Serene Wandering

Randy and I took our very first cruise in 1989 to the western Caribbean and Yucatan Peninsula! (Aren’t we cute with our matching perms?) Our cruise was aboard Norwegian Cruise Line’s Seaward which began service in 1988.

The Seaward was renamed Norwegian Sea in 1997 and sold in 2005.  The ship then operated as the Superstar Libra with a different cruise company.  She was taken out of service in 2018 and used as an accommodation ship for workers at a German shipyard. Ultimately, she was beached for scrap in Turkey earlier this year. What a history.

Circa 1995, we took daughter Natasha and her friend on a Caribbean Cruise on Royal Caribbean.  I don’t remember details of the ship except that our adjoining cabins were upgraded to balcony cabins. We have never chosen an interior cabin since that upgrade.

Randy did a few barefoot sailing trips in the region in the 2000s with co-workers from HP and remembers the adventures very fondly.

Together, we went back to the Caribbean in 2011.  That trip had us flying in for a week each in San Juan, Puerto Rico and Christiansted, St. Croix. 

All of those past trips were before we started blogging our adventures.  

It was definitely time to head back to the Caribbean and friends, Cindy and Bob, were happy to do it together.

We chose a late September sailing on the Caribbean Princess.

Cindy and Bob arrived in Orlando a couple days before us because they had unused Disney passes from the 1990s.  The passes had survived in Bob’s file cabinet and Disney honored them without any grief.

We connected and the next morning headed to Port Canaveral – the busiest cruise port in the world.

This was our first look at the Caribbean Princess.

We embarked smoothly and checked out our mini-suite cabins. They were very comfortable.

We enjoyed chocolate covered strawberries, a gift from our travel agent.

After watching our safety video and reporting to our muster station, we had celebratory drinks in one of many lounges.  

I decided that I would see how many different types of martinis I would try on this cruise.  My first was a lemon drop, and my second was a sour apple.

As we left Port Canaveral, we could see ships behind us.  The captain reported that, because the port is so busy, arrivals and departures are strictly controlled.

We could also see the beaches on the Florida space coast.

Later in the evening we went to a show performed by the Princess singers, dancers and band in the theater.

We could have watched the NFL game on the big screen above the pool.  We chose to watch it in our cabin.

It was great to be at the beginning of a week aboard the Caribbean Princess!

Martini Spoiler: Over the course of the week, I had a new martini most days but did not get to the end of their martini menu. That was true even though I eliminated all gin martinis because I don’t like gin. 

I tried a Bugsy, a Midnight Coconut, a Creme Brûlée and a very bad chocolate martini.

My favorite martini of the cruise was a Baccarat, made with raspberry vodka. I had it on our last day. If I had tried it sooner, I might not have had any other.

My favorite martini server was Joyce.  She is from the Philippines and lives away from her young child for nine months a year.  He is in the care of her parents.  She usually FaceTimes with him about 10:00 pm, which is 10:00 am in the Philippines.  What a hard choice these workers have to make.

When Joyce brought me my Espresso Martini, she made me smile because she gave me 4 coffee beans.  Three beans are the norm in an espresso martini, symbolizing health, wealth and happiness.  I don’t know what Joyce’s fourth bean meant – It was probably a happy accident.

We began our cruise on September 20, 2026.

Next up: Nassau, The Bahamas

We had one final presentation on the Drake crossing that I waited to write about because it wasn’t by an expedition team member or ship officer.  

This presentation was by Pedro who works for the BBC.  

Pedro is from Brazil and told us his story that began as a kid who loved water activity.

He grew up to be a marine biologist and receive degrees in filmmaking.

Those accomplishments led him to being employed by the BBC Natural History Unit.  Because 90% percent of natural history content is made in Bristol, England, it is called Green Hollywood.

Pedro has been onboard the Venture for two months through a partnership between the BBC and Seaborne. That means he has been on seven cruises with multiple submarine dives per cruise.

Pedro’s next gig will be on a Japanese scientific ship, much less glamorous!

His stories about transporting all his gear were interesting! He travels alone and manages all the equipment shown above.

A BBC program/series takes about 4 years to develop from inception.

Wildlife aren’t the most cooperative actors!

It is important for the BBC to take the time to double and triple fact check. If any scientist disagrees with a theory or assumption, it is dropped. The BBC feels the need to get it right to maintain their reputation and that of David Attenborough. The shows have a massive global outreach.

Pedro is the last person out in the field for the BBC’s latest series in development.  He couldn’t say a word about the new series but said we would know it when we saw it. We can’t wait.

As our cruise came to an end, we found the map of our voyage interesting. The part in the very south doesn’t happen for most cruises but ours was two days longer than usual.

The international breakdown of passengers was also interesting.

