At Sea
There is a certain feeling of melancholy when a person leaves a place they have grown to love. It is not despair, but rather a longing, almost an urgent need, to get back there. This is the feeling the guests onboard the National Geographic Endeavour share as we sail north through the Drake Passage, the white continent long gone from sight but still lying heavily in our minds. The last week has been a blur of majestic ice bergs, yellow kayaks, endearing penguins, and humpback whales. Each of us has a favorite, something that touched us personally and gave us polar fever, the craving to delve deeper into the depths of Antarctica, to learn, experience, and fall more deeply in love.
One of the unique opportunities the guests on all Lindblad trips have is to experience the undersea world without getting wet. Each ship in the fleet carries an Undersea Specialist, a person who is dedicated to filming what goes on below the ocean’s surface, and bringing it to the guests in the comfort of the lounge. Our Undersea Specialist Dennis Cornejo, and myself as dive buddy have had the opportunity to dive at some of the most extraordinary sights on the Antarctic Peninsula, disproving the common misconception that the waters of Antarctica are too cold (-2 to 0ºC), to support much marine life. In reality, the Southern Ocean waters are some of the richest in the world, creating a perfect environment for underwater organisms.
Pictured here is the nudibranch, Austrodoris kerguelensis. Nudibranches can be as small as a pencil eraser, and as large as a cucumber, decorated in a variety of body styles consisting of long spikes or the knobby body of Austrodoris. Nudibranchs have a keen sense of smell, using rhinophores which telescope from the top of their head, guiding them towards their desired meal of sponges. At the other end of the body are the external gills, growing out from the body like delicate flowers.
The underwater world of Antarctica can be a weird and wonderful place. It is filled with creatures that look similar to those in your nightmares and dreams - giant bugs and graceful seals. I am always amazed at the resilience and diversity of the benthos, as well as the brilliant colors that line the nooks and crannies - rays of sunshine in what some would call a cold, dark, and unforgiving world.
There is a certain feeling of melancholy when a person leaves a place they have grown to love. It is not despair, but rather a longing, almost an urgent need, to get back there. This is the feeling the guests onboard the National Geographic Endeavour share as we sail north through the Drake Passage, the white continent long gone from sight but still lying heavily in our minds. The last week has been a blur of majestic ice bergs, yellow kayaks, endearing penguins, and humpback whales. Each of us has a favorite, something that touched us personally and gave us polar fever, the craving to delve deeper into the depths of Antarctica, to learn, experience, and fall more deeply in love.
One of the unique opportunities the guests on all Lindblad trips have is to experience the undersea world without getting wet. Each ship in the fleet carries an Undersea Specialist, a person who is dedicated to filming what goes on below the ocean’s surface, and bringing it to the guests in the comfort of the lounge. Our Undersea Specialist Dennis Cornejo, and myself as dive buddy have had the opportunity to dive at some of the most extraordinary sights on the Antarctic Peninsula, disproving the common misconception that the waters of Antarctica are too cold (-2 to 0ºC), to support much marine life. In reality, the Southern Ocean waters are some of the richest in the world, creating a perfect environment for underwater organisms.
Pictured here is the nudibranch, Austrodoris kerguelensis. Nudibranches can be as small as a pencil eraser, and as large as a cucumber, decorated in a variety of body styles consisting of long spikes or the knobby body of Austrodoris. Nudibranchs have a keen sense of smell, using rhinophores which telescope from the top of their head, guiding them towards their desired meal of sponges. At the other end of the body are the external gills, growing out from the body like delicate flowers.
The underwater world of Antarctica can be a weird and wonderful place. It is filled with creatures that look similar to those in your nightmares and dreams - giant bugs and graceful seals. I am always amazed at the resilience and diversity of the benthos, as well as the brilliant colors that line the nooks and crannies - rays of sunshine in what some would call a cold, dark, and unforgiving world.
