WorldTravelReynolds

Welcome to Antarctica! Gerlache Strait will be our first cruising experience. It is a famous piece of water on the west side of the peninsula that separates it from the Palmer Archipelago.

It is 200 km (124 mi) long, is 50 km (31 mi) wide on its northern end and as narrow as 10 km (6.2 mi) wide on the southern end. It’s named in honor of Belgian explorer Adrien de Gerlache who first explored the area in 1898, although the discoverer himself originally named it “Belgiac Strait”

It was a heavily trafficked whaler hunting grounds during the early 20th century and is still one of the most sailed through regions of Antarctica. Many consider it the most beautiful area on the continent.

I Never thought we would ever travel to the ends of the earth but once again we are here in person observing a natural wonder. Not a designated world wonder but Antartica can be ranked up there as far as I’m concerned.

After a very rough time getting through Drakes passage we have arrived in the most beautiful white paradise.

Today we arrived into the Antarctic Peninsula, the closest part of the continent to South America.

Snow covered mountains and uniquely shaped icebergs are just the beginning. The temperatures dropped to 32 degrees F and snow started falling during the day. A stark difference from 5 days ago in Argentina when the temperatures rose to a sweltering 98 degrees.

We strolled through (by ship) the icebergs very slowly and saw a massive amount of penguins and whales jumping and playing. A beautiful winter wonderland indeed. The icebergs are such a beautiful sapphire blue. Here, nature paints the canvas.

We drank hot chocolate most of the day and stayed bundled up in hats and gloves and scarves. My feet and hands were freezing most of the day but it didn’t stop me from walking around the ship and gazing at the beauty that lies here.

The peaceful sound you hear of some splashing of wildlife jumping or the swish of the wind had us just staring until we couldn’t stand the cold any more. Then we would go inside, drink some more hot chocolate or coffee and return.

The black and white tuxedo penguins waddle around on the icebergs or a full colony will swim and jump just below the ship. One has to decide, do I take photos to capture this moment in time or do I capture it only in my mind. A tough decision but we did both. There was enough wildlife to have dinner and enjoy the show outside our windows. Although they were a little dirty.

We were in total awe as we watched the humpback whales travel with their families below the surface and coming up for air periodically but the wow moments come when they jump in the air and breach just out of reach.

In the afternoon we arrived at Paradise Bay, a harbor near Lemaire and Bryce Islands with jagged, rock-like chunks of ice that overlook the bay. Here is where we saw many whales and penguins.

Originally the whalers who came here in the early 1920s called this spot “Paradise Harbor” Although it’s good to know that whaling in the area is now banned. This spot is one of the coldest and windiest places on Earth where the weather is unpredictable and cruise routes can change at the last minute. It was terribly windy and cold but that didn’t stop us.

There are no words to describe the beauty of this circle of water, blue icebergs, white snow capped mountains and of course the wildlife. We even saw some birds we believe are called brown Skuas landing on some of the magnificent floating ice.

Among the icebergs and wildlife there are two scientific research bases located here. Although Chile’s station is no longer in use it has a designation as a Historic Site as it has a shelter that was used by the Chilean president when he became the first head of state to visit Antarctica. The other base belonging to Argentina, is perched above the bay, and is only open in the summer. We didn’t see either of these.

In this 3rd continent we have been to after leaving in December, we continue to be mesmerized by the beauty this world beholds.

Tomorrow we will be in Elephant Island. Not sure what we will see there but I’m sure it will be much of the same. Just another day of glorious beauty.

Our days are very long here. The sun rises at 3.30 am and sets at 10:30 – midnight. Even at dark it’s still light outside like almost dusk all night. So glad I have an inside room. It’s dark all the time!

After tomorrow we will head back through Drakes Passage which wont be near as dramatic as our last trip down here. We hope it stays just calm enough to get into the Falkland Islands.

May God bless you always!

Chuck & Lea Ann