Seabourn did everything so well!  This was an expedition cruise, different from their regular offerings, but we would be very happy to sail with them again.

Because Seabourn needed us off the ship to prepare for the next cruise, they gave us “meal money” and hired a tour of Ushuaia as we waited for our flights out.  

Ushuaia sits on the Beagle Channel which separates Argentina from Chile at the southernmost tip of South America.

We had bus and walking components on the Ushuaia tour, but is it fair to tour anything right after Antarctica?

I went in search of something to purchase to be our Antarctica Christmas ornament – something I always do to commemorate our trips.  There just weren’t any souvenir shops in Antarctica!

Once I found this penguin, I was satisfied. It is blue eyed so not really representative of Antarctic penguins but good enough. (Only fairy penguins from New Zealand are blue eyed.) 

Our flights home were uneventful and mostly dedicated to sleeping.  

Global Entry kiosks at the Houston International terminal weren’t working so we had to pass by and interact with arrogant and rude border patrol and immigration officers at the Houston airport.  It was disappointing to think this is how the United States presents to visitors to our country.  

It took 32 hours from leaving the ship to walking in our door at home. 

We have been so fortunate to travel to so many places and to take numerous trips that others have considered a “trip of a lifetime.”

We have never used those words previously, but this may be the one. 

This is the trip that has, at least for the time being, usurped The Best of Italy, as our favorite trip ever.

This is the trip that allows us to say we have crossed both the Arctic and Antarctic circles and allows us to say we have been to all seven continents!

This flag went with us to Antarctica and now hangs in our travel hall.

In our seven continent achievement, checking off Asia is a bit different than the others. We have both traveled in Asia – just not together. We did go to Istanbul which straddles Europe and Asia, but that would be a pretty narrow interpretation. 

However, as a teenager, my family lived in Thailand and we traveled to a number of countries in Southeast Asia. 

As a Hewlett Packard employee, Randy traveled to and worked in India. 

So, yes. We’ve absolutely both been to Asia.  An extended trip to Asia is scheduled for 2027.

Finally, photographer Harry took bird pictures throughout our Antarctica voyage but I never highlighted them. 

I will close out our Antarctica adventure with Harry’s birds.

If you ever have the opportunity to go to Antarctica – DO IT! Major cruise lines do “drive bys” which many find absolutely fine. Only the smaller ships allow you to step on land. We are glad we did it the way we did.

During the first day back in the Drake, Seabourn Venture was rolling a bit, but in a good way – great for sleeping but not for walking! 

As suggested, we slept in, even putting a “We’re Relaxing” tag on our door. 

On Seabourn, all presentations were available in the cabins.  I watched the Women in Antarctica presentation on the TV in our cabin with a mocha and biscotti.  

Of course, women weren’t allowed on early explorations but their names are there.  For example:  Mary Byrd Land and Adèlie penguins were named for wives of explorers.

Jackie Ronne was the first woman to be a working member on an expedition.  She worked, and overwintered, at Stonington, site of our first stop in Antarctica. The Ronne Ice Shelf was named for her.

In the 1950s, the first countries to allow women to work on Antarctica were Argentina, South Africa and the former Soviet Union.

Regardless of chauvinistic perceptions, women have been shown to do better in extreme cold psychologically and physically (because of more subcutaneous fat).

Ideas of colonizing Antarctica began in the 1970s with Argentina and Chili.  To that end, a very pregnant Argentinian women became the first woman to give birth on the continent.  The Antarctic treaty eventually nullified colonization intentions.

In 1993, the first all women team reached the South Pole led by American Ann Bancroft.

By 2025, there was one woman for every two men in US Antarctic work.

We went to several presentations in the expedition lounge over our two days in the Drake Passage.

Ben presented on Seabirds, primarily the albatross.  

He highlighted the wide range foraging trips parents go on to feed  their chicks, perhaps over 2 million kilometers over their lives.

During the Q&A afterwards, someone asked Ben how he went from doing remote island research to a luxury cruise line expedition team. Ben explained that Seabourn contacted the science team he was part of at the University of CapeTown. Two of the 12 members were interested.  Ben is in polar regions with Seabourn about six months a year.

Historian Udo presented on the long Antarctic saga of Ernest Shackleton.  

Shackleton had come up in small ways in other lectures but Udo gave an hour on his extensive Antarctica experiences. (If you know, you know. If you don’t, there are many books, videos and movies.)

Udo is standing next to Ernest Shackleton’s headstone in Grytviken, South Georgia Island, in the South Atlantic Ocean. He died in January 1922.  

We had a lecture by Merel on the Spineless Wonders of the Ocean.

Merel presented again the second day on the ”scary” creatures of the deep.

Ship photographer Harry presented an 11 minute video of his photos of our trip. We were able to download the video to keep.

