. Cook took possession of the Island and named if after King<br />
George III.<br />
• To the utter amazement of the seals and penguins, the inhabitants', wrote George Forster. Cook and his crew<br />
were disappointed when they realized that South Georgia was not part of the great white continent of<br />
<strong>Antarctic</strong>a… giving Cape Disappointment it’s name.<br />
• When Cook’s discoveries of South Georgia was published in 1777, his descriptions of fur seals and elephant<br />
seals set off a stampede of British sealers, who began arriving in 1786 followed by Americans. Less than five<br />
years later more than 100 ships arrived to the southern oceans to harvest fur-seal skins and elephant-seal oil<br />
for market.<br />
• Filchner's German South Polar Expedition in 1911-1912 carried out extensive glaciological, geological and<br />
meteorological studies in South Georgia and mapped the outline of South Georgia. The map that was used by<br />
Shackleton and his two companions when they traversed the island in 1916. Shackleton's Endurance<br />
expedition in 1914-1915 spent a month on the island in 1914 waiting for the ice in the Weddell Sea to clear.<br />
For Shackleton South Georgia was special place and he died during his last expedition to South in 1922. He is<br />
buried in Grytviken in whalers cemetery. Frank Wild, his ‘right-hand man’, lays next to him.<br />
• In 1864, after Svend Foyn invented the explosive harpoon, the whaling industry came back into play. . In 1904<br />
a Norwegian, C. A. Larsen with 60 Norwegian men established the first whaling station on South Georgia at<br />
Grytviken. Huge interest in obtaining whaling licences followed. By 1912 whaling stations of Grytviken, Ocean<br />
Harbour, Leith Harbour, Husvik, Stromness Harbour and Prince Olav Harbour plus an anchorage for floating<br />
factory ships at Godthul had been established and South Georgia became known as the southern capital of<br />
whaling.<br />
• South Georgia was included as a part of the Falkland Island Dependencies in 1908. British Government<br />
funded extended series of research voyages to South Atlantic dependencies including South Georgia in<br />
1920s, just to keep British presence in the area. Duncan Carse and his team of surveyors during the 1951-<br />
1957 surveyed South Georgia, Putting it on the first detailed topographical map.<br />
• South Georgia hit the headlines worldwide in 1982 when Argentine forces invaded the island and were<br />
expelled 22 days later by the British Navy. Operation Paraquat was launched to regain the island. On the 25th<br />
of April, 1982, after both air and ground reconnaissance operations, a demonstration of British naval artillery<br />
resulted in the capture of the submarine Santa Fe and forced the Argentines to surrender. The British claim<br />
to sovereignty over the island is based on Cook's discovery and formal claim in 1775. The earliest indication of<br />
an Argentine claim was in 1927, although it was not formally stated until 1938. Throughout the 1940s and<br />
1950s several attempts were made by the British to solve the conflict with Argentina through the<br />
International Court of justice but all were rebuffed by the Argentines. Today, South Georgia is formally part<br />
of UK‘s overseas territory as is the government of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands.<br />
@ShayneMcguire<br />
2 March -21 March 2020 Volume 2, Issue 15
Final Days - A Change of Plans…<br />
From 15 March 2020 – At Sea<br />
40<br />
The only thing that would be guaranteed along these<br />
next few days was change. Our cancelation of the<br />
Falklands from our trip was only a small taste of what<br />
the rest of the globe was facing. We have been in the<br />
comfort and security of our ship, experiencing<br />
wildlife, embracing the elements while learning new<br />
things daily. This was all while the world around us<br />
was facing a global crisis, with situations worsening<br />
politically and socially by the hour.<br />
