Petermann Island, Booth Island & Lemaire Channel
We wake up to low grey clouds, a gentle 2 knot breeze and an air temperature just a couple of notches above freezing. Our morning destination is the Island of Petermann, and we are looking forward to becoming better acquainted with the "home" of our Oceanites friends. Soon we are on our way; today the landing is challenging for most of us as we scramble over some large boulders and then negotiate some loose rocks before getting on to safer ground. Melissa, Heather and Ian welcome us and are soon telling us about what camp life is like and most importantly we are able to see where they are carrying out the research on penguins and other birds.
We then head off with our naturalists to various points on the island: we catch a lovely view southwards with icebergs offshore or we head off northwards to where the Adelie and Gentoo penguins nest. There we are also able to get up close to the Antarctic Shags which also breed on the island. Of course the ever present skuas are all about and near the landing site the large chicks are able on several occasions and, in no uncertain terms, forcefully chase off a skua. In the end this wonderful predator settles down at a safe distance from the penguins, one could say that it is, for the time being, a stalemate.
During lunch the ship travels a short distance northwards to Booth Island which is to be our afternoon destination. By this time we are in the midst of a snow storm with winds now reaching 30 knots. Just off our stern large icebergs appear and disappear in the gloom. None of this will deter us from heading off to the place where Jean Baptiste Charcot spent a winter in 1904; some of the remains from the expedition can still be seen today. Charcot led two expeditions to the Antarctic Peninsula, the first aboard the Francais and the second with the Pourquoi-Pas? Ashore we get a rare opportunity of seeing all three of the brush tail penguins in the same place. Most of the penguins are well into their molt and they always seem somewhat forlorn as they weather these energy sapping two to three weeks.
However it is an inquisitive leopard seal that steals this afternoon's show. It shows great interest in the Zodiacs. There are moments where it shows its enormous speed chasing the rubber craft and spectacularly leaping out of the water en route; but for most of the time she darts back and forth between the Zodiacs around the landing area and treats us to a super-advanced lesson in liquid motion. This beautiful animal moves almost effortlessly in the water using both hind and fore flippers to propel it and then suddenly turn on a dime and all this done right side up or upside down. In between these magnificent displays it pokes its huge head out of the water to survey what is happening above the surface, in the process eyeing us up closely. It is experiences like this which make our cruise so special and one is so thankful to witness these marvels. It also reminds us of what we must all do to actively engage our fellow human beings to become deeply committed to the long term preservation of this remarkable place.
We wake up to low grey clouds, a gentle 2 knot breeze and an air temperature just a couple of notches above freezing. Our morning destination is the Island of Petermann, and we are looking forward to becoming better acquainted with the "home" of our Oceanites friends. Soon we are on our way; today the landing is challenging for most of us as we scramble over some large boulders and then negotiate some loose rocks before getting on to safer ground. Melissa, Heather and Ian welcome us and are soon telling us about what camp life is like and most importantly we are able to see where they are carrying out the research on penguins and other birds.
We then head off with our naturalists to various points on the island: we catch a lovely view southwards with icebergs offshore or we head off northwards to where the Adelie and Gentoo penguins nest. There we are also able to get up close to the Antarctic Shags which also breed on the island. Of course the ever present skuas are all about and near the landing site the large chicks are able on several occasions and, in no uncertain terms, forcefully chase off a skua. In the end this wonderful predator settles down at a safe distance from the penguins, one could say that it is, for the time being, a stalemate.
During lunch the ship travels a short distance northwards to Booth Island which is to be our afternoon destination. By this time we are in the midst of a snow storm with winds now reaching 30 knots. Just off our stern large icebergs appear and disappear in the gloom. None of this will deter us from heading off to the place where Jean Baptiste Charcot spent a winter in 1904; some of the remains from the expedition can still be seen today. Charcot led two expeditions to the Antarctic Peninsula, the first aboard the Francais and the second with the Pourquoi-Pas? Ashore we get a rare opportunity of seeing all three of the brush tail penguins in the same place. Most of the penguins are well into their molt and they always seem somewhat forlorn as they weather these energy sapping two to three weeks.
However it is an inquisitive leopard seal that steals this afternoon's show. It shows great interest in the Zodiacs. There are moments where it shows its enormous speed chasing the rubber craft and spectacularly leaping out of the water en route; but for most of the time she darts back and forth between the Zodiacs around the landing area and treats us to a super-advanced lesson in liquid motion. This beautiful animal moves almost effortlessly in the water using both hind and fore flippers to propel it and then suddenly turn on a dime and all this done right side up or upside down. In between these magnificent displays it pokes its huge head out of the water to survey what is happening above the surface, in the process eyeing us up closely. It is experiences like this which make our cruise so special and one is so thankful to witness these marvels. It also reminds us of what we must all do to actively engage our fellow human beings to become deeply committed to the long term preservation of this remarkable place.