Expedition leader Luqui closed our expedition team lectures with one about scientific research on penguin poo!

It is a real thing!

Penguins are trained to poo outside the nest

Luqui’s closing presentation was perfect!

We laughed almost to tears!

A bit later we were almost to gratitude tears with the Captain’s presentation of the officers and crew who gave us such a fabulous voyage.

Randy had a last conversation with expedition crew member Robert.

We enjoyed some closing time with a couple we had met during our delay in the Buenos Aries airport 10 days before and talked with frequently throughout the voyage.

Then it was time for the SuperBowl!

I had worn my Seahawks shirt around the ship the entire day receiving many comments. I believe I was the only one to wear anything other than a cap.

One fellow passenger coordinated the pool and I bought two squares.

Seabourn gave us a nice tailgate spread for the SuperBowl.

We watched the first half on the big screen with fellow passengers but went back to the cabin at halftime.

Since some people had thrown such a fit about Bad Bunny being the half time entertainer, we wanted to be able to really watch his show. We enjoyed it!

We watched the third quarter in bed but in the middle of the fourth, I had to get dressed to head back to the lounge because my square was winning the pool.  Before I left the cabin, the Patriots scored again.  Oh well, back to watching the Seahawks win, in comfort, in the Drake Passage on Seabourn Venture.

Next up:  Our final experiences and thoughts.

PS: This is our 500th Serenewandering post. Woo-hoo!

Our ship got to the opening into Deception Island about 5:00 am on February 6, 2026.  We were awakened by the engines slowing, and everything being still.

There is a very small 500 meter gap in the caldera that was hard to see and easy to miss, thus the name.

Deception Island holds the safest harbor in Antarctica, if you ignore that it is also an active caldera. The last substantial eruption was in 1969 but seismic activity is ongoing.

As promised, we began entering the caldera at 6:45 a.m.  We watched from our cabin and balcony.   

There was a penguin colony way up on the ridge. It seemed quite far from the water!

We saw equipment, presumably to measure seismic activity. Both Spain and Argentina operate seismic studies on the island.

Our time came to go ashore.

We walked up and saw a small caldera from the eruption in 1969.

Randy decided to walk further up the hill and get better views.

I wandered my way back down the mountain. 

I walked along the beach and saw two seals.

A Weddel seal was quite close to the water and was totally unconcerned with people (and birds) around.  He opened his eyes a few times.

The fur seal was far enough away that he mostly ignored us. 

Two chinstrap penguins came along and entertained us for a time. 

Actually, they did nothing specific, we were just entertained by their presence.

The Deception Island settlement was originally a Norwegian whaling station, originating in 1912.

In its time, this was the only land based whaling station offering support to vessels. Up to 500 people worked here during the active summer months.

Whalers began just rendering the blubber but, over decades, eventually used every single part of the whale. This included the meat and getting oil from the bones.

Norway was neutral during World War I and made a lot of money selling whale oil as a source of fuel.  Norway closed the site in 1931. 

The big petrol tanks held whale oil and other things over the years. 

The British established a base in 1944 and operated it primarily as a meteorological unit. In 1967 an eruption caused them to leave.  They came back briefly but abandoned Deception Island permanently in 1969.

For some time, the site had been primarily used by scientists for studying seismic activity and the volcano.  Because of their research they were able to leave when the eruption became imminent and no one was harmed. The site wasn’t destroyed by lava, it was covered in 15 feet of mud.

These crosses are a Norwegian memorial to the 50-60 whalers, and one research scientist, who died over the sites early years.  Their graves were buried during the volcanic eruption so the memorial was erected.

The buildings remaining are a collection of those from Norway whaling, the British Navy, and British meteorologic and seismic studies.

In 1990-1992, the British removed remaining hazardous materials.

In 1995 the whaling station was designated a historical site, protected by the Antarctic Treaty.

These picture show Deception Island’s stacking of ice and black soot and ash over thousands of years.

Steam rises along the shoreline due to geothermal activity.

The water was 80° centigrade in this spot.

The ground was warm enough to grow a moss covering.

Randy always enjoyed listening to our expedition team members!

Another team member showed us krill.

When we returned to the ship and cabin, we had a snack that had become a habit.  

Our cabin stewards left potato chips for us and I enjoyed it so much that it became a habit.  I always prefer salty to sweet. They brought chocolate too!

As we headed down for our expedition briefing, we passed another common happening.  There was always self serve hot wine, hot chocolate and coffee available with all the possible additives.  Of course, if you didn’t want to serve yourself, the bartender was happy to make you whatever you wanted.  On this cruise, all drinks were included.

Deception Island was our last shore excursion before we started the trip back across the Drake Passage.

It was time to look at our potential conditions for our two day crossing.

We were given our timed group assignments for the next day. Sleep in!

