At Sea in the Drake Passage
Ship’s position as of 12:00pm 56°50.2’ S 67°21.9’W
Where is Antarctica? Our guests travel for two or three days using the fastest modern transportation available and still have another two before they can set their sights on the continent. How can this be? The answer lies in the Drake Passage. This forsaken stretch of open water can be some of the most treacherous on earth, and yet Antarctica still beckons. It calls us across some 500 miles over the submerged tail of the Andes with only the albatross to keep us company. We come to experience what men before us have perished for…a glimpse at untamed lands, perhaps some of the last on earth. Sometime tonight we will pass through the Antarctic convergence, a band of frigid water that circumnavigates the White Continent and helps maintain its unique ecology. The convergence is the true boundary. It is an invisible barrier keeping almost all creatures unfit for the harsh Southern Ocean at bay; all except man. We cheat the barrier, but at a cost.
Many early explorers paid with their lives. These were hardened men and some of the best those times had to offer, and yet they could not conquer Antarctica. Even those that managed to survive still suffered in the extremes this continent can bestow upon its trespassers. And now the Drake taxes us. It doesn’t care that many are weary from travel across countless miles to get here. It only knows that we don’t belong and therefore exerts its will against us. But we venture forth, undaunted; for we know the treasures that await our journeys’ end. We want to see for ourselves the bounty of fauna and sublime panoramas that can be found nowhere else on earth.
The unaccommodating Drake maybe able to keep many of us below decks, but we are a resourceful lot. We spent our day preparing for what lies ahead with lectures and acquainting ourselves with the ship. And this evening, as if to mock the Drake and its fierce reputation, we had cocktails and celebrated our arrival on board with a sumptuous feast prepared by our dedicated galley. Then, we toasted our good fortune, such that allows us to pay a fair toll for a priceless experience.
Ship’s position as of 12:00pm 56°50.2’ S 67°21.9’W
Where is Antarctica? Our guests travel for two or three days using the fastest modern transportation available and still have another two before they can set their sights on the continent. How can this be? The answer lies in the Drake Passage. This forsaken stretch of open water can be some of the most treacherous on earth, and yet Antarctica still beckons. It calls us across some 500 miles over the submerged tail of the Andes with only the albatross to keep us company. We come to experience what men before us have perished for…a glimpse at untamed lands, perhaps some of the last on earth. Sometime tonight we will pass through the Antarctic convergence, a band of frigid water that circumnavigates the White Continent and helps maintain its unique ecology. The convergence is the true boundary. It is an invisible barrier keeping almost all creatures unfit for the harsh Southern Ocean at bay; all except man. We cheat the barrier, but at a cost.
Many early explorers paid with their lives. These were hardened men and some of the best those times had to offer, and yet they could not conquer Antarctica. Even those that managed to survive still suffered in the extremes this continent can bestow upon its trespassers. And now the Drake taxes us. It doesn’t care that many are weary from travel across countless miles to get here. It only knows that we don’t belong and therefore exerts its will against us. But we venture forth, undaunted; for we know the treasures that await our journeys’ end. We want to see for ourselves the bounty of fauna and sublime panoramas that can be found nowhere else on earth.
The unaccommodating Drake maybe able to keep many of us below decks, but we are a resourceful lot. We spent our day preparing for what lies ahead with lectures and acquainting ourselves with the ship. And this evening, as if to mock the Drake and its fierce reputation, we had cocktails and celebrated our arrival on board with a sumptuous feast prepared by our dedicated galley. Then, we toasted our good fortune, such that allows us to pay a fair toll for a priceless experience.