After almost a full day of sailing for Puerto Madryn,<br />
the health crisis had worsened and port authorities<br />
denied our request to pull into port. All over South<br />
America, ports and borders were shutting down, so it<br />
was now our top priority to find a port that would let<br />
us dock and get everyone home safely and swiftly.<br />
We decided to change course to our next most viable<br />
option, Ushuaia. As we re-routed and started sailing<br />
south, our expedition leader Sam, along with the<br />
Head of Chimu, Albatros, the Captain and the<br />
Australian Minister of Health, decided that we would<br />
need to step up our precautionary measures on<br />
board if we wanted any chance of getting off the<br />
ship.<br />
New measures were set in place to insure everyone’s<br />
health and safety onboard. We would be<br />
quarantined to our rooms, with excursion times to<br />
the outside decks two times per day. All public areas<br />
on board were closed and we had to keep a 3m<br />
distance from each other. But can you say room<br />
service?! The hotel team worked from sun up to sun<br />
down, delivering to everyone’s cabins the delicious<br />
restaurant quality meals that we have all grown<br />
accustomed to. And as if the meals weren’t enough,<br />
they had tea time delivery in the afternoon and<br />
water bottle fill ups throughout the entire day. It was<br />
admirable what these guys were doing for us, and all<br />
with smiles and bright energies that did not seem to<br />
dim.<br />
After another day in on ship quarantine, more news<br />
came out, and the Ocean Atlantic had to change<br />
course yet again; this time to Buenos Aires. After this<br />
third re-route, quarantine restrictions tightened and<br />
outside deck time was no longer permitted. The<br />
reason this decision was made was to hopefully deter<br />
the possibility of needing to be quarantined when we<br />
got into port.<br />
Believe it or not, the Ocean Atlantic was just one of a<br />
handful of ships dealing with the same issue of trying<br />
to find a port to dock at. Some ships were sentenced<br />
to a two-week quarantine onboard in port, others<br />
were denied entry and sent to sail back to their<br />
countries of origin like the Netherlands or South<br />
Africa. And other ships, like ours, were testing their<br />
luck in Argentina, but in the end it was Uruguay that<br />
took us in.<br />
It was a long journey with many hours stuck in<br />
confined quarters. Many ups and downs, much worry<br />
and concern, but also many laughs and new bonds<br />
formed. This global crisis is something that no one on<br />
earth has ever had to deal with before, yet it is<br />
something that is paying a tole on every country. This<br />
voyage did not end the way we had planned, but<br />
with safety as our number one priority, we hope<br />
everyone to have a safe journey out, and may your<br />
luggage follow you home.<br />
Together we have visited and incredible and vast<br />
wilderness. We have experienced magnificent<br />
mountain vistas, seen icebergs roll and crack, felt the<br />
power of the elements and seen how quickly they<br />
can change. We enjoyed wonderful food and<br />
comfortable surroundings aboard the Ocean Atlantic.<br />
We boarded zodiacs and cruised through icy bays at<br />
the end of the Earth. We shared unique moments,<br />
held engaging conversations, and laughed together<br />
over tea or wine. We’ve made new friends and<br />
experienced the power of expedition travel.<br />
We hope the expedition team has helped make this<br />
the trip of a lifetime - one that will persist in your<br />
memories for weeks, months, and years, to come.<br />
Although we must say good-bye to these places we<br />
have come to know and love, it is a fond farewell as<br />
we are all true ambassadors for the <strong>Antarctic</strong> and all<br />
the beauty it holds.<br />
On behalf of Albatros Expeditions, our captain and<br />