On this cruise, the excursions and expedition lectures were the primary entertainment.   

The music duo and cruise director (right) also provided a short schedule of entertainment and activities but we hadn’t attended any until this last night. It was all so pleasant and a perfect end to our time in Antarctica.

Next Up: The Drake Passage Round 2

Postscript: No Kings Protests, objecting to Trump administration policies, took place on six continents around the world on March 28, 2026.

Only it was really all seven continents! These four participated from Deception Island, Antarctica.

On February 5, we woke to announcements that the morning’s landing would be difficult because of rocky terrain.

That, on top of nonstop activity for five days, made us less interested in going ashore. 

As an alternative, they were offering a short zodiac ride.  Even that wasn’t appealing to me because, as a short person, if I don’t have good seat placement in the zodiac,  I can see very little.  

We all were so much better at gauging how many layers,  which waterproof pants, goggles or not, etc. we would need. However, donning all the outer gear to leave the ship, was still significant.  We had to have it all on before pulling on our waterproof boots in the mudroom. Only then could we get in line to depart.

I decided to have a down day while Randy contemplated his decision.  He eventually decided to go.

Randy was in the front on the right as the zodiac went away. He would have optimal viewing at that position on the very short trip to land.

My only regret at staying was the likelihood of not getting up close and personal with chinstrap penguins as I had with the Adèlie and Gentoo.

Given that very few zodiacs were operating, it seemed a lot of people made the same choice that I did.

Randy and the ship’s photographer, Harry, got some great pictures of fur seals and chinstrap penguins!

From our balcony, and a zoom lens, I could barely make out the penguins on the shore, but the shared photos were great!

This iceberg looked like it had a lounge chair.

No lounge chair but, as I enjoyed the balcony, I could hear the mountain ice, groaning, cracking and occasionally calving.

Randy was glad he had gone ashore, and I was glad I stayed. He was able to talk with one of the expedition guides for an extended period.  They were so interesting to talk with individually. The expedition crew was cross-trained, helpful and knowledgeable.  Our cabin television showed bios for all of the officers and expedition crew.  They have many PHDs, expedition and extreme sport leadership roles among them.

Later, Randy had a second submarine dive.  They offered greatly reduced rates for a second dive to those of us who paid full price for a first dive.  

Full price had been $1000 per person and we had prepaid for Randy months before to make sure he had his dive.  We had enough on board credit to cover my dive when I decided to go. We had almost enough on-board credit left to pay for his second dive,  so it was an easy decision.  

It was also easy for me to be happy with my first dive and pass on a second.

I watched the submarine leave the ship and go out on its way. We often felt fortunate to have had a balcony on the port side as we were able to watch most of the coming and goings of zodiacs, submarines, and kayaks.

Randy saw something new – salp chains! The chains are transparent and gelatinous and can grow in length to 50 feet in open ocean.

The chains contribute to the food chain and create carbon-rich feces that assist in the ocean’s carbon sequestration.

He also saw new types of sponge and starfish.

We valued our interactions with Marel on our cruise whether she was piloting the submarines or giving an interesting lecture. We hope she will “land” in a good place as Seabourn is discontinuing their submarine excursions.

I was able to stay on our balcony and watch the “brave” people doing the polar plunge into Antarctic waters.  Neither of us were inclined to do that.

During our expedition lecture later in the day, we learned that 118 fellow passengers completed the plunge.

One crew member jumps whenever the opportunity presents.

He told us about the physical benefits, which still didn’t make us wish we had done the Polar Plunge.

Next, we learned more about humpback whales.

Slapping a flipper or fluke/tail is thought to be communicative.

Breaching can also be communicative or as a way to shed barnacles or old skin.

Usually the males are the only ones who sing or vocalize.  Their songs can travel over 900 miles underwater in optimal conditions.

A fluke print doesn’t develop until two years old.

Seventy percent of the whales in Antarctica come from Equador with most of the remaining coming from Brazil. Whales return near to their place of birth.

Over 100 incidents of humpbacks helping other species have been documented.

We also learned about the napping behavior of penguins. 

They take micro-naps.

They always need to be somewhat aware of their surroundings to protect their eggs and chicks from predatory birds.

We had a preview of our next, and last, destination in Antartica – Deception Island.  We would be sailing into an active volcano!

This was the evening when many passengers had invitations to dine with officers. We did not have status on Seabourn but do on Holland America, a sister line. We also stayed in a mid level suite.

For whatever reason, we were invited to share dinner with six other passengers and the chief purser. It was a most pleasant evening.

Our Antarctic journey continued February 4, 2027 at Cuverville Island.  

The plan was to visit another Gentoo colony. 

We saw more and more Gentoo penguins. They were everywhere.

 

We saw this smart penguin laying on a flat rock catching the morning rays.

