After a day of rocking and rolling, the calmer waters we awoke to this morning were welcomed. Although our journey across the Drake Passage was considered by the seasoned crossers to be relatively mild, for those of us unaccustomed to continuous motion of the sea, the motion was enough to be memorable. The southern tip of South America came into view and we passed by one of the most historically treacherous areas in all of the oceans. The breeze was warmer, if not still strong, and black-browed albatross, southern giant petrels, and other pelagic birds soared in the wake of the National Geographic Orion.
Interspersed with a lecture on wintering over at a British base and documentaries on glacial retreat and rounding Cape Horn, we readied ourselves for disembarkation. We exchanged our boots and rain pants for our passports – a bittersweet exchange. We ventured out on deck, some of us lucky enough to see Peale’s dolphins bow riding just in front of the ship.
The recap was special this evening. A slide show of photos contributed by guests was set to music and played on every TV in the lounge. Penguins on icebergs, a resting leopard seal, stark mountains rising above the sea, a crabeater seal yawning, intrepid hikers on fast ice, the National Geographic Orion dwarfed by the immensity of Antarctic – each photo a memory of an amazing expedition to Antarctica! The Captain joined us in the lounge for his farewell…until we meet again on another adventure.
