Seno Montanas; White Narrows; Puerto Natales
Shortly after breakfast this morning we boarded the Zodiacs for a cruise through the beautifully scenic Seno Montanƒdas. In order to enter this fjord, the drivers had to navigate the boats through the remains of a terminal moraine that in places made the channel extremely shallow. It was worth the effort though, for as soon as we were through the narrow gap, we were cruising through seemingly milky, turquoise waters. This unexpected phenomenon is known as glacial flour, whereby fine sediments formed by the massive forces of ice on rock eventually become suspended in the water. The steep mountain sides were covered by Southern Beech forest and every other bend appeared to have waterfalls and cascades descending spectacularly from the ice-covered peaks. The scenery was stunning, so we were able to ignore the fact that it was drizzling (a more gentle word for rain).
During the afternoon, we were out on deck to watch as the National Geographic Endeavour made her way through White Narrows, a 90 meter-wide channel, which is only as wide as our ship is long. Our transit through this beautiful area was very exciting, and once again the scenery was breathtaking. We spent the remainder of the afternoon cruising towards our next port of call, Puerto Natales.
Shortly after breakfast this morning we boarded the Zodiacs for a cruise through the beautifully scenic Seno Montanƒdas. In order to enter this fjord, the drivers had to navigate the boats through the remains of a terminal moraine that in places made the channel extremely shallow. It was worth the effort though, for as soon as we were through the narrow gap, we were cruising through seemingly milky, turquoise waters. This unexpected phenomenon is known as glacial flour, whereby fine sediments formed by the massive forces of ice on rock eventually become suspended in the water. The steep mountain sides were covered by Southern Beech forest and every other bend appeared to have waterfalls and cascades descending spectacularly from the ice-covered peaks. The scenery was stunning, so we were able to ignore the fact that it was drizzling (a more gentle word for rain).
During the afternoon, we were out on deck to watch as the National Geographic Endeavour made her way through White Narrows, a 90 meter-wide channel, which is only as wide as our ship is long. Our transit through this beautiful area was very exciting, and once again the scenery was breathtaking. We spent the remainder of the afternoon cruising towards our next port of call, Puerto Natales.