Cuverville Island had early whaling activity and there were a few remnant bones.  A whaling crew brought in one whale at a time to process the resources.  In the beginning, whalers did not value whale bones so they were left.  When it was later learned that oil could be gleaned from the bones, they were likely gathered, or disappeared over time in the elements.

As the Gentoo territory was north of the Adèlie colonies, we saw parents still feeding their chicks. 

There was a lot of water play just off the beach.  

Some seemed to just have the “zoomies!”

The Gentoo were completely unconcerned about our presence and very fun to watch.

Randy talked to one of the expedition leaders about penguin black and white coloring.  When the black presented, the penguin is difficult to see from above.  When the white is visible as they swim, they are difficult to see by potential predators from below.

Of course, we also saw a few seals!

Following our morning activity, we had lunch on board Venture and enjoyed the scenery as we sailed to our next destination.

Our afternoon excursion was a zodiac ride in a chinstrap penguin area. 

We were in the final group to go out and the weather had turned cold and windy.   

The ship’s hotel team were in a zodiac with the Antarctica flag and champagne.  It was a very nice gesture but the conditions weren’t great for lingering over champagne!

It was so bumpy that we didn’t even try to get pictures of the chinstrap penguins, or nearby whales.

Photographer Harry had captured this chinstrap penguin earlier in the day and shared it.

Once back aboard Venture, we had our expedition meeting to go over the events of the day and plans for the next day. As was typical, the briefing was followed by lecture segments about 5-10 minutes long.

The first was on ice and icebergs. 

There are a variety of types of ice, all of which we’d seen.

We had seen many glaciers and heard and saw calving numerous times.

When you see an iceberg, only about 10% of it is above the water line.

We have seen all of these shapes.

Randy has been fascinated by the various shades of blue going slightly into purple that we have seen on icebergs. 

We learned why that happens.

Our next lecture was on the importance of krill to the southern ocean. 

Unfortunately, manufacturers are finding ways to use krill and if populations are depleted through this and/or climate change, ramifications on the planet are massive.

We went to dinner, and noticed whales out the dining room windows. This is one of photographer Harry’s pictures and is so special because it also has a penguin!  (The pictures at the end of this post are also his.)

We went to our cabin and saw more whale activity.

We kept going out on our balcony to watch,  and take pictures and videos. 

There had to be 50 whales! We saw them come up and go down so many times – often with three, four or five whales in view.

You could scan the horizon and see whale after whale after whale.  

We went to a dessert event on deck and continued to watch the whales.

 

We came back to our room and continued to watch whales and more whales.

We finally closed the drapes on them and went to bed!

Next Up: Chinstraps and the Polar Plunge

Because we had been adventuring south, the morning was spent sailing Venture north.  That allowed passengers the opportunity to relax a bit.

We had a lecture called Biomimicry: Designed by Nature, Adapted by Humans. 

To highlight a few:

The physiology of albatross wings, birds that fly around the world almost continuously, is being looked at by wind energy and aircraft developers for better efficiency. A few albatross were spotted on our voyage but we never saw them.

The physiology of penguin feet and flippers have impacted commercial kilns and petroleum distilleries.

Seal whisker physiology is helping scientists design underwater vehicles that won’t scatter the wildlife.

Antarctic icefish swim in near freezing water. (We saw one on our submarine ride though this picture is from the web.) They have an antifreeze protein in their blood that doesn’t freeze until -2.5 degrees centigrade.  (Seawater freezes at -1.8 degrees C.) This adaption has opportunities in food storage and transport, freezing reproductive cells, and keeping ice-cream creamy instead of crystallizing.

While most of the passengers were at a “Caviar and Bubbles” event, we grabbed some prime real estate in the Constellation Lounge.  Actually, prime real estate on Venture was usually available.  There were lounges throughout the ship which is a feature we really enjoyed.

We also appreciated well thought out features like drink shelves in the presentation room and bottle wells in our cabin. 

Another favorite was the warming cupboard in each cabin.  Our waterproof pants, and various hand washables, went in there daily.

Back on our balcony, we enjoyed some really beautiful views as we sailed into our destination bay.

Photographer, Harry, had the advantage of using a drone.

We were surprised to see a red sailing boat. It sails for Moretime Expeditions and has 18 passengers.

The Antarctic Treaty limits how many visitors can be on land in any area at a given time.  We learned that not all companies hold themselves to treaty standards. Passengers from this boat were on land when we began disembarking but were not nearby.

Our destination for the day was Neko bay, a place where whalers once brought their catch and left the bones.

Neko bay was named by Adrien de Gerlache.  The map shows a strait named after him as well.  

He headed an expedition from Belgium and this is the area where they sailed and were the first to overwinter.  Tomorrow’s destination was also named by Gerlache after one of his crew that perished.

