James’ and Sara’s Excellent Antarctica Adventure

Day 15 : Portal point, Charlotte bay and unexpected visitors to the polar plunge

Up early for a zodiac landing on Portal point, another stop on the Antarctic continent (rather than an island). It was snowing quite heavily but not that cold.

There’s a fur seal with his head up in this pic
Bird (species unknown to Sara) enjoying the snow

As we were on the continent again, the Antarctica flag came out again….

note the 3 icebergs in the background

Where’s James? Well he went out with the stand up paddle boarding group and had a great time chasing about a dozen humpback whales around the bay

In the afternoon, the marina was opened from the back of the ship for the polar plunge, where passengers can elect to jump into the freezing water. (Ok, james did this, Sara piked!)

So the plunge started……

Note the Getaway crew are recording this!


here’s james ready for his plunge

But then, the plunge had to be stopped because all these whales came around the ship to see what was going on…

They used the zodiacs to try and divert the whales away from the ship

But the whales were intent on staying around the marina

So they decided to temporarily postpone the plunge. Everyone went back inside. They pulled up the marina and the ship sailed north for an hour or so to an area which had no whales. The plunge proceeded.

The crew and captain were excited as this had never happened before, the passengers were excited because everyone got great footage of whales and those who wanted to plunge whale-free were able to do so. A great conclusion to a fantastic adventure.

We are now headed to the notoriously choppy Drake Passage to take us back to Ushuaia.

awaywiththebirds

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

  1. Photos of James post-plunge please Sar. How magnificant this has been for you two and for us all. Thanks for the blogging.

  2. What a fabulous end to an amazing adventure
    Thanks for your posts Sara. Soooo Informative

  3. Absolutely amazing experience… what a superb time you have both enjoyed in every way. Thanks again for all… exceptional. Xx😆😘

  5. What a fabulous conclusion to your amazing holiday – safe travels back to Ushuaia and then ……. enjoy the desert …. I guess there’s going to be a very big change in temperature!

  6. The whales probably had their siesta iterrupted.How dare these tourist interrupt my routine.Thanks very much for all the blogging,it was most informative as well as educational. Check the scales when you get back…

  7. Thanks for a wonderful travelogue – beautiful photos and great descriptions, I almost feel I was there with you (but sadly not). Yes, we need a pic of James in the water please! You haven’t commented on your fellow travellers. Did you find some kindred spirits? Enjoy the next adventure in the Atacama. xx

  8. Thank you for the lovely book you have written over the last few weeks. The photos are beyond believable. It would’ve been better for me if David Attenborough could have done an audiobook! This trip is phenomenal and I hope you are both well. Lots of love

  9. Wonderful photos and videos. What a wonderful experience for you both xx