ATW - Day 1

We are in San Diego (thanks Marc and Yasuko for the ride down) on the Oceania Vista . . .

. . . for the longest cruise we have ever done - 120 days ATW (around the world).  Here is the alleged itinerary.  I say alleged because it seems very unlikely that we will be going to the Middle east given the current events.

If we don't go through the Suez Canal, we'll be going down to South Africa and then up the west coast of Africa to pick up the original itinerary.

After we leave San Diego tonight, we'll have 5 days at sea before we arrive at our first port of call - Honolulu.  There might not be much to blog about until then  - stay tuned.

Until then, peace and blessings,

Linda and Larry

The Antarctica Expedition Cruise Wrap Up

The decision to leave Antarctica early turned out to be good one.  The crossing of the Drake Passage was mostly very smooth - the so-called Drake Lake.  We did have some time with 8 or 9 foot waves but that is more than acceptable.  Especially when you consider that the next day, ships were encountering 20 foot waves!  We were really lucky in the crossings in both directions.

Before they took us to the airport for our charter flight back to Buenos Aires, we were taken for a quick trip to Tierra del Fuego National Park.

Our flights home were smooth and our luggage even made it despite the tight connection in Lima, Peru.

Now for some final observations about this trip.  Simply put, I highly recommend the Quark Ultramarine and this particular itinerary.  The ship itself is the perfect vessel for this type of expedition (remember I said earlier that we were told that it was not a cruise but an expedition).  The rooms are nicely appointed with more than adequate space.  The food was perhaps not "The Finest Cuisine at Sea" but it was very good with many options for pescatarians, vegetarians and vegans.  The service by the crew was flawless.  They went to the trouble of learning our names on the first night.  Most importantly, it was Captain Roy and the entire expedition team, led by Sarah Zaubi, that made the expedition outstanding.  We loved the flexibility they showed.  Every night at the recap and plan for the next day, we were told that these were Sarah's hopes and dreams but be prepared for changes.  When the changes came they always seemed to work out.  The expedition team of over 20 people with their own areas of expertise were terrific.   The talks they gave were so interesting.  We had Fabrice, the ornithologist who has written books about penguins.  We had Greg, the geologist and Marla, the marine biologist.  But I think the best of all was Ross, the historian.  His talks about the early history of Antarctic exploration were so interesting and his presentation style brought those adventures to life.

Now, I have to add a more personal note.  In one of the final presentations, they showed us some demographics.  The most striking one for me was that the oldest guest on board was 79 years old.  That put me just 2 years from being the oldest!  I have mixed feelings about that.  I felt good that I was able to do mostly everything (my poor balance did limit some of the places that I would walk to on shore).  But it was humbling to realize that I'm old and getting to the point where these types of expeditions may not be possible soon.  So, my message to you is DO IT WHILE YOU CAN!

With that I'll sign off with,

Peace, blessings, and the expedition spirit,

 Linda, Amy, Emma, and Larry

Day 9 - Blaiklock Island and The Gullet

In the morning we had a zodiac ride in the calm waters and the bright sunshine around Blaiklock Island.  There is nothing more to say about the scenery so I'll just go with the photos.

We were paired with another zodiac that was by the expedition guide Phil who had been in this area in the 90's when an ice sheet encompassed much of the cove.  So we rode deeper into the cove where the ice sheet had once prevailed.  

We got close to some steep mountainsides that were not covered in snow and we got good views of the geological layers.

And, we got to water that was shallow enough that we could even see underwater sea life.

We were supposed to also make a landing to visit another hut, one that, if I remember correctly, Phil had spent some time at when he was doing research in Antarctica.  But we had spent so much time exploring deeper into the cove and we were the last zodiacs out that morning, we had to skip it.  No problem for us.

In the afternoon, it was finally time for the much delayed polar plunge.  All 4 of us decided to skip it.  Linda said that she had had her polar plunge when she got soaked on the zodiac!  122 of the 190 guests did the plunge.  Do I have any regrets about skipping it?  Call me a coward, but not really.

After dinner, we had what would turn out to be our last excursion - a zodiac ride in the so-called Gullet as the sun was going down.  We were now above the Antarctic Circle, so the sun actually did set.  The Gullet is a narrow waterway between Adelaide Island and the Antarctic Peninsula.  We were loaded into zodiacs and proceeded up the Gullet while the ship also moved up the Gullet to the end point of the outing.  It would have been great under any circumstances, but the beautiful lighting added to the experience.  

The great final touch came when we pulled up alongside the zodiac carrying Expedition Leader, Sarah, and champagne!

As I said, this was our last excursion from the ship.  We were supposed to have another morning outing the next day however the weather conditions forecasted for Ushuaia were not favorable the morning we were supposed to arrive. The decision was made to leave Antarctica early so we could arrive in port the night before.  Good decision as I'll explain in my wrap up post.

Peace, blessings, and a toast to Antarctica,

Linda, Amy, Emma, and Larry

Day 7 - Red Rock Ridge and Stonington Island

It was an interesting morning.  In fact it was an interesting night before.  We were anchored off of Red Rock Ridge but there was enough swell that ship rocked and groaned.  The swell continued in the morning which made the zodiac ride to Red Rock a bit of an adventure.  The reward for all of that was that, when we got to shore, we were standing on the mainland of Antarctica for the first time.  Previously, we had been along the peninsula which is really a chain of islands.

The "attraction" there was a large colony of Adelie Penguins intermixed with nesting Cormorants.  They seemed to get along together quite well.

The zodiac ride back to the ship was still rough.  When we pulled up alongside the ship a wave hit and Linda got a good soaking.  Thankfully, her waterproof pants and muck boots kept her dry inside!

The afternoon brought about another zodiac ride, this time in much calmer waters.  As usual, there were incredible icebergs and a few seals.  We never got tired of seeing these sights.

                                        

We also saw some research huts from the 50's.

I know that I am sounding repetitive but, it was just another fascinating day.  

Peace, blessings, and fascination,

Linda, Amy Emma, and Larry