I mentioned the book earlier and recommend it if you are interested in early Antarctic exploration. It was confirming of our efforts at trip preparation that the voyage and book repeatedly came up in lectures.

Based on assignment to color groups which rotated daily, we were among the first to leave the ship. We went to the mainland of Antarctica and begin enjoying the Gentoo penguins. 

Watching the Gentoo was a good time!

We walked up the hill for great views!

We could hear and see ice calving off the glaciers.

We had our picture taken with the Antarctica flag again.  Some people dispute whether the Antarctic islands (or sea ice in our case) “count” as part of the continent. 

In fact, there was a dispute for decades about whether Carolyn Mikkelsen was actually the first woman to step foot on Antarctica on February 20, 1935.   It was eventually determined that she stepped onto an Antarctic island.  

For purists, Ingrid Christensen was the first woman to step on the Antarctica mainland on January 30, 1937.

Abby Jean Morrell was the first known woman to sail in the Antarctic region, accompanying her husband as he captained an 1829-1831 voyage.  She wrote an account of the voyage, the first from a woman’s perspective.

It was so sunny and warm on our side of the ship when we went back that we were able to stand outside on our balcony without a jacket.

As a zodiac approached the ship, we saw a whale within 25 yards.  We watched for it to raise again, and eventually saw the fluke. 

We had a nice dinner and went back to our cabin. We watched the whales for most of the evening. 

It was such a beautiful day!

Next up: Gentoo penguins, whales, whales and more whales!

After our first epic day, we had a second – highlighted by penguins, seals and a submarine!

It was cool and overcast early, but still stunning – kind of a given in Antarctica.

We took a zodiac ashore and had a ‘wet landing’.  That means we had on our waterproof boots (provided by Seabourn) with our own waterproof pants over the top and step out of the zodiac into water about six inches deep.   The crew stand in the water for hours to keep the zodiacs stable as passengers load and unload.  They have on dry suits but it was still cold for them.

Our first excursion was to an Adélie penguin colony.  Emperor and Adélie are the only penguins that breed in Antarctica.

The surface was rocky which made for careful walking, for us and for them!

Penguins create nests of pebbles, the importance being to keep the eggs dry.

We really enjoyed our time observing the penguins! 

Occasionally, one penguin would be chasing another and we learned that usually it was a chick chasing its parent wanting food. 

The parenting commitment after birth lasts only a few weeks. At that point the chick has to learn to hunt and feed on its own.

Within a few weeks the chicks are nearly the same size as an adult. They can be differentiated by their brown down.

Again, these close up pictures are from Harry, the ship’s photographer.

I wrote most of this post while we were on board Venture and, at that time, the picture above seemed a likely contender for our picture of the trip! The icy mountain, water, ship and penguins!

We didn’t know all that was yet to come!

While sailing towards our next excursion location, we saw several glaciers.

Seeing this ship was far more surprising than the glaciers. We weren’t the only people in Antarctica after all. While we were the southernmost ship in the world, we hadn’t seen any other signs of civilization.

Throughout the day we moved north to more typical exploration areas. There is a small plane on the right side of the above picture.

Harry got a close up! We learned that this plane was transporting goods or people to one of the nearby science stations.

Our second expedition of the day was a zodiac ride to see seals. We were in the first zodiac out because we were also scheduled for the submarine.  We saw the subs being unloaded before we left the ship! The expedition team works the timing so nobody misses anything if at all possible.

We had Expedition Leader Luqui, as our zodiac driver.  He seemed to be second, only to the captain, in ship hierarchy.  They worked together to determine where the ship should go for the best possible guest experience.  

Luqui driving was also indicative of the expedition team wearing multiple hats. He was our zodiac driver and tour guide while constantly being aware of where everyone else was.

He was occasionally on the radio suggesting routes to the other zodiac drivers to find several species of seals.

These were juvenile elephant seals, very large but much smaller than the four tons they will eventually be.  They are the seals that dive to crazy depths!

These are Weddell seals, distinguishable by their head shape and speckles. 

We saw others too! Again, photo credit to Harry.

Some icebergs have a nice array of blue color. 

Luqui said if you know what to look for you can determine previous float lines.

We got back to the ship and had to quickly get ready for our submarine ride. 

When we first got inside, I wondered about my choice to go along. My claustrophobia isn’t so much about enclosed spaces but being with too many people in an enclosed space. There were seven of us in the small space, three on each side, with the pilot, Merel, in the middle. 

After about ten meters, Merel turned the seat units outward towards the water. She started mood music and had a calming voice. That was just her way. No one but Randy knew I was a bit anxious. She explained things and soon we were all enjoying the ride down.

We started with the sea “soup” and the occasional krill.  There were more and more krill as we went down. The plexiglass bubble was so clear it seemed like the krill were swimming right inside the sub with us.

