antarctica

Elephant Island

I’m at the point in my life where if I think I’m not going to enjoy the experience, I’m not going to do it. Our last day in Antarctica ( before heading to South Georgia Islands) was one of those days. Riding in a zodiac when the sea is choppy, the sky leaden, with the wind blowing is definitely not my idea of a good time. Especially when I can watch the action from a warm, gorgeous ship. If this had been my first trip to Antarctica, I might have made a different choice. But it wasn’t, so I didn’t.

Unfortunately, Ernest Shackleton’s crew had no choice. After their ship, the Endurance, (that’s also the name of MY ship) was crushed by ice, they slowly made their way to Elephant Island. Most of the crew waited patiently for almost 5 months until Shackleton and his 5 companions could reach South Georgia to find help at one of the whaling stations.

That’s the reader’s digest version of Shackleton’s voyage.

Needless to say, their cuisine didn’t look quite like what we’ve been eating.

But I digress…back to Elephant Island.

I took the above photo from the ship. Those white dots that you see on the shore are penguins. They are certainly cute to watch, but I’ve already done that, and with another two weeks left on the cruise, I’m sure I’ll be seeing more.

It might not look rough, but remember, that video was shot from my balcony on deck 5. Why can you see two zodiacs containing only 1 passenger, you ask? Well those are members of the crew, standing ready to pluck someone from the frigid waters, just in case the seas started to REALLY rock n roll.

Compare that to the day before, taken from my kayak.

Now THAT experience was absolutely wonderful. What is not obvious from the photo was there were patches of surface ice. We had to break thru it with our paddles, which was a bit of a workout. A very NECESSARY workout, given the way I’ve been eating. Thank goodness for elastic waistbands!

I was very lucky to be paddling with an experienced kayaker, who was steering us through the icebergs.

Was kayaking the origin of the term “back seat driver?”

Marc was able to get us close enough to the nearby island so that I could get my first shots of Adélie penguins.

I was NOT as enthusiastic about the next activity, the polar plunge, but many of my shipmates were.

I figured once was quite enough. When Greg and I did it in 2011, we had to walk into the water, then return to the beach, and ride a zodiac all the way back to the ship. The 2026 version looked to be a whole lot better, given that the hot tubs and sauna were just a short elevator ride away.

We didn’t have a ship photographer capturing our moment, but Mike chose not to participate, so he was able to do the honors. My mother’s comment? “Mike’s the only one of you that has any sense”. Thanks, mom.

So let’s get back to 2026.

You don’t need to be on shore or in a zodiac to see wondrous sights. As we were traveling to Point Wild, we came across a massive pod of blue whales. Unfortunately, they stay mostly underwater, so the only way to know of their existence was spotting their “blows”.

This was as good as I could get, but undoubtedly those with powerful lenses did a whole lot better.

I liked this photo because you can see the tiny penguins swimming alongside the blue whales.

The weather alongside Elephant Island changed yet again from the brief sunny interlude during our whale watch,

to a progressively cloudier and foggier setting.

That didn’t stop some of my more determined cruise mates from getting into zodiacs to see what they could see at the historic Wild Point. Me, I decided to hear about it at the evening recap.

Antarctica, 2026

We have made it through the Drake Passage and are spending 4 days on the Antarctic Peninsula before heading to the South Georgia Islands.

Here’s the visual that I frequently consult, because I’m already losing track of time.

Fortunately both my iPhone and camera date stamp all my photos so if I ever need to tell what I did when, I can always consult my photos.

One of our landings, at a gentoo penguin colony

There are 140 passengers aboard our ship. Because Antarctica only allows no more than 100 people ashore at a time, half of the group is on land, while the other half cruises around in the zodiacs looking for wildlife.

For efficiency in boarding and disembarking, the passengers are further subdivided into four groups of 35. I’m in the albatross group, which will be kayaking at 10:30 today. Because the kayaks hold two people, we all needed to buddy up. As luck would have it, my partner has his own kayaks back home in Massachusetts, so his skill level far exceeds mine. We all know THAT particular bar is REALLY low. Because he’s in the Gentoo group, he was all too happy to trade his 8:30 departure for my later one. As a bonus, I’ll bet it will be warmer then.

