James’ and Sara’s Excellent Antarctica Adventure

Day 9-10: Sea days – a mixed bag of information

We left South Georgia Island last night. It was pretty rough sailing throughout the night …..about 65 knot winds (apparently 75 knot winds are hurricane strength) ….so James and I both felt a bit queasy (but today is better!)

The lashing waves hitting the lounge window

Before leaving South Georgia, we did our first Zodiac cruise….we stayed in the zodiac and saw wildlife and landscapes from the zodiac.

All these birds are gathered in one spot feeding on a dead penguin in the water. Circle of life!
These are our first sight of Macaroni penguins, so named because of the yellow streaks on their hand ( you’ll have to look closely!)
Leopard seals…..yes yes yes they do look like rocks
A white petrel which is apparently rare to see

We were meant to have 2 sea days before reaching Antarctica but the weather is so favourable that Scenic Eclipse will now make its first ever landing/visit to the South Orkney islands tomorrow. How exciting!

Rob has asked how near can we get to the wildlife….you are meant to keep a distance of 5 m, and to give the wildlife right of way if they wander across your path (which occurs often). With the density of penguins it is hard to stay 5 m away.

The king penguins are completely relaxed about humans being present and you can get really close to them. The baby fur seals are very curious and will try to play with you, the older fur seals are a bit trickier and sometimes they look like they are about to attack you…..in these situations, we’ve been told to lift our arms above our heads to look bigger, yell at them or use a walking pole to point at them!!! And don’t get anywhere close to elephant seals!!!

Here’s an elephant seal lumbering through the water. For their size, they move quite fast

Food onboard is absolutely sensational.

Just like James has his spot in the coffee shop, here’s my favourite spot in the lunchtime venue, the Yacht Terrace

And a couple of nights ago I (along with some other passengers) got the opportunity to have dinner with some of the Discovery team staff, who are an amazing bunch of experts with degrees in glaciology, kelp, ornithology and whale studies, just to mention a few!


And in case you are missing seeing fur seals, here’s a couple of cuties

And another dose of king penguins!!

awaywiththebirds

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11 responses to “James’ and Sara’s Excellent Antarctica Adventure”

  1. Please could we have a photo of the whisky bar? I can see it reflected in the photo of the waves looking through the lounge window.
    The Macaroni penguins are super cool 😎

  2. Another amazing blog! Those fur seals look so cute. How do you and James cope with the cold (when outside of course)? Despite warm clothing, does it make you shiver and do you feel it in your bones?
    Please send some cold to us! So sick of the sticky humidity!
    So pleased to have one of my siblings back in Oz but still miss you Sar xxxxx love to both you and James xxxx

  6. Seeing wildlife in its own habitat..doing their thing thing is great.Great photos keep coming.
    A feast for the eyes and the stomach,what a combination.

  7. I know this is stupid but I can’t help myself: I amazed at technology which means your window could be that thin and still completely waterproof. I mean look at it, toasty inside yet so cold, splashy and wet just a few centimetres away (or inches if you are so inclined).
    Also pics of the whisky bar gets my vote too!

  8. Sar, your blog is amazing – you really take us on the journey with you. Thanks for all the fascinating titbits of information and great photos. Wow, what a trip.

  9. Wow, you are so lucky to be on this adventure.
    I feel like I am on the journey with you.
    Fabulous!!