We went down 182 meters!   We hovered and moved just barely above the surface so as not to disturb the powdery bottom.

We saw sea anenome and starfish.

This “sea rod” looked like an old ship line or transatlantic telegraph wire until we realized that couldn’t be!  

The rod is an animal, or collection of animals, that just build on top of themselves.  The outer portion of the rod is almost translucent.

We saw an ice fish and a small octopus but weren’t fast enough for pictures.

These are sea sponges. They don’t move so pictures weren’t hard.

This is a sea sprite and a sea cucumber.

This is another kind of sponge with a feather starfish above and another type of starfish in the picture below.

Our on-board time was 45 minutes so it was soon time to surface.  When we were close, Merel released bubbles so our search zodiac would know where we were.

We all had a great time!

I am really glad I went but also glad I jumped up to be the first one out! Randy was very happy with his sub experience.

As it had been very interesting below, it was beautiful above!

We had worn clothes suited for the submarine, all black so as not to cause a glare on the bubble. Without our outer coats, the ride back to Venture on the zodiac was very cold -memorable cold! We still say it was the only time on the trip we were really cold.

While we were enjoying our activities of the day, a group of about 50 humpback whales traveled along with the ship.  

We did catch a glimpse of them out of the window at dinner. Whales are prevalent in Antarctica at that time of year so we were confident we would see more in the next days.

After returning home, we learned that Seabourn will be discontinuing their submarine excursions at the close of this Antarctic season. That makes us a bit sad, and certainly thankful that we did it when we could.

Next Up: We meet Gentoo penguins!

During our expedition briefing after day 1, we were told that the goal for this day would be to become the Seabourn ship that made it the farthest south ever in St. George’s sound. 

Because our cruise was two days longer than typical and the sea ice had likely melted because it was late in the season, our expedition leader believed it was possible. Expectations were high!

We woke at 6:30 a.m. to a ship wide announcement that there were four Emperor penguins visible from the front of the ship. We were told it is very unusual for them to be this far south so we put on our warm clothes and went up on deck.

There were four Emperors, one Adélie penguin and a sea bird.  This was the first time Seabourn Venture had seen Emperor penguins this year.  Emperors are seen in only one of 20 cruises.

The ship maintained position to watch the Emperors for more than an hour.

We could also see two seals lounging on the sea ice.  Our presence didn’t seem to bother them.

These flat patches of ice are frozen sea water and very different from icebergs.

Later there was the official announcement that we were the first Seabourn vessel to ever come this far south!

 We went forward with the intention of breaking through the sea ice.

They hoped to get far enough into the ice sheet that passengers could safely walk from the ship right to the ice. 

Alas, the captain determined that we were not going to be able to do that safely. 

The estimated ice depth was 2 to 3 meters.

However, plan B was amazing! They began lowering zodiacs to allow people to transport over to walk on sea ice.   That was another first!

There were two more Emperor penguins!

While transport to the ice was beginning, they called those of us who had kayak reservations to get ready. Were we really going to miss walking on sea ice?  This was early in the cruise, before we knew to trust that our Seabourn expedition crew would arrange everything so we could almost always do it all.

At the time, and in hindsight, getting the gear on to go kayaking, including dry suit, special boots and more was daunting. 

It was eventually accomplished but is our least favorite memory of the trip!

The kayaking adventure took a little more than an hour, and was so beautiful. 

The only sound we could hear was the occasional ice chunk breaking away.   

The idea of kayaking in Antarctica is just mind-boggling!

At the end of our kayak excursion, the expedition crew took us by zodiac to the sea ice.

The great Seabourn Venture crew were prepared!

 

We had our picture taken with a Seabourn Antarctica flag, and enjoyed a glass of celebratory champagne.

We walked over towards another Emperor penguin. 

We watched Adélie penguins.

They were so cute! These closeups were taken by the ship’s photographer, Harry.

We got back on board the Venture and, happily, shed our kayak gear!

We had lunch and spent a very nice afternoon sailing by and looking at icebergs. 

Randy got all dressed in his expedition gear so he’d be warm enough to stand on our balcony.

I just popped in and out of our cabin!

The iceberg below looked like an “Ice Games” stadium to me.

In the late afternoon, we got down past latitude 70. 

We were the farthest south passenger ship in the world at that time and the farthest south a Seaboard ship has ever gone, adding to the record we’d accomplished earlier in the day.

As always, we concluded the day with a wrap-up meeting and a few points of interest were mentioned.

While trying to cut through the ice, color was stirred up. Passenger speculation was that it was paint from the ship. We learned that it was a type of algae under the ice (critical to the food chain) and we had churned it up.

The marine biologist said that there had been some question about what this entity was that some had seen on the ice.   No one on board knew.

