In fact it is just a very short swim from Jougla Point on Wiencke Island to the tiny islet named Goudier. But the transit is perilous. Twelve feet of sinuous body moves silently beneath the sea. No ripple reveals its presence. Its pelage is speckled with irregular spots, the pattern blending with the reflections of the sun and clouds. Perfectly camouflaged, the body terminates in a reptilian face, the gape a broad and evil smile. Suddenly the water boils. A flash of black and white is trapped within those jaws. A leopard seal thrashes from side to side stripping away the penguin's feathered coat and swallowing the fat and muscle contained within. The gentoo population has decreased by one this day and we all bore witness to the act.
But we crossed the water easily in our handy fleet of Zodiacs. Back and forth they sailed, from ship to Point and Point to island and back around again. Mountain peaks surrounded us, sharp and jagged like the teeth of the seal. Goudier Island was rounded, ground down by glaciers of long ago. Its convexity was accented even more by a carpet of still deep snow. On a bare and rocky perch a British flag flew. Smoke rose from the chimney of a cabin nearby, its orange-framed windows adding a cheery splash of color that matched exactly the beaks of the thousand pairs of gentoo penguins sharing the space. The world's most southern post office was open and we poured inside to browse through the museum maintained by the British Antarctic Heritage Trust or to purchase stamps or souvenirs.
The civilization of the morning gave way to total peace and isolation during the afternoon. Not a breath of air moved between the massive icebergs. The water was obsidian colored and any disturbance created the conchoidal patterns typical of broken volcanic glass. From high on Pleneau Island, red coated observers watched bright yellow specks fanning out in all directions. Each kayak bore a friend or acquaintance into his or her own private wilderness where the only sound was the creaking of terns and the background hum from the nearby penguin rookery. Not far away a Zodiac sat quietly too, listening to the exhalation of a humpback whale. This closeness to the natural world could make one wish that the day would never end. Today our wish will be granted for this is a day with no sunset. But we must sleep for the Antarctic Circle is within our reach.