I hope to be able to take a video of that experience, but while I am trying to work off the great food and even greater wine on the gym’s exercise bike, I’ll share some of prior days photos.

We spotted this seal on one of our zodiac cruises

The view from the bridge. Passengers can hang with captain and crew whenever they want

Well, I TRIED to insert videos of the whales that we saw from the bridge, the penguins and birds from our zodiac cruises, but WiFi isn’t cooperating, so I’ll do that when I get home.

It’s pretty amazing that I’m able to have ANY connectivity here at the bottom of our planet.

Every evening we gather in the lounge for a recap of the day’s activities. Of course, because the talk is in the lounge, we are a very jolly audience, because we can have whatever beverage we desire, and quantities are not limited.

There are so many screens scattered throughout the lounge, every seat is a great seat!

I have time to share a couple more shots before I need to gear up for my kayak adventure.

I SO wanted that seal to pick his head up!

Bones from a blue whale from back when whalers were hunting them

Ushuaia, and the Drake Passage

Our flight to Ushuaia took off at 11:20, an hour and a half late. Okay, so maybe we got off to a bit of a rocky start.

Did we really need to leave the hotel at 7AM, to spend over 3 hours in a domestic airport that only had unappealing snacks? After we landed in Ushuaia, I realized it was truly a minor inconvenience, soon to be forgotten.

The above photo was taken on our 2011 trip, but the experience hasn’t changed at all. It was every bit as harrowing as the first time. We popped through dense clouds, in between the mountains, to make a bumpy, rather exciting landing.

But enough about the downside of travel. The Endeavor, our ship is exquisite!

While it was being cleaned and readied for our arrival, we had a late lunch, while we cruised thru the Beagle Channel on a catamaran.

I didn’t take any photos, because I knew I couldn’t top the ones from 2011. Today, 15 years later, I didn’t see a single seal, which made me sad. I hope climate change didn’t do them in—perhaps they were just frolicking elsewhere.

Everyone that I have met so far, both in the hotel and on the ship, is really friendly, interesting, and well traveled. I am delighted that I will have time to get to know many of them over the coming weeks.

The ship’s management very thoughtfully arranged for us single travelers to meet for dinner. Marc from Boston is the only man traveling solo. He doesn’t seem to mind being outnumbered.

So many people have asked me “ what do you do on a trip like that”?

Well, there is no shortage of activities. So far, I’ve missed the 7AM stretching class, and I haven’t made it to the gym or sauna, but I plan to take advantage of all of them really soon.

I HAVE attended the very informative lectures, such as this one on Seabirds. This lecture focused on petrels and albatross. Quite honestly, I don’t really care about the 126 different species! Fortunately, meither did the lecturer.

I won’t bore you with the details, other than to tell you that the way to differentiate between those two species is by the number of nostrils they have. If you want to know more, you have to either come on an Antarctica cruise or ask me yourself.

Tomorrow we expect to be clear of the Drake, and will be able to enjoy our first landing on Antártica.

Departing from Buenos Aires

When we traveled to Antarctica in 2011, we went via Santiago. This time, I am flying to Ushuaia through Buenos Aires.

My journey started in Newark. I was amazed at how empty Newark’s airport was. I left home slightly before 11 AM; by 11:50 I had checked my bag, been through security, changed into my Houston/Buenos Aires clothes in the Polaris lounge bathroom and was enjoying the excellent buffet.

My first flight was to Houston. Because I used miles and points to book my flight, I traveled business class for both segments. Let me tell ya, domestic business class isn’t worth it. International business class, however, DEFINITELY is!

I normally sit on the aisle, but for the Houston flight, I had a window seat. Sadly, when the flight attendant attempted to pass me my lunch tray, I managed to knock a full glass of red wine over myself and the very gracious man sitting next to me. But in my defense, the passenger in the seat in front of me had his seat all the way back, so the clearance was really tight.

As luck would have it, my friend Sharmon’s younger daughter, Sol flew from San Francisco to Buenos Aires and we both had a stop in Houston around the same time. We were on the same flight from Houston to Buenos Aires, so we hung out in the United Club. The time went by MUCH faster because we spent the two hour layover catching up.

I almost didn’t recognize Sweet Sol, because the last time I saw her, she had long blondish hair, no glasses, and wasn’t wearing a mask. She pretended not to notice I smelled like the frat house the morning after a wild party. But then again, stale wine doesn’t smell as bad as stale beer.

