Deception Island
The somber shores of Deception Island loomed before the ship as we made our approach before breakfast. Many of the guests were out on deck to see the dramatic entrance into this volcano’s collapsed caldera through the narrow gap known as Neptune’s Bellows.
Once inside the caldera, the ship pulled into Whaler’s Bay, a protected corner of Port Foster. This is the site of an early Norwegian shore-based whaling station, whose remains can still be seen protruding from the ash flows that have resulted from the most recent volcanic eruptions. When shore-based whaling ended, both Britain and Chile established scientific bases here which they were forced to abandon, and which were subsequently destroyed in the early 1970’s during the most recent volcanic eruption.
We spent the morning hiking up to Neptune’s Window for a spectacular view of the old base and the sea outside. Many of us were content to simply wander about the ruins of the old base and station.
During lunch the ship repositioned further into Port Foster to Telefon Bay where a huge crater was formed during the 1971 eruption. A brisk walk up to the crater’s rim gave us a view of the small melt-water lake in the bottom and a chance to ponder the enormity of the blast that created the feature.
A mile or so down the beach we could see clouds of steam rising from the water’s edge in Pendulum Cove. With favorable conditions presenting themselves, the decision was made to let our most intrepid adventurers “swim” where the hot water from the fumaroles mixes with the frigid water of the bay. At least 35 of us stripped down to our bathing suits and took the plunge.
Soon we were sailing back out through Neptune’s Bellows towards tomorrow’s destination, the fabled Elephant Island.
The somber shores of Deception Island loomed before the ship as we made our approach before breakfast. Many of the guests were out on deck to see the dramatic entrance into this volcano’s collapsed caldera through the narrow gap known as Neptune’s Bellows.
Once inside the caldera, the ship pulled into Whaler’s Bay, a protected corner of Port Foster. This is the site of an early Norwegian shore-based whaling station, whose remains can still be seen protruding from the ash flows that have resulted from the most recent volcanic eruptions. When shore-based whaling ended, both Britain and Chile established scientific bases here which they were forced to abandon, and which were subsequently destroyed in the early 1970’s during the most recent volcanic eruption.
We spent the morning hiking up to Neptune’s Window for a spectacular view of the old base and the sea outside. Many of us were content to simply wander about the ruins of the old base and station.
During lunch the ship repositioned further into Port Foster to Telefon Bay where a huge crater was formed during the 1971 eruption. A brisk walk up to the crater’s rim gave us a view of the small melt-water lake in the bottom and a chance to ponder the enormity of the blast that created the feature.
A mile or so down the beach we could see clouds of steam rising from the water’s edge in Pendulum Cove. With favorable conditions presenting themselves, the decision was made to let our most intrepid adventurers “swim” where the hot water from the fumaroles mixes with the frigid water of the bay. At least 35 of us stripped down to our bathing suits and took the plunge.
Soon we were sailing back out through Neptune’s Bellows towards tomorrow’s destination, the fabled Elephant Island.