crew, the expedition team, and everyone else who<br />
helped make this journey a resounding success, it has<br />
been a pleasure travelling with you. We hope that<br />
you will come back and experience these wonderful<br />
places with us once again!<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
By the Numbers…<br />
42<br />
Voyage Statistics:<br />
Southernmost Point: 64 o 03.88’ S 68 o 47.84’W<br />
Total Distance Travelled: 3,688 nautical miles<br />
Barrientos Island: 62 o 24’S 59 o 47’W<br />
Cecilia Island: 62 o 24’S 59 o 47’W<br />
Mikkelsen Harbor: 63 o 54’S 60 o 47’W<br />
Curtiss Bay: 64 o 2’ S 60 o 47’ W<br />
Paulet Island: 63 o 35’S 55 o 47’ W<br />
Danger Islands: 63 o 25’S 54 o 40’W<br />
Cape Valentine: 61 o 6’ S 54 o 52’ W<br />
Point Wild: 61 o 6’ S 54 o 39’ W<br />
Excursion Locations:<br />
Drygalski Fjord: 54 o 49’S 36 o 0’W<br />
Larsen Harbor: 58 o 30’S 36 o 0’W<br />
St. Andrews Bay: 54 o 26’S 36 o 11’W<br />
Gold Harbour: 54 o 37’ S 35 o 56’ W<br />
Elsehul Bay: 54 o 1’S 37 o 58’ W<br />
Peggotty Bluff: 54 o 9’S 37 o 17’W<br />
Salisbury Plain: 54 o 3’ S 37 o 21’ W<br />
During our time on the M/V Ocean Atlantic, we consumed:<br />
Beef<br />
Lamb<br />
Pork<br />
Poultry<br />
Cold Cuts<br />
Fish & Seafood<br />
Eggs<br />
Milk<br />
Cheese<br />
Ice Cream<br />
Vegetables<br />
Fruit<br />
Wine<br />
Beer<br />
Toilet Paper<br />
610kg<br />
120 kg<br />
599 kg<br />
450 kg<br />
65 kg<br />
635 kg<br />
14400 pcs<br />
1034 ltr<br />
215 kg<br />
264 ltr<br />
1755 kg<br />
1947 kg<br />
480 btls<br />
1464 cans<br />
800 rolls<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15
A Final Note…<br />
43<br />
As any good expedition comes to a close, many of us experience the<br />
effervescent excitement that comes when we immerse ourselves<br />
completely in an adventure. Although we all came into this voyage with<br />
our own expectations and personal motivations, on the ship, we quickly<br />
learned that the best plan is the one that we end up doing.<br />
While weather and the landscape<br />
can conspire against us in the<br />
southern latitudes, the right mindset<br />
can make all of the difference.<br />
Wind, rain, sleet, and snow make no<br />
difference when we come prepared<br />
for an adventure and all the<br />
excitement it holds. Whether you<br />
saw what you came for or you<br />
experienced something else<br />
entirely, when you set out on an<br />
expedition, you come for the<br />
mountains and the wildlife, but stay<br />
for people and places you meet<br />
along the way.<br />
Although we all eventually have to<br />
leave behind our beloved Ocean<br />
Atlantic, there are always a few<br />
things we can take home from an<br />
expedition:<br />
• An acceptance and embracement<br />
of adversity and uncertainty<br />
when the natural world alters<br />
our plans.<br />
• A fondness for the wild and a<br />
strong desire to keep remote<br />
natural locations as beautiful and<br />
free as they can be.<br />
• An insatiable interest in learning<br />
more about the people, places,<br />
and cultures in some of the most<br />
remote parts of the world.<br />
As you unpack you bags, you may<br />
find souvenirs and keepsakes from<br />
your journey. Your camera may be<br />
filled with countless photos,<br />
however blurry, of the many<br />
animals and mountains that have<br />
crossed our paths. At the end of the<br />
day, however, what matters most is<br />
the experience of, the journey to,<br />
and the memories of these wild and<br />
wonderful places.<br />
Best wishes from all of us on the<br />
expedition team as you continue on<br />
with your adventures!<br />
Sam Gagnon<br />
Expedition Leader<br />
Christophe Gouraud<br />
Assistant Expedition Leader<br />
Thank you for experiencing the <strong>Antarctic</strong> with us at Albatros<br />
Expeditions. We hope to see you aboard the Ocean Atlantic<br />
again in the future!<br />
Shelli Ogilvy<br />
Assistant Expedition Leader<br />
2 March -21 March 2020<br />
Volume 2, Issue 15