Because Sol holds dual citizenship, she was able to whisk thru passport control WAY ahead of me. It took over an hour for me to get thru. HELPFUL HINT: if you’re coming to Argentina, visit the bathroom BEFORE getting in the passport control line. Don’t ask how I came to that conclusion. Let’s just say I was jiggling a lot.

I’d been to Buenos Aires twice before, so I didn’t feel compelled to see Evita’s grave or the Opera House. Instead I figured I’d enjoy the beautiful hotel, and I certainly did.

Check out the rooftop pool:

The view was so spectacular, and the pool was so glorious, I used it on Friday AND Saturday.

My son Greg clued me in to the wonders of ChatGPT. So, when I was unable to find any cafes full of people having lunch outside near Alvear Art Hotel, I asked ChatGPT.

I ended up choosing a delightful cafe about a mile away, which allowed me to stroll thru some very interesting streets.

Waiting for the elevator before tonight’s information session, I met Leslie, another solo traveler. Like me, she’s a widow who is comfortable traveling alone. Her cabin will be across the hall from me.

We had a lovely cocktail “hour”. I’ll admit that our table was having so much fun, we had to be asked to leave! And yes, we closed the place down.

Probably a good thing because we have to be on the bus by 7AM tomorrow. I had hoped for a later departure because Buenos Aires is much closer to Ushuaia than Santiago. But nope. Same departure time as it was in 2011.

Who knows whether I’ll have connectivity once I board the ship, so I’m sending this off now.

Yes, indeed, I’m excited and thrilled that I have already discovered such congenial travel mates.

The first time I went to Antarctica was in January of 2011. At that time, my friends thought Mike, Greg and I had completely lost our minds. “WHY in the world would you want to go THERE?” was the most frequent comment we received from friends and family.

Although Mike was retired, Greg and I were employed, so we were limited to a 15 day journey, 10 days with the National Geographic tour and 5 days on our own traveling to and from Santiago via Lima.

THIS time I’m retired, going solo, so I am able to spend 24 days traveling beyond the Antarctic peninsula to the South Georgia and the Falkland Islands. Instead of meeting the group in Santiago, I’m traveling to Buenos Aires. As with last time, however, we are flying to Ushuaia where we will board the ship, then sail through the dreaded Drake Passage. (Yes, my doctor gave me an adequate supply of seasickness patches. They worked well last time for me and Greg, not as effective for Mike.)

Photo from 2011, taken at the end of our voyage

So why in the world am I going again?

Where else can you experience creatures so unafraid that they follow YOU?

Where else can you see so many different shades of blue and white?

Or learn about the different seals and penguins living in this frozen wonderland?

But won’t it be cold?

Yes, sometimes it is cold, but National Geographic’s trip cost includes matching parkas for those times. (Laura,one of my trip leaders said “there is no such thing as bad weather, only inappropriate clothing choices”.)

Sometimes it’s warm enough to have a cookout on the back deck wearing just a sweater (and a smile) over your tee shirt.

The best part was traveling with National Geographic experts: Photographers, naturalists, geologists, penguin and whale experts. We would gather in the bar every evening for presentations by those experts, showing us how they spent their day.

The walls of the bar/lounge were covered with big screen TVs so no matter where you sit, you still would have a great view.

Fifteen years ago, our ship was the Explorer. This time, I’ll be sailing on the Endurance, a newer ship serving 126 passengers, with 8 cabins for us traveling solo. I’m not sure how effective the internet is at the bottom of our planet. 15 years ago, I didn’t have a smart phone or a blog so it wasn’t an issue.

I hope you’ll join me on this adventure; I’ll be posting when the spirit moves me and the internet grants me connectivity.

2011, a long goodbye

I’m still getting the hang of posting from my “i” stuff. Posting from an iPhone is different from an iPad, and both are different from posting from a desktop. So, my 2011 goodbye got published before I was finished with my fond farewell.

Here are more Antarctica shots
Lunch time

Following the penguin trail to the top of the hill

Our ship looked like a toy when viewed from the top of the hill. Maybe it was a little higher than it looked. We slid all the way back to the bottom on our bottoms