Drake Passage & Aitcho Island
Our voyage across the 550 mile Drake Passage continued to be blessed, and it was as if we were crossing the "Drake Lake" rather than the notorious "Drake Shake." As we had a following sea and light winds, our crossing was quicker than expected, and by noon we could see the high peaks of the South Shetland Islands. In anticipation of an early landing, Ian Bullock gave us a talk about penguins and their amazing diving abilities.
We were all out on deck as we approached the islands, and most of us were lucky to spot a Light-mantled Sooty Albatross as it circled the ship, as well as porpoising penguins, heading to the same islands as us. Our landing was in the Aitcho Islands, where we were greeted by the raucous calls of penguins. Just up from the beach the site was surprisingly green, with algae and moss covering most of the snow free areas.
Our reception committee consisted of Gentoo and Chinstrap penguins, who bounded ashore, out of the surf, with what appeared to be a similar glee to ours at reaching land. They then made their way up to their nesting areas, consisting of separate zones for the two species, as if pre-planning had taken place. Additionally, we could see that not only were the species separated by location, but it was clear that the two species were at different stages in the breeding cycle; the Chinstrap chicks were still being guarded by their parents, whilst the Gentoo chicks were hanging out together in crèches, as they had reached such a size that both their parents had to go to sea to get enough food for them.
As we walked with the naturalists around the penguin colonies, it was incredible to see just how mischievous the Gentoo penguin chicks were. Many were adventurous enough to come over and peck at our boots, pull on our trousers and pick up our dropped gloves.
Back on board, we had a presentation from Shaun Powell about the pinnipeds (seals) which we were likely to encounter on our adventure to Antarctica, and the Captain took us through the Gerlache Strait towards Antarctic Sound.
Our voyage across the 550 mile Drake Passage continued to be blessed, and it was as if we were crossing the "Drake Lake" rather than the notorious "Drake Shake." As we had a following sea and light winds, our crossing was quicker than expected, and by noon we could see the high peaks of the South Shetland Islands. In anticipation of an early landing, Ian Bullock gave us a talk about penguins and their amazing diving abilities.
We were all out on deck as we approached the islands, and most of us were lucky to spot a Light-mantled Sooty Albatross as it circled the ship, as well as porpoising penguins, heading to the same islands as us. Our landing was in the Aitcho Islands, where we were greeted by the raucous calls of penguins. Just up from the beach the site was surprisingly green, with algae and moss covering most of the snow free areas.
Our reception committee consisted of Gentoo and Chinstrap penguins, who bounded ashore, out of the surf, with what appeared to be a similar glee to ours at reaching land. They then made their way up to their nesting areas, consisting of separate zones for the two species, as if pre-planning had taken place. Additionally, we could see that not only were the species separated by location, but it was clear that the two species were at different stages in the breeding cycle; the Chinstrap chicks were still being guarded by their parents, whilst the Gentoo chicks were hanging out together in crèches, as they had reached such a size that both their parents had to go to sea to get enough food for them.
As we walked with the naturalists around the penguin colonies, it was incredible to see just how mischievous the Gentoo penguin chicks were. Many were adventurous enough to come over and peck at our boots, pull on our trousers and pick up our dropped gloves.
Back on board, we had a presentation from Shaun Powell about the pinnipeds (seals) which we were likely to encounter on our adventure to Antarctica, and the Captain took us through the Gerlache Strait towards Antarctic Sound.