She sent the photo out to other marine biologists that work in Antarctica.  Collectively,  they figured out what it was.

The day was so epic that the Seabourn company sent out a Facebook post telling the “world” about our experiences.

Unsaid in Seabourn’s post was that there were 18 of us who kayaked at, very likely, the farthest south anyone has ever done so.

I am usually very careful to not “advertise” on social media that we are away, but got carried away and reposted their post.  Those of you on Facebook may have seen it!

The captain and expedition leader were always at the ready to modify our itinerary to try to give us the best experience possible.

Penguins, icebergs, kayaking and champagne on the ice sheet. It was a pretty good day in Antarctica!

Next Up: Another epic day!

January 31st was our first day exploring in Antarctica!  We thought we were going kayaking – one of two optional excursions we had booked on this trip.  Almost everything on Expedition Cruises are included in the cruise price.

In the meantime we had been told about the planned excursions to see two old Antarctic stations – both closed for decades.  Historic things are always of great interest to me so I hoped we would get back from kayaking in time to go see the stations.

We had been told by the expedition leaders that flexibility was necessary because the schedule always changes!  So it did, and I was glad.  Kayaking was cancelled due to the weather conditions.

Our day would be spent exploring an area in Marguerite Bay.  This area is locked in by ice 8-9 months of the year and is further south than most cruises go. 

Because the bay was accessible, and because our cruise was two days longer than most, we were able to visit.

I am all dressed up with someplace to go!   It seemed somewhat complicated at first to figure out our layers, our jackets, which gloves, which accessories,  life jacket, and on and on.  It seemed like a lot the first and second days but we got much better at it and learned we didn’t need to wear and take nearly as much as we did at the beginning.  

The protocol for going to shore was to be all put together when your color group was called and proceed to the staging area.  Then when directed, we would go to the mudroom to get our boots on and then line up to board the zodiacs. 

While waiting to leave the ship, we watched an earlier group decontaminate their boots as they returned.

We checked off the ship using our key card and went down to water level to get on the zodiac. 

Each zodiac holds a maximum of 16 passengers. We motored through the waters of Marguerite Bay on our way to Stonington Island.

Randy was all geared up too! Whenever we were ashore, the ship provided walking sticks. We soon learned that they were just something to carry!

It was nice to have views of the Venture from land. She is a pretty ship.

There are two historic stations at Stonington Island, a US station in the foreground and a UK station in the background. 

These photographs were done by ship photographer, Harry.

Our first pictures are of the UK station which had two periods of operation – 1946-1950 and 1960-1975.

 

The station looked as though it could have been occupied recently.

The American Station was named for explorer Richard Byrd.  

Byrd had become famous by flying to, and circling, the South Pole in 1929.

One hundred twenty men built and worked at the US Station during the 1940s in periods before and after World War II.  

Two women, wives of men who worked on the American Station, were the first women to over winter in Antarctica.

We saw equipment left at the US station, including an engine that was never taken out of its crate.

There was also a tank.

After walking around for an hour, we were ready to go back to the ship.

We had never been cold – giving us ideas on what we could leave behind on our next outing.

The afternoon zodiac excursions were cancelled due to snow and wind – just the first instance of how quickly the weather could change in Antarctica.

The expedition team changed gears and provided lectures.  Our impression was that each team member had a repertoire of lectures that were added in based on time, location and what we had seen, or hoped to see.

The first was Modern Antarctic Adventures presented by expedition member Robert Egelstaff.

Amundson, Scott and Shackleton and their historic expeditions are still revered and many modern efforts mirror back to theirs.

Robert Egelstaff was one of the four adventurers who retraced Sir Ernest Shackleton’s journey from Elephant Island to South Georgia. 

They completed their journey over the Antarctic summer of 1993-1994.

Roger Mear and Robert Sean wrote a book about their 1986 expedition called In the Footsteps of Scott.

Vivian Fuchs was once the base commander at the British station we visited earlier in the day.  He and Edmond Hillary used snow cats to go across Antarctica, leaving from opposite sides, and meeting in the middle.

Many have tried to be first at something in Antarctica!

Reinhardt Messner skied 2000 miles across Antarctic, used kites and sleds.

These men rowed for two weeks to cross the Drake Passage.  Our trip across took two days.

In another lecture, we learned more about seals!

And how they are different from sea lions.

We completed our lectures learning about a website called Happy Whale. Whales are unique and are identified by their fluke-prints.  When citizen scientists photograph flukes and send the photos to Happy Whale, whale movement can be followed.  If the fluke is new to the collection, the citizen scientist is able to name the whale.  We did not try to send in our fluke pictures but others on the ship had fun with it.  We are aware that one whale was photographed and named from the Seabourn Pursuit, sister ship to our Seabourn Venture.

Next up:  One of our most epic days in Antarctica!